Cosmetic surgery and perception of own appearance in Norwegian women

Introduction This study investigates the relation between Norwegian women�s perception of their appearance and their motivation to undergo cosmetic surgery. Perception of one�s appearance can be divided in two parts: Perceived importance of own appearance and satisfaction with own appearance. It has been suggested that women take cosmetic surgery only when they are dissatisfied with their body and when their appearance is important for them. There are relatively few studies that have investigated this relation, and these studies have methodological shortcomings that may have biased their results. Methods A random sample of n = 2,000 was drawn from all Norwegian women aged 22 to 55 years. The respondents received a questionnaire about cosmetic surgery and several psychological variables. This presentation focuses on the questions � Have you ever taken cosmetic surgery?� and �How much do you wish to undergo cosmetic surgery?� (from �not at all� to �very much�). In addition, two scales from the Multidimensional Body Self-Relations Questionnaire, which contain appearance importance and appearance satisfaction, are used in the analyses. Results The response rate was 46 % (907 persons responded). Sixty-nine persons (7,7 %) indicated that they had undergone one or more cosmetic operations, while 24 % (203) indicated that they had not taken any operation, but wished to undergo cosmetic surgery (from �little� to �very much�). A multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that appearance importance, but not appearance satisfaction, was statistically significantly related to whether persons had taken cosmetic surgery or not. In addition, a linear multiple regression analysis were conducted with surgery motivation as dependent variable. Both appearance importance and appearance satisfaction were statistically significant predictors of this variable. Discussion The results fit well to the stated hypothesis: Women who whish to take cosmetic surgery are more devoted to their appearance and less satisfied with appearance than average. That already operated persons do not differ in appearance satisfaction from average, may be explained by cosmetic surgery�s positive effect on appearance satisfaction.