Does fortune favour the bald? Psychological correlates of hair loss in males.

Wells PA, Willmoth T, Russell RJ.

Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths' College, London, UK.

In order to investigate the relationship between male hair loss and psychological distress, 182 men were recruited who had a wide range of ages and hair loss varying from none to severe.

Care was taken to ensure that hair loss and age were uncorrelated in the sample. Multiple regression was used to predict possible consequences of baldness, controlling for age, and examining the interaction between baldness and age to see if consequences were especially severe in cases of premature baldness.

Increasing degrees of hair loss were associated with loss of self-esteem, depression, introversion, neuroticism and feeling unattractive.

These effects were more marked for young men in the case of self-esteem, introversion and feeling unattractive.