The ‘Why’ of Cosmetic Surgery: Patient and Doctor Motivations

Abstract

As we saw in Chapter 4, there has been some theoretical debate and discussion about why women decide to undergo cosmetic surgery. However, very little empirical work has been done in the social sciences which actually asks women themselves about this. An exception is the work carried out by Davis (1995) in the Netherlands which shows women as wanting to fit in and feel normal rather than stand out for having, what they perceived to be, flaws in their body. Their decisions concerning cosmetic surgery were not motivated by a desire to be outstanding or beautiful but by a desire to feel at ease with their own bodies. As cosmetic surgery becomes more normalised and easily available to a broader range of women, it is important that we understand why women opt for cosmetic surgery and what influences the decisions they make. Rather than being unusual, cosmetic surgery is becoming increasingly common and is being utilised by many women to achieve self-transformation (Heyes, 2007). If we can understand the stories that lie behind cosmetic surgery, then we can begin to see what motivates women to undergo such risky and significant changes to their bodies and what self-transformation means to them.