Appearance management and dress clearly extend beyond the bounds of clothing, to anything that is worn on the body that individuals use to construct the visual self, including tanned skin. A risky appearance management technique because of its required exposure to harmful ultraviolet radiation, tanning can result in life-threatening health conditions such as skin cancer, as well as undesirable appearance outcomes such as skin spots and premature wrinkles. Thus, insight into tanning motives could present catalysts for behavior change as well as identification of barriers to behavior change. The following research questions were explored through five in-depth interviews that resulted in qualitative data:
1. Do women introduce reference comparison individuals or groups in their indoor tanning practices that are reflective of social comparison theory?
2. Do women who engage in habitual indoor tanning practices see/use the outcome (tanned appearance) to develop or combat social anxiety, low self-esteem, and poor body image? If so, how?
3. Does a relationship between life span and habitual indoor tanning practices exist?
4. What, if any, influence do adult women's lifestyles play in their use of habitual indoor tanning?
5. What barriers exist that prevent behavior change with respect to the use of indoor tanning as a type of appearance management?
Content analysis served as the method of analysis, with six overarching themes emerging:self-esteem, satisfaction with appearance, occupation, desire to curb the aging process, and disregard of health risks. The emergent themes harvested from this study present a strong foundation for understanding motives of women who habitually participate in the activity of indoor tanning. This exploratory research provides insight from women themselves who demonstrated repetitive appearance management regimens that result in positive social comparisons in spite of known long-term risks, both to appearance and health.