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Received: 16 November 2020    Accepted: 23 March 2021

DOI: 10.1111/jocd.14132

ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION

Quality of life in young men with androgenetic alopecia:

A mixed methods study

Josip Razum M.A1  | Tena Vukasović Hlupić PhD2

1
Ivo Pilar Institute of Social Sciences,
Zagreb, Croatia
2
Department of Psychology, Faculty
of Humanities and Social Sciences,
University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Correspondence
Josip Razum, Ivo Pilar Institute of Social
Sciences, Marulićev trg 19, 10000 Zagreb,
Croatia.
Email: Josip.Razum@pilar.hr
Abstract
Background: Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) is related to adverse psychological con-
sequences in young men, which is further accentuated by the astronomical growth
of the hair transplant industry. However, a deeper insight into AGA and its impact on
young men are lacking in the literature. Moreover, its impact is currently measured
with general dermatological health-­related quality of life questionnaires.
Aims: Aim of this study was hence twofold: (i) to explore the individual experience of
men with AGA via a qualitative study and (ii) to use these insights to create and pre-
liminary validate a set of items for measuring quality of life specifically in AGA.
Patients/Methods: The qualitative study was carried out on a convenience sample of
11 young men in different stages of AGA. In the quantitative study, items for measur-
ing quality of life in androgenetic alopecia were created and distributed to an online
sample of men younger than 35 (N = 129).
Results: Multiple themes and sub-­themes were obtained in the qualitative study,
highlighting the loss of control, lowered attractiveness, concerns about dating, and
an influence on daily functioning the young men felt. In the quantitative study, nine
items were retained, demonstrating high reliability, and moderate correlations with
self-­esteem and subjective well-­being.
Conclusions: AGA is a valid issue, which has a marked impact on young men. We
believe that further developing and validating a tool that would measure quality of
life specifically in AGA, or generally in different alopecia types, is an approach worth
taking.

KEYWORDS
androgenetic alopecia, qualitative study, quality of life questionnaire, quantitative study,
young men

1  |  I NTRO D U C TI O N unpleasant psychological consequences, including lower perceived at-

Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) is the most common form of hair loss among
men and one of common conditions seen by dermatologists. It is esti-
mated that the condition affects around 12–­26% of (Caucasian) men aged
from 18 to 29 and around 38–­49% of men aged from 30 to 39.1 Research
has already shown that men affected by AGA experience at least some
tractiveness and lower satisfaction with one's physical appearance (eg,1,2),
a greater amount of worry and helplessness, and a negative impact on
social life.3 This is accentuated by the fact that the global hair transplant
market was estimated at five billion dollars in 2017, with a projected
growth to a staggering 29 billion dollars in 2025.4 Considerable growth is
projected in the use of topical, oral, and other treatments as well.5

J Cosmet Dermatol. 2021;00:1–8. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/jocd© 2021 Wiley Periodicals LLC     1 |

