In celebration of Healthy Skin Month, Clarisonic, the #1 most recommended cleansing device by US dermatologists, commissioned a global survey conducted by Harris Poll to reveal how people truly feel about the skin they’re in. The survey was conducted1 online among thousands of adults in the US, Canada, United Kingdom, France, Germany, China, South Korea and Japan and revealed that the most skin-confident countries surveyed are in North America (27%), followed by Europe(22%) and Asia (14%). This confidence was measured by the people who reported that they were “proud to show off their skin without anything on it”, with Canada (28%) and the US (27%) leading the pack, followed by UK (25%), Germany (22%), China and France (20%), South Korea (12%) and Japan (10%). Globally, women and men appeared to have equal levels of skin confidence (both 20%), but overall skin confidence is relatively low across all of the countries surveyed.
“All of us at Clarisonic believe in the power of healthy-looking skin to help people feel their most confident and empowered,” said Dr. Robb Akridge, co-founder and president of Clarisonic. “Our customers tell us that when their skin feels great, they feel great – and we want so many more people in the world to feel confident with the skin they’re in.”
Skin Confidence around the World
Thirty-one percent (31%) of adults worldwide agree that they feel more confident when their skin is clear and healthy-looking. The individual country rankings are:
- China (53%)
- US (32%)
- Canada and UK (31%)
- Germany (29%)
- South Korea (28%)
- France (26%)
- Japan (19%)
Twenty-three percent (23%) of adults globally report feeling more confident when their skin is firm and youthful-looking. The individual country rankings are:
- China (43%)
- Japan (23%)
- UK (22%)
- South Korea (21%)
- France and US (19%)
- Canada and Germany (17%)
The survey also uncovered the following:
The Pursuit of the Perfect Selfie
Forty-three percent (43%) of global adults who use social media admit to using photo editing apps and filters to improve photos of themselves before posting. People in South Korea (79%) and China (65%) are most likely to say they artificially enhanced their photos, with Canada (29%) and the US (23%) being the least likely to say so. The top reasons why global adults who use social media admitted to using photo editing apps and filters include hiding blemishes, acne and/or uneven skin tone (19%), removing wrinkles or trying to look younger (14%) and improving face contouring and shape, e.g., removing a double chin, uplifting jaw (13%).
Going Out with Confidence
Almost half of all global adults who suffer from acne or blemishes (47%) admit that there are times when they don’t feel confident about their skin, with South Korea (78%), China (67%) and Japan (64%) reporting the highest responses and the US reporting the lowest (30%). In addition, Chinese and South Korean adults who’ve ever suffered from blemishes or acne were the top two countries that reported not going to an important event (24% and 14%), postponing an important event (19% and 17%) or cancelling plans with friends (31% and 24%) because they weren’t feeling confident about their skin.
Additionally, adults in China most likely to admit they feel embarrassed if caught in public without makeup (22%) and that they would never allow themselves to be photographed without makeup (16%). The countries with the least concern about being in public or photographed without makeup were Germany and France.
Most Desired Beauty Wish
When asked to pick their top beauty wish from wishes for a toned body, beautiful teeth, perfect skin or great hair, the people of South Korea showed a clear preference for perfect skin (34%) over everything else. Adults in China (21%) and Japan (20%) placed perfect skin as second to a toned body (53% vs. 46%, respectively).
What Would You Give Up for Perfect Skin for Life?
In exchange for a lifetime of great skin, participants globally were most willing to give up chocolate/sweets (33%) and social media (24%), among other options such as vacations (15%), shopping (14%), sex (13%), smartphone (11%) and electronic entertainment (10%). In exchange for perfect skin, China ranked the highest at giving up sweets (62%) and France ranked the highest at giving up social media (34%).
