Women's Makeup Careers: An Interpretive Study of. Color Cosmetic Use and. "Face Value". Stacey M. Fabricant. Torpac, Inc. Stephen J. Gould. Baruch College ...
Women's Makeup Careers: An Interpretive Study of Color Cosmetic Use and "Face Value" Stacey M. Fabricant Torpac, Inc. Stephen J. Gould Baruch College, The City University of New York
ABSTRACT This article reports on an interpretive study of women's use of makeup in which various aspects and dimensions of women's makeup careers are examined. The primary aspects considered include trajectories of experience, the predominant ways or styles of makeup use that are reflected in a typology of individual differences, and identity construction and reflection. The varying perspectives of women with respect to women's roles as associated with makeup use are also discussed, and research implications are offered. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Physical attractiveness plays an important role in interpersonal interactions because it provides easily accessible, nonverbal quasiinformation about a person to others in the form of illusions of personality (e.g., a high cheekbone is thought to incorporate a built-in smile, Nakdimen, 1984). Such attractiveness may be manipulated, and people (in the U.S. mostly women) use makeup and other forms of external adornments to influence the nonverbal information they wish to communicate (e.g., using cheek makeup to enhance high cheekbones and their built-in smile, Nakdimen, 1984). In this regard, external adornment has hisPsychology & Marketing © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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torically played a significant role in various cultures to convey a state, situation, social class, or status, to place the individual in a gender category, to enhance role performance, and to enhance beauty (Bloch & Richins, 1992; Rubinstein, 1985). In the case of makeup, which will be studied here, we suggest that in serving these various roles it especially enhances facial beauty and value. This is important because the face is a major component of attractiveness and source of information about a person (Graham & Jouhar, 1980). External adornments are thought to enhance attractiveness in two ways, according to Holman (1981): (a) parasomatically, by enhancing the physical characteristics of a person, and (b) by serving intrinsic aesthetic/decorative functions. We expect that makeup use is parasomatic and serves in most cases as a camouflage or enhancer of one's innate physical characteristics (Bloch & Richins, 1992; Holman, 1981), with expressive enhancement dominating camouflaging as a motive (Theberge & Kernaleguen, 1979). In this regard, it has been found that cosmetics use can enhance others' perceptions of women in positive ways (Graham & Jouhar, 1991), although with respect to use on the job, makeup must be managed—more is not necessarily better (Cash, 1987; Cox & Glick, 1986). Thus, women often view makeup as both a positive and a negative force in their own lives. This ambivalence toward makeup suggests that variations in such things as the amount and frequency of its use may be the product of conflicted attitudes and opposing perspectives. Therefore, in order to investigate the nature of this ambivalence and how it is reflected in or determines related makeup-use variations, this article reports an in-depth, qualitative study of women's makeup use in creating and/or maintaining a positive appearance. This may be seen as a type of impression management in which women seek to fashion their appearance in deliberate ways to achieve various self-determined goals, such as being attractive to men, conforming with social and/or professional norms, and/or making statements about themselves (Cash, Rissi, & Chapman, 1985). In this regard, we focus on what we call the makeup career, which consists of a woman's varying use of makeup across the life span (Cash, 1987), a topic which is in need of study in terms of consumer psychology (Bloch & Richins, 1992), and which holistically reflects a number of characterizing dimensions of use. We also expect that major individual differences in makeup use (Miller & Cox, 1982), sex role and gender considerations (Brown, Cash, & Noles, 1986), and situational factors will emerge in our study.
THE MAKEUP CAREER The concept of a consumer career provides a way to investigate and explore people's product use in a holistic fashion. Such a career consists 532
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of all of a person's experiences with a product over their life span up to the present. For example, with respect to cars, it may include one's experiences with them from one's first ride through one's first purchase of a car, as well as all other driving, riding, repair, and purchase experiences. Another example is that of consumer illness careers, which involve all the medical and related consumption choices people make over the course of an illness (Gould, Considine, & Oakes, 1993). As a form of consumer career, the makeup career consists of women's varying makeup-use experiences over time and across a number of aspects. It also may be seen as a part of other careers, namely, the cosmetics, fashion, and beauty-attractiveness careers. Makeup may be defined as a subcategory of cosmetics. The term as we use it here refers to color cosmetics and includes such products as lipstick, eyeshadow, blush, mascara, eyeliner, foundation, and powder. The cosmetics career involves more products than the color makeup products on which we are focusing here (e.g., skin creams and perfume). Broader careers include fashion, which involves not only cosmetics but also clothing and accessories, and beauty-attractiveness, which may involve anything a woman thinks will make her more attractive (e.g., exercise equipment, Franzoi & Herzog, 1987) and plastic surgery (Schouten, 1991). The makeup career may also be associated with the consumer lovemap, which includes aspects of using products to attract a sexual and/or romantic partner (Gould, 1992), and with other social aspects of life, such as social approval (Brain, 1979). Taking all these concepts together, we propose that makeup use is caught up in a web of overt behavioral events, inner cognitive schema, and thematic meanings that occur and evolve over women's lives.