 |
2      RAZUM and Vukasović Hlupić .
Male AGA is, however, still not sufficiently explored. To the best
of our knowledge, there are no qualitative studies that would give us
an in-­depth insight into the subjective aspect of the phenomenon,
and no questionnaires were developed to measure quality of life
(QoL) exclusively in this condition. Recent studies show that there is
6-­8
a growing interest in measuring QoL in AGA (eg, ). However, cur-
rently used general dermatological questionnaires (ie, Skindex9 or
10
DLQI ) are suboptimal, because they measure symptoms that are
rare or non-­existent in AGA (eg, “My scalp is bleeding.”) and are fo-
11
cused more on functional impairment, which then creates a strong
“floor effect” in conditions that cause less impairment,12 meaning
that a significant proportion of participants score “0” on these items.
Such effect leads to scale attenuation, which occurs when variance
is restricted in this manner, and thus precludes a more refined anal-
ysis of a conditions’ impact on quality of life.
Therefore, the aim of this study was twofold: (i) to use the quali-
tative approach to investigate the subjective experience of men with
AGA and its impact on the quality of life and (ii) to use these insights
to propose and preliminarily validate a set of items for specifically
addressing quality of life in androgenetic alopecia. We have delib-
erately focused on a younger population, since they, according to
6,8
previous studies, feel the impact of AGA the most (eg, ). Therefore,
the age of participants was limited to 35. Moreover, we have re-
cruited participants from the (mostly) non-­clinical population, since
especially in the context of AGA, we believe that this distinction is
very fluid and it is possible that many of our participants, who have
not visited a dermatologist, may do so in the future.
Ethics approval was obtained in line with the protocol for mas-
ter's thesis research plan development at the affiliated university.
All participants gave permission for their anonymized individual
response summaries, quotes (qualitative data), and group results
(quantitative data) to be published in a scientific study.
2  |  S T U DY 1: TH E S U B J EC TI V E
E X PE R I E N C E O F A N D RO G E N E TI C
A LO PEC I A A N D IT S I M PAC T O N TH E
Q UA LIT Y O F LI FE
2.1  |  Methods and analyses
2.1.1  |  Participants
The convenience sample included 11 male participants aged 23–­
33 years (Mage = 27.18), who were in different stages of AGA.
Participants were gathered via an ad posted on social networks.
Sampling continued until a satisfactory degree of saturation was
reached (ie, new participants did not reveal significant new informa-
tion). Prospective participants’ degree of hair loss was determined
1 13
on the Hamilton-­Norwood scale by the interviewer at the inter-
view, and they were distributed as follows (number of participants in
the corresponding stage of hair loss shown in brackets): stage I (1), II
(1), III (1), III vertex (1), IV (2), V (1), VI (3), and VII (1). The interviewer
thoroughly familiarized himself with the scale and its use before the
interviews but was not a qualified hair loss specialist. All partici-
pants had the subjective impression that they are in fact losing hair,
which lasted for at least one year. Some of them previously visited
a dermatologist and were diagnosed with androgenetic alopecia.
Semi-­structured, one-­on-­one in person, in-­depth interviews with an
average duration of 60 min were carried out with participants, with
the first author as the interviewer. The interview questions were
based upon previous research and theoretical papers about quality
of life and AGA.
2.1.2  |  Data analysis
Each interview was transcribed and analysed following the method
of thematic analysis (for a more detailed description of the proce-
dure see14). Eleven interviews, lasting approximately 60 min each,
resulted in 69 pages of transcripts. Firstly, codes were extracted
from the data, and afterward, they were organized into themes and
sub-­themes. Following discussions, both authors agreed upon the
final arrangement of themes and sub-­themes.
2.2  |  Results
Four main themes were determined, some of which had sub-­themes
(shown in parentheses): (1) Thoughts and Feelings (Loss of control,
Feeling less attractive, An impression that they look older), (2) Social
aspects (Romantic relationships, Stereotypes and other reactions
from others), (3) Daily functioning, and (4) Coping with hair loss. 2
2.2.1  |  Thoughts and Feelings
Loss of control
Many participants felt a lack of control over their hair loss, which
they described as an unpleasant feeling. They perceived their ca-
pability to influence their hair loss as small or non-­existent (except
perhaps by means of a rather radical and expensive procedure of
hair transplantation); some worried because of that, while others felt
some amount of sadness or regret.
Feeling less attractive
Almost all participants stated that they feel less attractive, and they
assumed this feeling will be even stronger when they lose all their
hair. It made some of them feel less self-­confident. The impression
that they look less attractive was somewhat less pronounced in par-
ticipants who already shaved their heads and realized that they do
not look bad, and vice versa—­it was more pronounced in those who
realized that they look worse with their heads shaven. Additionally,
the hair loss made participants unable to manipulate their hair (eg,
by different haircuts or by growing hair), and to make these types of
changes to their visual identity.
RAZUM and Vukasović Hlupić .
An impression that they look older
Most participants drew connections between hair loss and aging—­they
