Study Shows Patients Want to Look Better, Not Different
/Consumer Survey from the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery Shows Americans Want to Look Better, Not Different
New York, NY (December 9, 2003) — Despite the popularity of "makeover" reality shows, most Americans who might consider cosmetic plastic surgery would not want to drastically change their appearance, according to a national survey of 1000 American households sponsored by the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS). Among women and men who said they would consider having cosmetic surgery, 68 percent would prefer a subtle change in their appearance, while less than one-quarter (23 percent) would consider an extreme change desirable. This finding, says ASAPS, is consistent with the experience of board-certified plastic surgeons, whose patients often stress that they want natural-looking results that will make them look better but not extremely different.
Many Americans Interested in Changing Appearance
The ASAPS survey found
that many people would like to change something about their appearance, and more
women than men are dissatisfied with at least one facial or body feature. Among
all Americans, 39 percent of women and 22 percent of men wish that they could
change something about their appearance. Only 15 percent of women and 10 percent
of men said they would make an extreme change. Twenty-five percent of women and
14 percent of men surveyed said they would consider cosmetic plastic surgery.
Among this subgroup, the overwhelming majority said they would not want an
extreme change in their appearance; only 27 percent of women and 16 percent of
men said they would favor an extreme change.
Most People Want Surgery To Help Them Look Better, Not Different
Among
Americans who would consider cosmetic surgery, 88 percent of women and 69
percent of men said that, following their surgery, they would want family
members to say they look better but "like the same person." Only 9 percent of
women and 14 percent of men said they would want to be told they no longer look
like their former self.
Interest in Improving Multiple Features
Among Americans who said they
would consider cosmetic surgery, 35 percent would change one feature; 26 percent
would change two features; 12 percent would change three features; and 9 percent
would change more than three features.