METHOD Twelve women ranging in age from 12 to 65 were interviewed on an in-depth basis regarding their makeup consumption history and preferences. Consistent with this type of research, a small sample size was used (McCracken, 1991; Schouten, 1991). The interviews ranged from 15 minutes to 1 hour, with an approximate median interview of 45 minutes. All interviews were recorded and then immediately transcribed, resulting in a total of 153 typed pages (the line spacing was one and a half). Participants all resided in New York or New Jersey when interviewed, and were selected to allow primarily for variation in makeup use, as well as in age and occupation (see Figure 1). Pseudonyms are used to protect the privacy of the participants. The interviews were designed, following McCracken (1991), to allow us to systematically ask certain questions, reflecting prior research, while at the same time allowing each respondent to freely provide her own perspectives. Thus, we used two sorts of questions: (a) grand-tour MAKEUP CONSUMPTION
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Frequency of Use High
Low
-» ^ Crystal -'Jeanne
High
o
O Cheryl
Lisa
DEVOTEES Quantity of Use
O-nna ^ Nicoie
HABITUALS Low
Q CREATIVES
Lynn
Mindy
o
o
AVOIDERS Monique
o Q Harriet
Study Participants and Their Relevant Characteristics Name Amy Cheryl Crystal Harriet Jeanne Lisa Lynn Marie Mindy Monique
Nicole TJ-Pa
Age 18 22 21 65 48 23 12 35 22 23 21
?3 . .
Occupation
college fres2unan college senior college senior housewife secretary day care attendant 6th grader makeup a r t i s t college senior college senior order entry clerk graduate student
Figure 1 Typology of makeup use and sample descriptors.
questions in a nondirective manner in which the interviewee was encouraged and given psychological space to respond largely on an autobiographical basis and (b) prompts that we developed in advance that allowed us to cover salient topics from prior research. The initial grandtour question asked respondents to describe how or why they use makeup. From there, prompts were used that ranged over and included when and why they began wearing makeup, how many and which products they chose, how they learned to apply makeup, how their makeup patterns developed into their current consumption preferences, how they would wear their makeup, which products, brands, colors, and amounts for different occasions (e.g., work, dating), whether they perceived their real selves as the person without or with the makeup, and why some women do or do not wear makeup. Other questions focused on the uses of makeup, various techniques, color schemes, why men should or should not wear makeup, and how feminists view the use of makeup. Finally, several months after the original interviews, we recontacted the women, sent them copies of the transcripts and asked them if there was anything they would like to change. 534
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RESULTS: ASPECTS AND THEMES OF THE MAKEUP CAREER In our analysis of the makeup-use interviews, we found three major aspects of the career concept: 1. It follows a trajectory over time that we could trace. 2. It reflects each woman's predominant style of wearing and attitude toward makeup that allowed us to form a typology of individual differences. 3. It is intimately tied into identity construction. Trajectory of Makeup Use Makeup use is a learned process that varies over the lifetime of a woman and that necessarily comprises a major aspect of her makeup career, as a career involves a temporal trajectory. Early makeup use is experimental and often results in the woman feeling as she grows up that her early makeup looked foolish. For example. Crystal describes her early experiences with makeup as making her look like a clown. Through trial and error (a kind of market test), usually in high school, the women in our sample learned what was appropriate and often wore makeup frequently. Due to peer pressure, many of them would never leave the house without it. However, the adult women report that their makeup use had leveled off as they had matured, both in terms of frequency of use and in terms of colors and amounts used. The change in colors and tones involves a moving from brighter colors to more natural earth tones and to soft powders as opposed to hard eyeliners. On the basis of the changes in frequency of use and/or amount of makeup worn, we suggest that there is a general trajectory of makeup use that begins in pre-high school years, accelerates in high school, and then drops a bit and levels off later on. However, a few women report that they did not increase their makeup use very much over time— they find one way that makes them look good and stick to it. Socialization. Makeup use involves a rite of passage into womanhood and the establishment of a more adult and more feminine identity (Cash et al., 1985). The related socialization process involves a number of avenues: (a) opinion leaders, such as peers, (b) media, and (c) other objects. Opinion leaders may be peers and also one's family members. For many of the women in our study, peer pressure provided a big impetus to makeup use. As Marie very straightforwardly put it with respect to her starting to wear makeup in the seventh grade: [It was] peer pressure. Pure peer pressure. Everybody else was wearing makeup so I did too. MAKEUP CONSUMPTION
