The Influence of Narcissism and Appearance Goal Orientation on Appearance Management Behavior

A total of 301 responses were analyzed using SPSS 24.0 to examine the relationships among narcissism, appearance goal orientation, and appearance management behavior in the general population. Frequency analysis, factor analysis, reliability analysis, and regression analysis were employed to analyze the data. The findings are as follows. First, narcissism was identified as comprising three dimensions: self-directed narcissism, other-dependent narcissism, and approval-seeking narcissism. Appearance goal orientation was categorized into performance-approach goal orientation, learning goal orientation, and performance-avoidance goal orientation. Furthermore, appearance management behavior was classified into five domains: clothing management, skin care, cosmetic surgery management, weight management, and hair care. Second, the results indicated that higher levels of narcissism and appearance goal orientation were associated with higher levels of appearance management behavior. These findings suggest that fostering growth-oriented goal setting to enhance narcissism, establishing healthy psychological boundaries, promoting positive competition to strengthen appearance goal orientation, and engaging in challenging tasks may contribute to the improvement of appearance management behavior. Future research could meaningfully expand this study by examining the relationships of appearance management behavior with beauty consciousness and self-esteem.