thought they looked older with less or no hair and it made them more
aware of their own aging. They considered hair to be a symbol of youth
and masculinity to some extent, which they lost prematurely through
hair loss. However, it was not a problem for some of them as they
claimed that looking older can sometimes have its benefits for men.
2.2.2  |  Social aspects
Dating and romantic relationships
Most participants perceived their odds of attracting a romantic part-
ner as lower because prospective romantic partners will be repelled
by their hair loss or they will prefer a man with a full head of hair.
However, the amount of concern they showed varied. Those who
were in a relationship tended to concern themselves less with it, since
their partners accepted their hair loss, and they did not feel the pres-
sure of searching for a partner. The same holds for those who placed
more value on personality and the “general approach” than on looks.
However, the general impression was that this was one of the biggest,
if not the biggest, concern about hair loss in interviewed men.
Stereotypes and reactions from the environment
Participants rarely thought others saw bald men as “hoodlums” or
“dangerous dudes.” Most of them thought this is not the case, espe-
cially nowadays when this haircut is more common. However, they
still felt that the fact they are losing hair (negatively) influences peo-
ples’ impressions about them or that it automatically makes them
stick out in the company of others.
The majority of participants stated they never had any issues in a
business or any other official context because of hair loss. However,
two participants claimed that hair loss made them miss business
opportunities (a participant in the intermediate stage of hair loss
cannot be a model in commercials), or they had career issues (a
participant in the advanced stage of hair loss, who is an actor, has
problems getting roles). Nevertheless, it seems these issues are of a
rather specific nature.
2.2.3  |  Daily functioning
Participants thought about their hair loss from once to twice a week,
to more times a day. Situations in which they thought about it were
usually the ones where they were reminded of it, such as standing
in front of a mirror, especially when their hair is wet (because hair
loss is more noticeable then), or when they see another person who
is bald or losing hair. In the latter case, they often compared their
hair loss to others. They also tended to think about their hair loss in
the presence of potential romantic partners, in front of whom they
wanted to make a good impression.
Participants usually did not change their behavior distinctively due
to hair loss. Some spent more time hiding it with different haircuts
|
      3
or they washed their hair more often since it has more volume when
washed. Some also used different hair loss treatment products, which
required non-­negligible amounts of money, with some participants in-
dicating they would like to do a hair transplant surgery at some point
in the future. One participant said that hair loss made him significantly
more insecure with women and that this could influence his decision
on whether he would take a woman out on a date or not, while another
participant revealed that he started wearing a hat, even indoors.
3  |  S T U DY 2 : PRO P OS I N G A N D
PR E LI M I N A RY VA LI DATI N G ITE M S FO R TH E
M E A S U R E M E NT O F Q UA LIT Y O F LI FE I N
AG A
Items for the measurement of Quality of life in AGA were based
primarily on data obtained in the qualitative study, but additional
consideration was given to relevant studies on the psychological
consequences of AGA and to papers focusing on issues related to
QoL questionnaires construction (eg,16).
3.1  |  Material and methods
3.1.1  |  Participants and procedure
Data were collected using an online survey questionnaire designed
for this study. Participants were recruited via topic-­irrelevant social
network groups and it was clearly stated that only those who are in
fact losing hair are eligible to participate. An additional requirement
was that the participants’ hair loss was not due to medical reasons
(eg, chemotherapy). No incentive for participation was awarded, as
this could have led the participants to falsely report about their hair
loss.17 However, the researchers’ e-mail was provided for any addi-
tional questions about AGA or coping with it, and the main findings
were e-mailed to participants who requested them after the study
was completed. Participants filled in the questionnaires online, with
an average duration of 8 min.
The sample included 137 male participants. Five participants
were excluded from the sample because they were older than 35,
one participant was excluded because he answered “1” on all of the
variables (including the reversely coded ones), another participant
was excluded, because he stated that “he is not losing hair”, and fi-
nally, one participant was excluded because his hair loss was a con-
sequence of medical treatment. The final sample included 129 male
participants aged from 19 to 35 (M = 26.5, SD = 4.07).
3.1.2  |  Measures
Quality of life in AGA was initially measured by 23 proposed items.
This preliminary version was shortened by using procedures de-
scribed in the Results section and the final version resulted in nine
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4      RAZUM and Vukasović Hlupić .
items. All items were rated on a 5-­point Likert scale, from 1 (strongly
disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). The final score was formed as a simple
linear combination of nine item scores, where a higher score (same
as in other QoL questionnaires for medical issues) indicates a lower