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Mothers and sisters were also cited as role models. For example, Cheryl recalls: You know my Mom wears makeup and I just went into her Clinique free gift and started putting on mascara. The media provide a wide range of instruction for women who use makeup. Lynn describes, for instance, how she learned to put on blush: Well, once I was watching Oprah Winfrey and they were showing where you'd put it on. Like a little below your eye, line on your bones or whatever. So I put it on there and then I fade it as I go down. Some women have found other objects or images which have socialized them in some way with regard to makeup. Crystal states: "Well, damn it! Even my Barbie had makeup!" Lynn, too, describes how a girlfriend had made her up to look like their Barbie. However, she was dissatisfied with the outcome because she felt that the Barbie was wearing too much makeup. Still there is a plethora of children's toys that focus on makeup as a glamorous, fun, and feminine product. Amy adds: I mean the little kid makeup is so adorable, like Hello Kitty, the little lipsticks. It's so cute and I'd want my daughter to have all those little things. Age. Age is a factor closely related to the trajectory of makeup use. A major factor that we noted here is that older women tended to mention skin-care cosmetics, such as moisturizers and skin creams, when asked about makeup, whereas younger women did not. Another factor is that younger women, such as Amy or Lynn, use makeup to look older, whereas older women use it to look younger. Amy, who is 18, uses makeup to stage the performance of appearing to be 21 when she goes to a bar: I'd feel uncomfortable only because I think I look very young . . . And first of all, I'm not 21. Therefore I have to get kind of made up to get away with the whole "I look 21" spiel. On the other hand, to look younger, Harriet, who is 65, wears foundation because I need i t . . . it covers up some of the spots and . . . it makes me look better when I use it.
One's Predominant Style or Approach to Wearing Makeup: Individual Differences and a Typology of Makeup Use Our interviews indicated that women seem to vary in their general style of and attitude toward wearing makeup. The approaches they take 536
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usually mark their careers with trait properties, although these approaches may change over time. In general, those who wear makeup infrequently, whether they wear a little or a lot on those occasions, perceive their real self as the person without makeup. On the other hand, women who always or frequently wear makeup, also whether it be a little or a lot, tend to describe their real self as the person wearing the makeup. However, the amount of makeup worn also seems to be an important aspect of makeup use. Thus, in analyzing our interviews, we found two important stylistic dimensions of makeup use by which women could be classified: (a) the frequency of use [which we assessed by the self-reported perceptions of each woman in response to the question, "How often do you wear makeup" with open-ended responses ranging from occasionally (e.g., Monique occasionally wore it socially) to always (e.g., Jeanne even sleeps with her makeup on)] and (b) the quantity of use [which we gauged by the number of products a woman generally reported using at a time (e.g., lipstick, blush)]. (Note: We have also encountered women who say they never wear makeup but none were in our sample.) The resulting typology consists of women who: (a) wear makeup infrequently and in small amounts (Low-Low— LL, "Avoiders" (b) wear it infrequently but in large amounts (LowHigh—LH, "Creatives"), (3) wear it frequently but in small amounts (High-Low—HL, "Habituals"), and (4) those who wear it frequently and also in large amounts (High-High—HH, "Devotees")—see Figure 1, where four or more products used was treated as high. By characterizing makeup use in this way, we find a way to enclose and frame makeupuse constellations (Solomon, 1988) in that the quantity, types, colors, and brands of makeup will likely be chosen by women to fit how they position and construct their identities within this spectrum. Avoiders (LL) wore little makeup and camouflage was at least as much of a motivator as was expressiveness. They felt awkward with makeup on, were conscious of it being on their faces, and sought a natural look by refraining from using it as much as possible. Creatives (LH) wore a lot of makeup when they did wear it as a form of creative and social expressiveness. They also mentioned that they might feel some initial discomfort if they were not wearing makeup for certain situations such as work or class, but were not too concerned. Thus, although all of the women in this group expressed feeling comfortable without makeup, they were usually most comfortable wearing the right makeup for the right occasion and in certain situations, and used a large number of products to look good. Habituals (HL), nearly always or frequently wear makeup, but use little in amount in trying to look natural. Thus, they reported that they usually looked as if they were wearing no or little makeup. Moreover, although like the LH group these women believe that they could go out without makeup, they expressed that this caused them varying levels of discomfort. Going out in public without their makeup on often results in anxiety and altered MAKEUP CONSUMPTION
