Investigating Psychosocial Causes of the Tendency for Facial Cosmetic Surgery

Introduction Despite the importance of cosmetic surgery in improving body image and promoting individuals' physical and mental health, it is accompanied with some physical, mental, and economic problems, because it is an invasive procedure. Considering such extensive consequences and given the rising demand for performing such surgeries, it is essential to consider programs for reducing such requests. The present study aimed to investigate the psychosocial causes of the tendency for facial cosmetic surgery in patients referred to medical centers in Ahvaz in 2016-2017. Materials and Methods This study was conducted on 385 facial cosmetic surgery applicants referred to medical centers in Ahvaz and were selected using a sequential nonprobability sampling method. The data collection tool was a questionnaire divided into two sections namely: (1) demographic questions and (2) a questionnaire on the psychosocial causes of the tendency for facial cosmetic surgery. Results The mean scores of the psychological and social causes of the tendency for facial cosmetic surgery were 4.46 (SD = 1.67) and 3.44 (SD = 2.57), respectively. "Being interested in being beautiful" was the most frequent positive response of the participants regarding the cause of tending to undergo facial cosmetic surgery (88.6%) and the least frequent response was estimated to be 35.1% for the "inappropriate psychological state" cause. Conclusion The results of this study showed that psychological factors affected the participants' tendency for facial cosmetic surgery more than social factors. Determining and identifying such psychological pressures and providing individual training and psychological support can prevent individuals from undergoing facial cosmetic surgery.