quality of life. The questionnaire exhibited a single-­factor structure,
and its internal consistency reliability was 0.94. The means and
standard deviations of items are listed in Appendix 2.
Skindex-­1712 is a shortened version of the Skindex-­29 question-
naire,12 which is a QoL questionnaire for dermatological conditions.
Its 12-­item psychosocial scale was rated on a 5-­point scale from 1
(never) to 5 (always) and then converted to a scale from 0 = never to
2 = often and always. Higher scores indicate lower QoL. Similarly as
in the Han et al. study,6 Skindex was adapted for use in AGA: “hair
loss” was used instead of “skin disease”, and “scalp” was used instead
of “skin” to make the questionnaire more understandable. The ques-
tionnaire was translated from English to Croatian using a double-­
blind translation procedure. The internal consistency reliability for
the psychosocial scale for this sample was 0.94.
Rosenberg self-­esteem scale18 was used to assess self-­esteem.
This is a 10-­item scale with items that are rated on a 5-­point Likert
scale, from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). Internal consis-
tency reliability for this sample was 0.88.
Satisfaction with life scale19 was used to assess life satisfaction,
which is the cognitive aspect of subjective well-­being. The question-
naire has five items which are rated on a 7-­point Likert scale, from 1
(strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). Internal consistency reliability
for this sample was 0.83.
Hamilton-­Norwood scale13 is a scale that can be used by an exter-
nal rater, or by the person who is losing hair, to identify the stage of
20
hair loss in AGA. In this study, participants self-­rated their degree
of hair loss, and they were presented with pictures clearly illustrat-
ing different stages. The following distribution of scale scores was
observed in this sample: I (18.9%), II (17.4%), III (19.7%), III vertex
(9.1%), IV (6.8%), V (7.6%), VI (9.1%), and VII (9.1%).
Duration of hair loss Participants varied in the stated duration of
their hair loss, ranging from a few months to 13 years. The mean hair
loss duration was 4.69 years (SD = 3.45).
Relationship status was measured by one dichotomous item, with
62.5% participants reporting being in a relationship, and 37.5% not
in a relationship.
Visiting a dermatologist was measured by one dichotomous item,
where 17.1% of participants sought advice from a dermatologist re-
garding their hair loss, and 82.9% did not.
3.2  |  RESULTS
3.2.1  |  Factor structure and basic
characteristics of the Quality of life in AGA items
Exploratory factor analysis was performed on the initial 23 items
using the principal axis factoring. One-­factor solution was chosen
based on the Scree plot and the visual inspection of the point of
inflexion, since eigenvalues showed the most profound drop after
the first factor. One more exploratory factor analysis was conducted
to determine factor loadings, where only one factor was set to be
extracted (see Appendix 1). The extracted factor explained 43% of
the variance.
In the following step, to exclude redundant items, it was decided
to retain only items with very high factor loadings. By setting a high
cutoff of > 0.70 (ie, around 50% or more of the items variance ex-
plained by the factor), and also taking content validity into account,
nine items were selected, resulting in a correlation of r(129) = 0.96,
p < 0.001 with the original 23 item score. The nine-­item scale also
showed high internal consistency reliability (α = 0.94) suggesting that
the shortening was justified.
Z test was lower than the sample-­size adjusted threshold of
3.2921 for both skewness (1.4) and kurtosis (2.65), and the distribu-
tion was therefore treated as normal. As for the scale sensitivity, the
empirical and theoretical range were identical (9–­45). The mean of
the scale was 22.98 (SD = 10.56). Descriptive statistics for the nine
items can be found in Appendix 2.
3.2.2  |  Quality of life in AGA and other
relevant constructs
Quality of life in AGA items obtained a high positive correlation22
with the psychosocial scale of Skindex-­
17, a moderate negative
correlation with the Rosenberg self-­esteem scale, and a moderate
negative correlation with the SWLS (see Table 1). In other words,
participants scoring high on Quality of life in AGA were likely to
also score high on the other quality of life in dermatological con-
ditions scale, but were likely to have lower results on measures of
self-­esteem and life satisfaction. Quality of life in AGA items also
obtained a low negative correlation with relationship status and no
correlation with visiting a dermatologist.
4  |  G E N E R A L D I S CU S S I O N
AGA has shown to be a dermatological condition which has a
marked impact on the quality of life of young men. The qualita-
tive study brought significant insights, demonstrating feelings of
lower attractiveness and even self-­worth young men with AGA
have (especially in the context of dating), and a loss of control that
they felt. These findings could be related to what some authors
noticed, 23 namely that irreversible changes, which occur too early
in one's life, can be especially stressful. Objectification theory 24
might also be relevant, stating that men tend to objectify them-
selves in this context, focusing on their looks and separating them
from other parts of their person, which otherwise also play a role
in one's attractiveness. Accordingly, it was noticed in the inter-
views that men for whom looks are not that important and those
who are in a relationship, seemed to be feeling a lesser impact of
AGA on QoL. Men also tended to think about hair loss in different
RAZUM and Vukasović Hlupić . |
      5