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behaviors as they try not to interact or be seen. Devotees (HH), always or nearly always wear makeup with the motive of looking good. The thought of going out in public without abundant makeup seems absurd to them and makes them uncomfortable. Identity Construction and Reflection A woman's trajectory and predominant style of makeup use are tied in directly to her identity construction and reflection. Makeup is a means by which women may construct aspects of their selves consistently over time, at least their visible self-images. It is also one very visible sign by which they may be seen to reflect who they are to other people or at least whom they want to be seen as. Within the identity domain are several overlapping yet distinct aspects: (a) general aspects of how makeup helps to construct, symbolize, and/or reflect the identity of the real self; (b) identity reconstruction (Schouten, 1991); (c) identity play (Schouten, 1991) and the expression of multiple selves, self-concepts, and roles (cf. Markus & Kunda, 1986); and (d) sex role and gender identity (Deux & Major, 1987). Identity Construction through Makeup Use. A major theme involved in the use of makeup concerns the issue of what is the real self and the need to look natural. It seems paradoxical and oxymoronic that one could look natural by using something artificial. Yet we see that women use foundation to smooth out their blemished or uneven skin, mascara to lengthen and darken their eyelashes, pressed powder to remove the shine from their faces, eyeliner to widen and brighten their eyes, and blush to contour their cheeks and noses, thereby altering or hiding their natural appearance in order to look natural. In general, we found that natural makeup was associated with earth-tone colors, whereas brighter colors were perceived as more artificial. Perceived as natural were brown eyeliner and eye shadow (smooth look), blotted lipstick in which the color looks soft and even, and purplish mauve and olive green eye shadows. Less natural makeup included black eyeliner, unmatched foundation, bright red lipstick, which looks phony or slutty to some, striped eye shadow, bright purple eye shadow, dark-colored blush, and thick mascara. According to some women in our sample, looking natural means looking as if you are not wearing any makeup. Thus, makeup should enhance your features, possibly blend in with your features, but certainly not be obvious. For instance, Mindy (a Habitual) describes herself as a natural person: My makeup is simple ... I don't wear very much makeup ... I don't like a lot of makeup. I like it to look natural. 538
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When asked to elaborate on what she meant by natural, Mindy replied, "Natural, so I don't look like I'm wearing a lot of makeup, and the earth tones help that." For Mindy, earth tones are browns that blend in with her natural coloring: "I always wear brown tones, stuff like that. 'Cause I have hrown hair, brown eyes, so . . . I like to look natural." Tina describes natural in much the same manner, "I like pretty much the natural look. And I think generally that people think that I don't wear a lot of makeup." She tends to wear light-colored foundation and blushes, because she has a fair complexion, rose or pink lipsticks, and blue or green eyeliners, which blend in with her blue eyes. In a way, she represents the ambivalence toward makeup felt by many women in our sample in that as a Devotee she uses a lot of makeup to look like she wears a little. Others do not focus on the amount of makeup applied, but rather the effect that is produced. Jeanne, a Devotee, describes the fashion model: . . . she is wearing a foundation, and she is wearing a blusher, and she is wearing a lip liner, and she's wearing eyeliner, and she's wearing eye shadow, three shades of eye shadow. I mean, she looks like she just stepped out of the shower. Well you know, you can't look that beautiful unless you're wearing makeup . . . If she looks wonderful, what difference does it make how much she has on? It's in good taste. It looks natural. Harriet, the oldest and an Avoider, expressed her idea of natural as being not artificial in the following way: I always thought that makeup should look natural. It should bring out the best in you .. . Not necessarily earth colors. It should look like your natural coloring as far as I'm concerned. It shouldn't look that far out, especially as you get older, you shouldn't wear the bright red lipstick, 'cause you look too phony . . . it just looks too artificial and it looks like you're an older person trying to look younger. Another theme of identity construction and makeup use is the avoidance of paleness. Our results revealed a difference with previous research. Paleness is not always just something old people avoid through cosmetic use, as suggested by Jouhar and Graham (1985); it is avoided by younger people as well. In this respect putting color on one's face and avoiding paleness seems to suggest that one is healthy, vibrant, alive, and vigorous, as opposed to being ill and deathly. For example, our youngest respondent, Lynn, noted that she wears makeup because: I really look white as a ghost and I want to get asked to the dance. Identity Reconstruction. Identity-reconstruction, according to Schouten (1991), involves a personal rite of passage from one state of being to MAKEUP CONSUMPTION
