Introduction
Beauty therapy is one of the oldest practices in human history. The desire to be attractive is one of the strongest forces that any rational person cannot resist. People always want to be acceptable and respected among the peers and members of the society. However, many people tend to victimise and even discriminate against people who have less attractive looks. It is for these reasons that many people around the world, especially women, take their time to refine their looks. This has made beauty therapy a critically important in the modern society. Hairdressing is one of the most popular forms of beauty therapy (Yang, 2011). Through personal experiences, the researcher noticed that hairdressers act as counsellors because people often go to them for professional advice when they have issues relating to their hair. This study will pay special attention to hairdressing as an aspect of beauty therapy. The researcher will critically evaluate the impact of beauty therapy on a person’s mood and well-being.
Research questions
In order to guide the process of conducting this study, the researcher considered it appropriate to come up with appropriate research questions. The following are the main research questions that will guide the process of collecting data.
Does beauty therapy affect a person’s mood and wellbeing, how?
Justification of research question
The above questions seek to address fundamental issues regarding the issue of beauty therapy. The first research question seeks to determine if beauty therapy has any effect on a person’s mood and well being. If the answer to the first question is yes, then the second question will investigate how beauty therapy affects a person’s mood and well being.
Review of Literatures
Beauty therapy has been practiced for a very long time in human history. Beauty therapy refers to the process of treating the face and body using cosmetics and body massage in order to be more attractive. For a very long time, beauty therapy has been used by both men and women, but with some variations. For instance, in some communities, beauty therapy involved permanent physical modification of the skin. Practices such as tattooing and ear piercing have been very common not only in the Western countries but also in other communities around the world. In other cases, the beauty therapists would apply make ups which are not permanent. This involved plaiting of the hair, application of oil in the face, hair and other parts of the body. According to Ursula and Black (2001), hairdressing has remained very popular, especially among the African and Muslim ladies. Taylor (2004) says that the primary role of beauty therapy is to make a person to appear more attractive that would be the case if the make-ups are not added.
At this stage, it is important to looks at the effect of beauty therapy on a person’s mood and well-being. Fowler (2008) says that beauty therapy creates confidence in a person. Many people want to be admired by people they interact with. However, this is only possible when a person has good looks. Hair plaiting offers this good look, enhancing one’s ability to be confident. It makes a person feel that people are judging them fairly based on their looks. This improves the mode of an individual. It creates a strong satisfaction within one’s self. This can be explained using Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. According to this theory, people have different needs based on their social status in life (Millard, 2009).
At the stage of socialisation, self-esteem and self-actualisation, people are often looking for acceptance, love, respect, and admiration from others. These are virtues that one can get when she has a strong financial capacity. However, the physical appearance also plays a critical role in enhancing the ability of one to earn them. It is possible for one to admire the wealth of an individual without admiring them as a person because of their unattractive looks. That is why many women would spend a substantial part of their wealth to adjust their looks in order to enhance their physical appearance. As Yang (2011) says, some of the styles used in hairdressing are very expensive.
Beauty therapy may have a direct impact on one’s well being. Black (2002) observes that people are always judgmental in nature. There is always a tendency to assign value to a person based on their physical looks, especially the hairstyle. For instance, someone who has an expensive hairdo is more likely to be successful in an interview that an individual who looks less presentable (Toerien & Kitzinger, 2007). Presentable people always have their way simply because of their good looks. This gives them an edge in life. It means that their well being will be impacted by their appearance. They succeed to get good jobs which can sustain them in life. The same may not be possibly said among people who lack the charms earned through beauty therapy.
Despite the good benefits that come with beauty therapy, sometimes it may have a negative impact on one’s mood and well being. This is specifically so in cases where beauty therapy fails to bring out the image that one desired when going for it. According to Connor, Godfrey and Milsom (2004), there are cases where excessive use of chemicals during hairdressing may result into a negative impact on one’s skin or their general health. Some of the cosmetics used during hairdressing are very dangerous when used in excess or in a wrong way.
They can cause serious permanent damage on the skin. This means that instead of becoming beautiful, one may turn out to be very ugly. This will have an impact on her mood. She is likely to be sad, trying to live with the deformity caused by the wrong application of the cosmetics. The well being of such a person will also be affected. This may be the case when one develops other health problems such as cancer due to application of such cosmetics in the hair. Not only will she be expected to deal with the new undesirable image she has earned, but he will also have to meet the cost of hospitalisation. Such costs are sometimes very high.
Taylor (2004) summarises this argument by saying that beauty therapy is very good, but only when it is done with experts in a proper way. When looking for beauty, it is always necessary to use the right procedures that would ensure safety of the user. Preventing cases of accident due to wrong usage or excessive application of the cosmetics should be given primary importance. One should also use an expert in the field of hairdressing in order to get the best results. Being presentable enables an individual to gain confidence in life. It enables one to be happy about her image. This creates a sense of pride which enhances one’s well being.
Conclusion
It is clear from the above discussion that beauty therapy has an impact on one’s mood and well being. If a person uses beauty therapy in a proper manner, she becomes presentable and this earns her admiration and respect. The discussion reveals that hairdressing is one of the most popular aspects of beauty therapy in use today, especially among the African and Muslim ladies in the country. When a lady has a good hairstyle, she earns respect among members of the society. This brings happiness in the life of such a person. On the other hand, beauty therapy may have serious negative consequences if it is done without care. The type of cosmetics used in hairdressing can be very dangerous if wrongly used. Some may cause serious burns on the skins. They may leave permanent and very ugly scars on the face. When this happens, it causes sadness and pain. One is left frustrated with life and sometimes they are forced to spend a lot of money on treatment. Beauty therapy is one good when used in an appropriate manner.
Suggestions for future research
The researcher proposes that there should be a further research in this field due to its importance in our modern society. After reviewing of the relevant literatures, it is apparent that many scholars have ignored beauty therapy among men. A lot of focus is given on beauty therapy among women. Future researchers should give adequate focus on beauty therapy, especially hairdressing, among men to expand the current body of knowledge in this field.
References
Black, P. (2002). Ordinary People Come Through Here: Locating the Beauty Salon in Women’s Lives. Feminist Review, 71 (22), 2-17.
Connor, J., Godfrey, S., & Milsom, G. (2004). Beauty therapy sciences. Oxford: Heinemann.
Fowler, F. (2008). Negotiating the Textuality of Further Education: Issues of Agency and Participation. Oxford Review of Education, 34(4), 425-441.
Millard, J. (2009). Performing Beauty: Dove’s “Real Beauty” Campaign. Symbolic Interaction, 32(2), 146-168.
Taylor, S. (2004). Introducing beauty therapy: The accessible introduction to beauty therapy. Oxford: Heinemann Educational.
Toerien, M. & Kitzinger, C. (2007). Emotional Labour in Action: Navigating Multiple Involvements in the Beauty Salon. Sociology, 41(4), 645-662.
Ursula, S. & Black, P. (2001). Look Good, Feel Better: Beauty Therapy as Emotional Labour. Sociology, 35(4), 913-931.
Yang, J. (2011). Nennu and Shunu: Gender, Body Politics, and the Beauty Economy in China. Signs, Vol. 36(2), 333-357.