Zucchelli Fabio, Mathews Abbi, Sharratt Nick, Montgomery Kerry, Chambers Jen
The Centre for Appearance Research University of the West of England Bristol UK.
Formerly at the Centre for Appearance Research University of the West of England Bristol UK.
Skin Health Dis. 2024 Jun 29;4(5):e420. doi: 10.1002/ski2.420. eCollection 2024 Oct.
The most common forms of hair loss in men, alopecia areata (AA) (an autoimmune condition) and androgenetic alopecia (AGA) (pattern baldness), alter individuals' appearance in ways that may impact psychological and social wellbeing. We currently have a limited understanding about this impact of alopecia in men, their support needs, and preferences.
We sought to investigate and explore the psychosocial impact of alopecia on men, alongside their experiences of treatment and support.
The study used a mixed methods cross-sectional online survey with 177 men aged 17-79: 83 with AGA and 94 with AA. Quantitative questions included purpose-made rating scales of men's support experiences, and standardised measures of wellbeing and appearance-focused anxiety. Qualitative data comprised participants' answers to an open-ended question asking about their subjectively salient experiences related to their alopecia.
The combined findings indicate that while participants in both subsamples had sought minimal support for psychosocial concerns, such concerns were in fact commonplace. Over half of participants (56%-57%) shared qualitative accounts of depleted confidence, while wellbeing scores were on average lower than matched norms. Participants identifying as sexual minority also reported greater appearance-focused anxiety compared to those identifying as straight.
The apparent contrast between participants' minimal help-seeking and accounts of affected wellbeing suggests an unmet support need for men with alopecia. Masculine norms may impede men from accessing psychosocial support, both by discouraging help-seeking behaviours and by encouraging minimisation of appearance concerns. The findings also suggest sexual minority status may pose a greater risk of distress in affected men.
男性脱发的最常见形式，斑秃（AA）（一种自身免疫性疾病）和雄激素性脱发（AGA）（男性型秃发），会改变个体的外貌，可能影响心理和社会幸福感。目前，我们对脱发对男性的这种影响、他们的支持需求和偏好了解有限。
我们试图调查和探索脱发对男性的心理社会影响，以及他们的治疗和支持经历。
该研究采用了混合方法的横断面在线调查，对象为177名年龄在17至79岁之间的男性：83名患有AGA，94名患有AA。定量问题包括专门设计的男性支持经历评分量表，以及幸福感和外貌焦虑的标准化测量。定性数据包括参与者对一个开放式问题的回答，该问题询问他们与脱发相关的主观显著经历。
综合研究结果表明，虽然两个子样本中的参与者对心理社会问题寻求的支持很少，但这些问题实际上很普遍。超过一半的参与者（56%-57%）分享了自信心下降的定性描述，而幸福感得分平均低于匹配的标准。与异性恋者相比，认同自己为性少数群体的参与者也报告了更高的外貌焦虑。
参与者寻求帮助极少与幸福感受影响的描述之间的明显反差表明，脱发男性的支持需求未得到满足。男性规范可能会阻碍男性获得心理社会支持，既通过抑制求助行为，也通过鼓励尽量减少对外貌的担忧。研究结果还表明，性少数群体身份可能会给受影响的男性带来更大的痛苦风险。
