Post COVID-19, still wear a face mask? Self-perceived facial attractiveness reduces mask-wearing intention

Abstract

With the emerging post-COVID era, wearing face masks has become a domain of personal choice. Then, who wants to continue wearing a mask when it is no longer mandatory? In this article, we expect and examine the role of self-perceived facial attractiveness in predicting mask-wearing intention and its mechanism across three studies (total N = 1,030). Studies 1 and 2 demonstrated that individuals with high (vs. low) self-perceived attractiveness were less willing to wear a mask, due to a weaker endorsement of the belief that mask-wearing enhances their perceived attractiveness (i.e., mask attractiveness belief). Study 3 further revealed that this mediational association was stronger in situations where the need to deliver a favorable impression was high (job interview context) versus low (walking a dog context). Overall, we provide a novel finding that self-perceived attractiveness has significant effects on mask-wearing intention via mask attractiveness belief in the post-pandemic of COVID-19. Our findings suggest that mask-wearing can shift from being a self-protection measure during the COVID-19 pandemic to a self-presentation tactic in the post-pandemic era.

Predicting the Adoption of COVID-19 Public Health Preventive Measures in Ethiopia: Application of Health Belief Model

“…This perhaps may be attributed to beliefs people have about masks irrespective of their health benefits. For example, evidence shows that individuals with high (vs. low) self-perceived attractiveness were less willing to wear a mask, due to a weaker endorsement of the belief that mask-wearing enhances their perceived attractiveness i.e., mask attractiveness belief [28].…”

Does wearing a mask promote consumer uniqueness seeking?

“…For instance, for individuals with social anxiety, mask-wearing enables self-concealment, serving as a behavior to satisfy their own sense of security ( Saint and Moscovitch, 2021 ). Additionally, for groups with perceived lower facial attractiveness, wearing masks to some extent enhances facial modification, seen as a strategy to enhance self-attractiveness ( Cha et al, 2023 ).…”

Contextual and psychological factors of mask-wearing among secondary school students: A cross-sectional survey from Toronto

“…For the perceived benefits, however, it is interesting how the participants prioritized the appearance enhancement and mental health benefits of wearing masks over the medical benefits themselves. Some studies have demonstrated how masks tend to increase the perception of facial attractiveness, particularly for those who have conventionally-unattractive faces (35)(36)(37), but individuals with higher self-perceived facial attractiveness are actually less likely to wear a mask (38). In a post-COVID era where the health concerns surrounding the pandemic have diminished dramatically, the incentive for mask-wearing may primarily come from its cosmetic purposes instead of self-protection or altruistic motives (38).…”

“…Some studies have demonstrated how masks tend to increase the perception of facial attractiveness, particularly for those who have conventionally-unattractive faces (35)(36)(37), but individuals with higher self-perceived facial attractiveness are actually less likely to wear a mask (38). In a post-COVID era where the health concerns surrounding the pandemic have diminished dramatically, the incentive for mask-wearing may primarily come from its cosmetic purposes instead of self-protection or altruistic motives (38). Regarding mental health, Qin et al (39) found that frequent mask-wearing had protective associations against psychological distress for schoolchildren.…”