Sometimes, pop culture and science meet in ways that are pretty ridiculous.  The latest example is the renewed attention being given to a study conducted in 2005 by doctors Leif Nelson and Evan Morrison and published in the February 2005 Psychological Science (the abstract of the study can be found here).  The study says that in essence, when economic times are hard—or in what the researchers called “times of resource scarcity”—men prefer women who are heavier by a whopping two or three pounds.  So ladies, the strategy is clear: hit the Hometown Buffet near you every night for a week, then hang out at the unemployment office and you’re sure to meet that future Mr. Right…or Mr. Sort-of-OK.

All kidding aside, is this science?  It seems like the worst kind of pop sociology to us—data applied liberally to a barely-known aspect of human behavior and then broad stroke conclusions drawn.  But Dr. Terry Pettijohn II has a theory about what might be at work here.  He’s a psychologist who has done research in the same vein and his opinion is that when men are flush, they are attracted more to women who are childlike: slender, willowy, nubile.  But when times get rough, men become more like women, who are hard-wired to gravitate toward strong men who can be good providers for them and their offspring.  Pettijohn thinks that a few extra pounds make a woman seem sturdier, tougher, more able to survive hard times.  Translation: when money is short and jobs are insecure, men want a woman whom they don’t have to “take care of.”

So what does this mean?  That the recession is going to be a boom time for women with normal bodies of all shapes and sizes and the decline of the size-zero waif?  Probably not.  Studies like this inevitably overreach, and this one is probably no exception.  We suspect something else may be at work here: low self-esteem on the part of economically depressed men.  We live in a culture where men in particular are defined by what they do for a living and how they provide for their loved ones.  After all, men can’t make babies.  Instead, they build, create, innovate and invent (women do those things, too, but bear with us).  When they are unemployed or in dire career straits, men feel less attractive because society tells them they are less desirable.  So they unconsciously set their sights lower, figuring a truly “hot” woman wouldn’t be attracted to them because perhaps their financial desperation is written on their faces, their slumped shoulders, and their worn shoes.

That makes as much sense to us as any theory and ties in perfectly with our beliefs about Inner Beauty: when you feel confident, you are beautiful to yourself and others.  With so many millions of men and women feeling powerless in this terrible economy, it’s going to be a challenge for this generation to find their own inner beauty and self-esteem…and it’s better if they ignore questionable pop-culture science like this.

Well, so much for the idea that doctors are any more “recession-proof” than anyone else.

We’ve heard that statement a lot recently.  Along with morticians, peace officers and firefighters, physicians are supposed to have some sort of “Get Out of Recession Free” card when it comes to an economic downturn, presumably because people still get sick, need therapy and so on.  But we’ve already seen evidence that it’s a false idea, as hospitals are losing money and some are threatened with closure.  So it should come as no surprise that cosmetic surgeons are seeing a downturn in their business.

After all, people are already delaying treatment and skipping medication for serious health problems because they lack health insurance or can’t afford the co-pays, so it’s hardly a shock that more are passing altogether on elective procedures.  That’s what the Chicago-based American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery says is happening.  In a survey of 242 members released on January 14, the Academy revealed that nearly 80% of cosmetic surgery practices had reported a drop in business, with the average being a whopping 50% reduction in the third quarter of 2008.

The Economic Impact Survey also showed that more and more patients are choosing cheaper, less-invasive procedures than when the economy was strong and they felt flush.  In fact, since all cosmetic surgeons have to train in another specialty before going into cosmetic medicine, the survey found that about one-third are going back to former areas of training such as general surgery, ear/nose/throat or obstetrics & gynecology in order to make a living during these tough times. Those who don’t want to go that route are shoring up their practices with cosmetic procedures that are more commonly done by a dermatologist: fillers, Botox, liposuction, chemical peels and microdermabrasion.

In fact, these non-invasive or minimally-invasive options are just about the only cosmetic procedures that are becoming more common, with reports coming in that the rates of Botox injections are actually up around the country.  What does this say about us as a people, especially since just a few posts ago we reported that people are still spending on beauty products such as cosmetics and skin care products?  Well, it’s obvious that there’s an inverse relationship between the cost of the procedure and the willingness to have it done.  A $30 jar of moisturizer is fine, but $2,000 for an eyelid lift…that’s going to have to wait until the stock market goes back up.

Clearly, we still are willing to spend money and invest in our looks.  It remains a priority for the same reason we discussed in that last post: because it gives us control over some aspect of things when it seems like everything else is spinning so out of control.  But we are becoming more luxury-conscious, and there’s a self-imposed “frugality line” that we won’t cross.  Hard economic times cause most of us to “reboot” our priorities and take a hard look at what is worth paying for and what must be put off, and the answer is different for everyone.  For some women, getting a regular microdermabrasion treatment in her dermatologist’s office will remain a priority even if she can’t afford a new pair of shoes; for another, she’ll make her own facial scrub with kitchen ingredients or do without.

Our theory is, the more your outer beauty is a critical aspect of your self-image and the more your self-esteem depends on it, the more willing you will be to spend money you might not have on cosmetic treatments.  The more comfortable you are with yourself on the inside, the more likely you’ll probably be to go back to basics until things turn around.  Inner beauty, thank goodness, tends to be free.  As the economic situation plays out, we’ll see if our theory is correct.

Stay beautiful,

Debi & Eva