TA B L E 1  Correlations of Quality of life in AGA items with a general dermatological questionnaire, self-­esteem, life satisfaction,
relationship status, and visiting a dermatologist (N = 129)

2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

1. Quality of life in AGA items −0.31** −0.44** 0.69** 0.13 −0.20*

[−0.13 -­−0.47] [−0.30 -­−0.57] [0.62 -­0.75] [−0.04 -­0.30] [−0.02 -­−0.37]
2. Satisfaction with life scale (SWLS) 1 0.69** −0.20** 0.06 0.22*
[0.58 -­0.77] [−0.10 -­−0.33] [−0.12 -­0.23] [0.04 -­0.38]
3. Rosenberg self-­esteem scale 1 −0.33** 0.04 0.19*
[−0.21 -­−0.44] [−0.14 -­0.18] [0.01 -­0.36]
4. Skindex−17 (psychosocial scale) 1 0.10 −0.13
[−0.07 -­0.28] [−0.28 -­0.02]
5. Visiting a dermatologist 1 0.10
[−0.07 -­0.26]
6. Relationship status 1

Note: * p < 0.05; **p < 0.01; Bootstrapped 95% confidence intervals (N = 2000 samples) are in brackets below the corresponding correlation
coefficients; Visiting a dermatologist coded as 0 = did not visit a dermatologist, 1 = visited a dermatologist; Relationship status coded as 0 = not in a
relationship, 1 = in a relationship; Due to a non-­normal distribution of Skindex-­17 (psychosocial scale), Kendall-­t au coefficients of correlation were
computed between this and other variables.