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another. Makeup may serve in this role by helping a woman to define who she is as she makes a transition in life and help to make her feel more competent in her new role, a form of symbolic self-completion in which she uses a stereotypic symbol (i.e., makeup) to mark her new status (Wicklund & (joUwitzer, 1982). One such rite of passage is the shift from girlhood into womanhood. For example, Amy reports that she wears makeup to "look a little more mature, a little older." Identity reconstruction may also be due to a change in marital status. One example illustrates this point clearly. Marie, who recently had married, identified Marie Bloom (her maiden name) as wearing no makeup: "It's just Marie Bloom is very earthy, very down to earth." But now that she is married she appears to have moved from an Avoider to a Creative and identifies Marie Bloom-Hansen (her married name), ... with makeup ... Marie Bloom-Hansen is more of someone that I'm still finding. You know I haven't been a Hansen as long as I've been a Bloom. Identity Play and Multiple Selves, Multiple Roles, and Situations. The self may he viewed as being multiple rather than unitary, and these multiple selves may be defined in terms of situational self-concepts and the multiple roles that a person plays in life (Markus & Kunda, 1986). Products, such as makeup, may serve to promote, define, and/or even create those roles. By varying makeup use, women may engage in identity play (Schouten, 1991) either in imagination or in real situations in which they change their identity and project different self-images and selves. The women in our sample often use different makeup styles and assortments to match different selves or roles that they are playing. The selves they express include the real versus the artificial self, the day versus night self, the work versus fun self, the feminist versus nonfeminist self. Thus, the ambivalence toward makeup noted in the literature review earlier in the article is played out not only in individual differences between women but also in the situational changes in facial display a woman makes for herself through varying the amount and type of makeup she wears. Makeup in this context also involves performance (Deighton, 1992) in that the female consumer hy using makeup in self-display rituals is acting out various selves and roles for an audience that might consist of men, other women, and/or herself. Thus, women often wear their makeup differently for certain times and occasions, such as night versus day, going to work, going on a job interview, going into a social scene such as a bar, or just spending an evening with friends. Although some women in our sample do not change their makeup patterns by situation, most match the situation and the self-image they see as appropriate for it by creating the look they want through adjustments in their makeup. As Crystal notes: My personal opinion is that I look more attractive when I have the right makeup on at the right time ... if I were to go for a job interview. 540
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I would definitely not want to look like a bimbo, as compared to how, like if I was going to an Exodus concert. I'd put on the black eye liner out to here, anjiihing outrageous, 'cause that's what the situation calls for.
The identity-play aspect of makeup use often involves a change of mood, self-performance, and grooming rituals (Rook, 1985). For example, Tina finds that as she puts on her makeup she changes her mood from a down to an activated, excited one: I could be getting ready to go out at night and just be in a blah mood, but as I'm putting on my makeup, boy, I come to life. It, you know, it's like I'm gonna go out there and get um and show um my stuff and I'm gonna look good . . . I feel more attractive with it I guess . . . And as I'm doing it, I'll have the music going upbeat. I'll have my caffeine there, my Diet Coke . . . I'm attractive . . . I feel really pretty. Although what Lisa would do is not altered hy the use of makeup, the way t h a t she would do it is; her mannerisms and style are entirely different depending upon her makeup. I would sit up more upright . . . I wouldn't be as goofy, I don't think . . . I'd just watch how I stand or how I sit a little bit more closely than I would be now 'cause I guess I wouldn't be that comfortable sitting like this with makeup on, with my hair done. It's sending two different signals. That's all. I don't want to confuse people. People are confused enough.
