TITLE:
Competitive Orientations and Men’s Acceptance of Cosmetic Surgery
AUTHORS:
Bill Thornton, Richard M. Ryckman, Joel A. Gold
KEYWORDS:
Appearance; Attractiveness; Body Image; Competitiveness; Hypercompetitiveness; Cosmetic Surgery
JOURNAL NAME:
Psychology,
Vol.4 No.12,
December
10,
2013
ABSTRACT: As with women,
men are experiencing increased pressure to achieve media-conveyed societal
ideals for appearance and their consideration of cosmetic surgery as a means to
enhance their appearance for competitive advantage in social and career realms
has been increasing. This study considered individual differences in
competitive orientations and the acceptance of cosmetic surgery among men.
Hypercompetitiveness (psychologically unhealthy) was predictive of acceptance
of cosmetic surgery even after age, self-esteem, body mass index, and body
dysmorphia were taken into account. Personal development competitiveness
(psychologically healthy) was negatively associated with body dysmorphia and
was not predictive of acceptance of cosmetic surgery among men. These results
for men, along with previous research among women (Thornton et al., 2013),
indicate that a hypercompetitive orientation contributes to the consideration of
cosmetic surgery independent of body image concerns for both men and women.