situations, and this created a daily source of worry for them. Some
men went further and covered up their hair loss or invested in hair
25
loss treatments. A qualitative study on women noted similar ef-
fects, but of a stronger nature.
The qualitative study was followed by proposing items for mea-
suring Quality of life in AGA, which were derived mainly from what
men with AGA said in the interviews. The scale showed a one-­factor
structure, high reliability and promising sensitivity; it correlated neg-
atively with self-­esteem and life satisfaction, which is indicative of
its validity and of the impact that AGA bears. The causation under-
lying these relationships is however not clear because of the study's
correlational and cross-­sectional design; it might be that AGA neg-
atively influences self-­esteem and life satisfaction; that those who
previously had low results on these variables feel a greater impact
of AGA, or that there is a common latent variable(s) affecting both
Quality of life in AGA, self-­esteem and life satisfaction. Items for
measuring Quality of life in AGA have shown a positive correlation
with Skindex-­17 (modified) psychosocial scale, a general dermato-
logical QoL questionnaire. This was expected since they both aim
to measure a similar construct, and based on our results they share
≈ 50% of the common variance. However, we believe Quality of life
in AGA items offer better sensitivity, content, and face validity, and
potentially better responsiveness in measuring the effects of treat-
ment,11 because they focus specifically on AGA, and not on general
dermatological symptoms.
There are also clear limitations. These items should be more ex-
tensively validated, both by experts and in a proper validation study
that would include a larger sample and more variables of quality of
life assessment. In such a case, new items might be included, and
some old ones excluded. The assessment of the degree of hair loss
in interviews was not carried out by a qualified hair loss expert.
Although in the qualitative study we were primarily interested in the
subjective experience of men, professional assessment of hair loss
would have improved the quality of the study. In the quantitative
study, the only source of assessment was self-­report. We believe
this to be a valid assessment method for the subjective quality of life
a person experiences. However, it should be noted that self-­report
measures have limitations in terms of potential bias. We believe
that a future study attempting to further validate these preliminary
results would benefit from including: (i) independent hair loss spe-
cialists who would evaluate items included in the Quality of life in
AGA measure, to assure expert validity of the included items, and (ii)
independent assessments of the participants’ quality of life from in-
formed other-­reports (eg, spouse, partner, parent). Finally, the study
was conducted on Caucasian Europeans, and there might be signif-
icant cultural differences in the way men feel the impact of AGA on
QoL.
5  |  CO N C LU S I O N S
Ultimately, we hope this study might help dermatological re-
searchers and practitioners, firstly by giving a deeper insight into
male AGA, and secondly by providing a preliminary set of items
for measuring Quality of life in androgenetic alopecia. These items
offer a basis for the future development of a comprehensive tool.
We believe that tools based on items targeting quality of life spe-
cifically in AGA, or generally in different alopecia types, have the
potential for identifying especially distressed patients and provid-
ing better means to measure treatment effects on quality of life.
C O N FL I C T S O F I N T E R E S T
None.
AU T H O R S C O N T R I B U T I O N S
Josip Razum: Conceptualization, Methodology, Investigation,
Data curation, Software, Formal analysis, Project administration,
Validation, Visualization, and Writing—­original draft; Tena Vukasović
 |
6      RAZUM and Vukasović Hlupić .
Hlupić: Conceptualization, Methodology, Supervision, and Writing—­
review and editing.
E T H I C A L A P P R OVA L
Ethics approval was obtained in line with the protocol for mas-
ter's thesis research plan development at the Department of
Psychology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University
of Zagreb.
C O N S E N T TO PA R T I C I PAT E
All potential participants were informed of research aim and decided
to participate voluntary, anonymously, and with no compensation.
C O N S E N T FO R P U B L I C AT I O N
All potential participants were informed and gave their consent for
the results to be published with no identifying information.
DATA AVA I L A B I L I T Y S TAT E M E N T
The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current
study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable
request.
ORCID
Josip Razum  https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2633-3271
Tena Vukasović Hlupić  https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3734-5582
E N D N OT E S
1 In order to make the descriptions of participants more approachable
to the reader, the Hamilton-­Norwood scale was converted into de-
scriptors: initial stage of hair loss (stages I and II), intermediate stage
of hair loss (stages III, III vertex and IV), advanced stage of hair loss
(stages V and VI), and final stage of hair loss (stage VII).
2 2 Coping is a relevant and complex construct but does not fit into the
scope of this paper. Therefore, the fourth theme Coping with hair loss
will not be presented as a part of the results. More information on
these qualitative results is available from the corresponding author.
For more information on ways in which young men cope with AGA,
see [15].
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How to cite this article: Razum J, Vukasović Hlupić T. Quality
of life in young men with androgenetic alopecia: A mixed
methods study. J Cosmet Dermatol. 2021;00:1–8.
https://doi.org/10.1111/jocd.14132
RAZUM and Vukasović Hlupić . |
      7