Monique, an Avoider who perceives her real self to he without makeup and who sees makeup as having negative sexual connotations, says she does not act differently when she does wear it but that she feels different: . . . usually I don't wear makeup. And I don't think I act any differently when I do wear it. I guess it depends how much makeup I'm wearing that I feel uncomfortable. If I'm just wearing like blush, eye liner, mascara, it's OK. But as soon as you put on the eyeshadow and lipstick, I'm out of there . .. that's wearing a lot of makeup and I feel very selfconscious that I look like a slut or a tramp. Several of our respondents suggested that makeup provides them with a mask that seems to emhody the various roles discussed above for external adornments in general. Although the mask may serve as a camouflage or even, as Nicole observes, as a shield that some women use to hide behind, it also may serve as a way to embellish and play with identity and change character. For example. Lisa, who wears makeup to appear taller, notes why people sometimes feel uncomfortable around her: Well, makeup is a mask. And I guess that's why they took a stand back cause they didn't know which face I'm putting on right now. MAKEUP CONSUMPTION
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Situational use of makeup can be tied into two partially overlapping dimensions of makeup use, that is, using day versus night makeup and trying for a sexy versus nonsexy look. There seems to be a relationship between night makeup and sexiness but we would not preclude some day makeup from taking on a certain sexiness in its own right. Thus, makeup use might differ between the night and day for other reasons, such as different lighting effects, as well as different social rules for the night and day (Jouhar & Graham, 1985). / . Night versus Day Makeup Use. Lisa relates her night makeup to lighting: I always wear my evening makeup darker. So I would not wear [it] though I'll choose the same colors and even maybe the same style, I would wear it a little bit more mellow, a little bit more subtle (during the day) . .. Because during the day, you're getting a lot more light on your face and you would just look more I'M HERE! CAN YOU SEE ME NOW! You know, instead of Hi. So in the evening, the lights are a little bit more mellow, you're usually in more dim light, so yes, you'd have to wear a little bit more darker makeup. You wouldn't want to do that during the day. Amy has a definite day and night look, as she states: Oh, I definitely bave a day look and a nigbt look. Just because at night you need more to see more. And during tbe day tbere's bright light, so you don't want to bave on all tbis makeup . . . Brigbter colors and more makeup at nigbt. And during tbe day, a little less and more conservative. When asked to explain how she would feel if she was wearing her night makeup during the day, Amy said that she would feel: Over makeup. Over—like you know wben you wear sometbing too dressy to a place and you feel out of place? Like tbat's bow I'd feel. Like I'd feel overdone. Other women, such as Jeanne, Cheryl, and Mindy, all of whom are frequent users, had only one makeup pattern with which they are satisfied. They feel that tlxis one pattern makes them look their best no whether it is for the daytime or evening. Women's grooming rituals, which have their own intrinsic motivations and fantasy elements (Bloch & Richins, 1992; Rook, 1985) also embody day versus night differences. For instance, Nicole spends more time doing her night makeup: Sometimes wben I go to work, just from force of babit, I'll put eyeliner on tbe same, but always wben I go out, I take more time. Do it nicer. 542
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Sometimes change my eyeliner, do it a different way. I'll always, if I go out, I'll usually put eyeshadow on. Like, during the day I won't. Just, take more time. Usually it'll take me 5 minutes in the morning to do my makeup up, not even. When I go out, it'll take me like 15 cause I'm taking my time, wanting it to look nicer.
Amy expresses only a slight change between her day makeup and her night makeup but her level of enjoyment differs greatly. Amy describes applying makeup when preparing to go out at night: It's fun. Me, personally, when I get ready, I talk to myself. Like I have these fake conversations with my(self). I dress, I put the radio on and I talk to myself . . . Like I'll make up scenarios of like what's gonna happen at the bars, who I'm gonna see, I'll like wink, you know, blow kisses, you know, stupid things . . . Like I think you know what I want to do tbat nigbt... I tbink about tbe night. 