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Transforming the Everyday

TO TRANSFORM THE WORLD

Hair impacts every person on the planet. Some may dismiss it as trivial, or superficial, but the reality is, hair has the potential to change our day and perhaps even our world.

We’re not joking.

For the past 20 years, Pantene has been working with Dr. Marianne LaFrance at Yale University to understand the power and consequences of hair. Dr. LaFrance discovered that seemingly small things – like how people feel about their hair – can affect happiness and even success. Her most recent study included 4,400 female participants across eleven countries. The results revealed two critical things:

  1. When we feel confident in our hair, we feel confident in ourselves, our abilities, and what we’re able to achieve. More than confidence, great hair can become a sense of competence.

  2. Our hair speaks louder than our clothes or makeup to tell the world who we really are. Showing up confident in who we are and who we are working to become is not only a thing of beauty, it has the power to transform the impact we have on the world around us.

That’s why Pantene has made a long-term commitment to support inclusive, transformative “great hair” experiences. We give a megaphone to big and small moments where hair plays a part in accomplishing important goals, whether personal or professional. Like partnering with The Wing to teach high school girls business acumen and providing $100,000 in funding and mentoring for female entrepreneurs who are transforming the world around them with our landmark event "Pitch Perfect." Or, our commitment to the LGBTQ+ community, helping to redefine what beauty really is.

We have more work to do. On an average day, 95% of us do not feel great about our hair. We might feel like it’s an okay day, but rarely is it great. It is our mission to create the hair care to transform the okay hair days to become great hair days.

Small things, it turns out, can have a big impact.

Pantene. The Power to Transform.


SOURCES:

Marianne LaFrance Ph.D. Professor of Psychology at Yale University, Author of “An Experimental Investigation Into the Effects of ‘Bad Hair’” and ”The Importance and Satisfaction Women Attach to Their Hair: Causes and Comparisons Across Eleven Countries.”

Linda Odioso Research Fellow of 35 years at P&G, Researcher on the Good Hair Day Study

Tracey Long Senior Manager, Company Communications at P&G, Worked with Dr. LaFrance on the Bad Hair Day Study

Calvin Lai, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Psychological & Brain Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, Director of Research for Harvard University’s Project Implicit Research, Lead for the Diversity Science Lab

Safiya Umoja Noble, Ph.D. Visiting Author of “Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism”

Alexis McGill Johnson Executive Director and Co-Founder of The Perception Institute Lead Researcher on “The ‘Good Hair’ Study: Explicit and Implicit Attitudes Toward Black Women’s Hair”

Sean Munson, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Human Centered Design & Engineering University of Washington, Co-Author of a study on the hidden gender bias in Google Image Search.

Vivian Diller, Ph.D. Psychologist and author of “The Psychology Behind a ‘Good Hair Day.’” Author of “Face It: What Women Really Feel As Their Looks Change”

Emma Tarlo, Ph.D. Professor of Anthropology, Director of Research at The University of London, Author of “Entanglement: The Secret Lives of Hair.”

Teiahsha Bankhead Ph.D., L.C.S.W. Associate Professor in the Division of Social Work at California State University, Sacramento. Author of “Self-Esteem, Hair-Esteem and Black Women with Natural Hair.”

Peter Belmi, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Leadership and Organizational Behavior at the University of Virginia, Co-author of the study “Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, Who's the Fairest of Them All”

Mahzarin R. Banaji, Ph.D. Professor and Department Chair of the Richard Clarke Cabot Professor of Social Ethics at Harvard University, Co-founder of Harvard’s Project Implicit

Kate Ratliff, Ph.D. Associate Professor and Social Psychology Area Director at the University of Florida, Executive Director of Harvard’s Project Implicit