Self-perceived vs. actual physical attractiveness: Associations with depression as a function of sexual orientation

A commonly held belief about physical attractiveness is that attractive individuals are psychologically healthier than less attractive individuals (i.e., the "beauty is good" stereotype). To date, the data on this stereotype and its relationship with depression is limited, with a paucity of literature comparing subjective and objective appearance evaluations and depressive symptoms. Additionally, there is no known research on this relationship among sexual minorities (i.e., gay and bisexual individuals), a highly vulnerable population. The primary aims of the study were to assess the prediction of depression symptoms by subjective and objective appearance evaluation, and secondary aims were to assess the interaction of subjective and objective appearance with sexual orientation.

Participants were 4882 American emerging adults (M age=22 years; 2253 males, 2629 females) taken from a U.S. nationally representative dataset (Add Health)

Increased negative subjective appearance evaluation was associated with elevated rates of depressive symptoms (B=-.27, p<.001), while objective appearance evaluation was not significantly related to depressive symptoms. Sexual orientation significantly moderated the relationship between subjective appearance and depression (B=.19, p=.009), with a stronger positive association between negative appearance evaluation and depressive symptoms noted among sexual minority vs. heterosexual participants.

Limitations include cross-sectional design and self-report nature of questionnaires.

Findings suggest that the 'beauty is good' stereotype may not be valid in regard to depressive symptoms, and that subjective appearance evaluation is a robust predictor of depression, particularly for sexual minority individuals.