2. Sexy versus Nonsexy Looks. Although perceptions of what looks sexy are likely to vary across people and reflect their consumer lovemaps, which describe their ways of viewing sexuality and products (Gould, 1992), there nonetheless are patterns that emerge in this regard among the women in our sample. In general, brighter, vibrant colors are associated with sexy looks. For example, some in our sample made associations between hot pink or red lipstick and dramatic eyeliner with regard to sexy looks. On the other hand, earth-tone colors, clear lip gloss, and subtle eye shadow are examples of products associated with less sexy looks. In many respects, professional looks were perceived as being the opposite of sexy looks. Natural-looking makeup seems to be favored for the workplace, whereas such things as black eyeliner and bright colors are not. There seems to be a feeling among our respondents of playing down attractiveness in order to get ahead in professional jobs (cf". Cox & Glick, 1986). Jeanne, a Devotee who seeks to defy the antimakeup norms she perceives in her industry (the chemical industry), describes this process: I can assure you tbat tbere are only two women in our organization who wear makeup. One is only a supervisor, and that's a very low level. And tbe other one is a district manager, wbicb is a bigber level . . . and sbe wears makeup. Sbe wears quite a b i t . . . And I also know tbe director of communications .. . Sbe wears no makeup. Sbe looks like a dyke. Tbey [women in tbe industry] tbink tbey bave to look like dykes. And tbey probably are rigbt . .. people feel tbat tbey bave to compete witb men at tbat level. And tbey wear tbe navy blue suits witb tbe white blouses and very little makeup. No eyesbadow, no blusber, no lipstick. Very ugly. It's a certain mold . . . I won't change tbe way I am. Marie, on the other hand, tells how she was encouraged to wear makeup to work, "I once had a boss who turned to me and said, 'I'll put MAKEUP CONSUMPTION
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you in sales if you put on makeup and wear a skirt.' " She found makeup made her more effective at her joh: I'll never forget when I was about 19, 20 years old and on the road . . . I had a room full of 2 or 3 men, babbling, bumbling idiots because I was in—it was a beautiful suit, my makeup was perfect. The colors, the lips were really there, the whole thing and made a great sale. It seems that there is a great deal of industry and individual difference variation, as evidenced hy Marie and Jeanne, for instance. There appears to be a matching process with more conservative makeup reflecting an aim at higher positions and more conservative industries. The process also prohably involves a numher of individual differences (e.g., we hypothesize an age effect—younger women are allowed to get away with more makeup). Sex Role and Gender Identity. Makeup is a marker of feminine identity in that women generally wear it, in relation to hoth the sexy and nonsexy looks described ahove, whereas men do not. It thus is a symbol of gender salience (Deux & Major, 1987) in that its presence conveys a gendered division of people. By using makeup, women engage in impression management in a way that is different from men and is signaled in any given situation. In fact, most women in our sample thought men's wearing makeup was repugnant. Mindy put it in terms of gender categorization: "I think it's [makeup] feminine." Nicole notes: I don't want to walk into a mall and see a guy wearing eye liner. It just turns me off. It really does . . . I just don't believe in that. Yet, the attitudes toward makeup use on the part of the women in our sample appear to be somewhat ambivalent. They bear greatly on the various roles women are playing in terms of images, work, and relationships with men, in particular. Indeed, the images flashed at the women in our sample produce a number of meanings. One meaning involves what might be called the virginal pouting image in which a woman flouts her beauty and defies men. Lisa, in describing the images she sees in glamour magazines, projects a lusty flirtatiousness: You will see women with makeup on doing something you know just like 'Don't get me dirty. Yes, I'll hang out with you; but just don't touch me and dirty me,' you know. Some women in our sample feel that makeup is encouraging the sexrole stereotyping of women to continue, and is impeding their acceptance as equals, especially in the work force. Yet, even in this, ambivalence is present. Thus, although Cash et al. (1985) reported that profeminist women also tended to wear more makeup than others, the 544
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women in our sample indicated a more complex relationship, perhaps a curvilinear one (i.e., traditional women wearing little makeup or being less flexible with respect to situational use, feminist women with a careerist perspective showing the greatest flexibility in their use of makeup, and very ideological feminist women again wearing less and being less situationally flexible about it). For example, Mindy, a Habitual who describes herself as a feminist and seems to be a flexible one, notes . . . I just got back from a feminist seminar. And I bave very strong views on tbis because it was sometbing tbat came up a lot. Like tbese girls were saying tbat tbe feminists tbat wear nail polisb . .. tbat tbey're not as good. And I felt like I was totally outcasted from tbis seminar because I like to look good. Half tbe girls tbat were tbere didn't do anything witb tbeir bair, didn't wear makeup, didn't sbave. And I tbink people like me—yeab, I'm a feminist but I take it in a mucb more laid back way. I don't walk around preacbing like tbese extremists do. I don't tbink tbere's a need to say 'I'm not gonna wear makeup,' because people are just gonna say 'Look at tbat ugly dyke. Of course sbe's a feminist 'cause sbe couldn't get a guy.' Tbat's tbe bottom line.
DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS Summary of Findings Women's makeup careers are highly complex and multidimensional experience sets that are interrelated with other aspects of their lives. Makeup use represents an important way women engage in impression management and identity evolution in playing professional and relationship roles in contemporary American society. The results of our present research, although limited in terms of sample, method, and content, have allowed us to characterize makeup use in terms of trajectories of experience, a typology of approaches to use and identity construction. They also indicate that although camouflage is an important motivation for makeup use, self-expression is equally or more important. In this regard, the main thematic thrust of the research seems to indicate that women's relationship to makeup throughout their careers is somewhat ambiguous and involves the ambivalence of attitudes that sometimes oppose and at other times interact with one another. On the one hand, many women in our sample see makeup as negative and as perpetuating the sexual stereotyping of women in our society and they react to that by trying to wear makeup less frequently and/ or less makeup when they do wear it. They might also change the type of makeup they wear (e.g., wearing more natural shades). On the other hand, women also see makeup as important to their lives and even as MAKEUP CONSUMPTION
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liberating in allowing them to express their femininity and advance their career goals, and this sometimes leads them to wear makeup more frequently and/or in greater quantity when they do wear it. Thus, the construction of women's identities and how they use makeup as part of their identity expression seems to hinge to a large extent on how they deal with these two attitudes. Women in their makeup careers seem to emphasize one or the other but often end up with ambiguous positions in between that reflect the dynamic tensions of their personal traits and life roles, as well as feminism and women's evolving societal status. At times, this leads many of them to adopt a situational stance with the idea apparently being that makeup as a gendering and sexual force should be played up at certain times (i.e., lusty and slutty), and its role as a way of gaining social acceptance with dual connotations of surviving in a male-dominated world by avoiding male-female sexual overtones (like a dyke, as Jeanne noted) and of relating to other women should be played up at other times (cf. Brain, 1979). However, whether situational or not, a woman's makeup and her career in using and deploying it seem to mirror her attitude not only toward herself but toward women and their roles in general. Research Implications The limitations of this study noted above suggest that further research that expands on what we did here is warranted (e.g., using other samples, including cross-cultural ones, and other methodologies and variables, such as survey and experimental studies that examine the effects of various demographics, psychographics, and traits on makeup career development and perceptions). Studies also might be conducted regarding what men like and dislike about women's makeup and other adornments, as well as of the more limited hut existent domain of men's makeup and adornments. What is a man's makeup and adornment viewing career like? Do men and women perceive makeup and other adornments in the same ways, or do gendered sex roles guarantee differences (cf. Franzoi & Herzog, 1987)? How do men and women interact together in women's makeup and adornment choices over time? Makeup careers might also be considered in terms of particular forms (e.g., lipstick or mascara), as well as in relation to fashion and/or other adornments to see how they interact to form product constellations of use (Solomon, 1988). Finally, research should be directed toward the effects of makeup on women regarding various aspects of life satisfaction in order to determine how makeup use and related marketing efforts add to or detract from women's quality of life (Richins, 1991). In concluding, we would like to suggest that the makeup career concept offers a rich framework for research by considering women's makeup use in a holistic way and by accounting for identity construction, ritual, and symbolism in rendering it as a major although contested embodi546
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ment of a woman's existence. A view that only looks at the parts misses the rich synergy and complexity of the various strands of factors influencing and determining makeup use that we have taken a first step in accounting for here.
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Nakdimen, K. A. (1984). Tbe pbysiognomic basis of sexual stereotyping. American Journal of Psychiatry, 141, 499-503. Ricbins, M. (1991). Social comparison and tbe idealized images of advertising. Journal of Consumer Research, 18, 71-83. Rook, D. (1985). Tbe ritual dimension of consumer bebavior. Journal of Consumer Research, 12, 251-254. Rubinstein, R. P. (1985). Color, circumcision, tattoos, and scars. In M. R. Solomon (Ed.), The psychology of fashion (pp. 243-254). Lexington, MA: Lexington Books. Scbouten, J. W. (1991). Selves in transition: Symbolic consumption in personal rites of passage and identity reconstruction. Journal of Consumer Research, i 7, 412-425. Solomon, M. R. (1988). Mapping product constellations: A social categorization approacb to consumption symbolism. Psychology and Marketing, 5,233-258. Tbeberge, L., & Kernaleguen, L. (1979). Importance of cosmetics related to aspects of tbe self. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 48, 827-830. Wicklund, R. A., & GoUwitzer, P. M. (1982). Symbolic self-completion. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Tbe autbors wisb to tbank tbe two reviewers and Peter Blocb and Marsba Ricbins for tbeir very belpful comments. Botb autbors contributed equally to tbis article. Please send all correspondence to Stephen J. Gould, 99 Harris Rd., Princeton Jet., NJ 08550.
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