The Role of Facial Appearance Concern and Appraisal Perspective in the Experience of Task-Irrelevant Intrusions

The current study experimentally tested the hypothesis that elevated facial appearance concern is characterised by an elevated tendency to experience task-irrelevant intrusions (i.e., intrusions which serve to interfere with task performance) concerning an appearance-related event. Additionally, the study examined potentially interactive roles of facial concerns and the appraisal perspective adopted during this appearance-related event. Sixty-six females, reporting either low or high facial concerns, were exposed to a standardised appearance-related event, which involved a photoshoot and the subsequent appraisal of the resulting photographs. Participants were induced to appraise these photographs from the perspective of either self or other. Following this, participants completed a task designed to assess subsequent task-irrelevant intrusions about the appearance-related event. Results revealed that high facial concern participants experienced both a greater frequency of, and more distressing, task-irrelevant intrusions about the appearance-related event than did their low facial concern counterparts. These group differences in task-irrelevant intrusions were equally evident, regardless of initial appraisal perspective. The current findings are consistent with the hypothesis that elevated facial appearance concerns are underpinned by highly frequent and distressing task-irrelevant intrusions about past appearance-related experiences.