Situational cuing of materialism triggers self-objectification among women (but not men): The moderating role of self-concept clarity

Abstract

The present research examined the influence of materialism on self-objectification among women. The results provided converging support to the prediction that experimentally priming materialistic belief would increase women's (but not men's) self-objectification tendency (Studies 1, 2 and 3). Moreover, Study 3 revealed that women's self-concept clarity moderated the effect of materialism on self-objectification tendency, such that only women with low self-concept clarity reported higher self-objectification tendencies following a materialism reminder. These findings contribute to the literature by highlighting the role played by societal ideology in women's development of self-objectification and also identifying a protective factor against such an effect. Implications for research on objectification, materialism as well as women's well-being were discussed.