APPENDIX 1

Item factor loadings of preliminary items for Quality of life in AGA (N = 129)
Note

Factor 1

I look older because of hair loss and this worries me. 0.63
I’m generally worried about hair loss. 0.71
Hair loss makes me feel like I’m losing a part of myself. 0.77
I’d say I look better with hair. 0.58
Hair loss makes me panic. 0.84
I’m worried because I have little or no influence over hair loss. 0.69
I think hair loss also brings some positive things. 0.42
I’m generally less satisfied with myself because of hair loss. 0.83
I sometimes sense that others notice my hair is falling out and this makes me feel uncomfortable. 0.68
Hair loss worsens the impression I leave on others. 0.79
Others tease me in an unpleasant way because of hair loss. 0.32
Hair loss makes me less attractive. 0.66
I’m reluctant to talk about my hair loss to others. 0.66
Hair loss makes me less confident in flirting with potential partners. 0.80
I think hair loss can be a problem for me in a professional sense as well. 0.53
I feel discomfort when I meet people I last saw when I had more hair. 0.67
I think about my hair loss in different situations, not just when I’m in front of a mirror. 0.83
I spend a lot of time to cover up my hair loss (eg, by fixing hair). 0.72
I use hair loss remedies. 0.41
I’d like to undergo a hair transplant surgery in future. 0.61
I make sure that my hair loss is less visible in some situations (eg, when photos are taken). 0.76
22.I often compare my hair loss to other men who are losing hair. 0.63
23. I can make fun of my own hair loss. 0.21
The questionnaire was originally constructed and used in Croatian but was translated to English using a double-­blind translation procedure for this
publication. Original Croatian items are shown in Appendix 2.

APPENDIX 2

: Final items for Quality of life in AGA (N = 129)

Note

M SD

1. I’m generally worried about hair loss. 3.28 1.48

Općenito sam zabrinut zbog gubitka kose.
2. Hair loss makes me feel like I’m losing a part of myself. 2.61 1.46
Gubitkom kose gubim dio sebe.
3. Hair loss makes me panic. 2.42 1.44
Hvata me panika zbog gubitka kose.
4. I’m generally less satisfied with myself because of hair loss. 2.57 1.45
Zbog gubitka kose sam općenito manje zadovoljan sobom.
5. Hair loss worsens the impression I leave on others. 2.15 1.25
Ostavljam lošiji dojam na druge zbog gubitka kose.
6. Hair loss makes me less confident in flirting with potential partners. 2.58 1.43
 |
8      RAZUM and Vukasović Hlupić .

M SD

Zbog gubitka kose sam manje samouvjeren u zavođenju.

7. I think about my hair loss in different situations, not just when I'm in front of a mirror. 2.71 1.47

O svom gubitku kose mislim i kad nisam pred ogledalom.

8. I spend a lot of time to cover up my hair loss (eg, by fixing hair). 2.11 1.42
Trošim dosta vremena na to da prikrijem gubitak kose (namještanjem kose itd.)
9. I make sure that my hair loss is less visible in some situations (eg, when photos are taken). 2.55 1.57

Pazim na to da mi gubitak kose bude manje vidljiv u nekim situacijama (npr. na fotografijama).
Each item was presented with a response scale from 1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree. Sentences in italic represent the original Croatian
items.