That is not to say that individuals who are attractive do not enjoy many social advantages over those who are very unattractive. However, the individuals with the healthiest self-esteem are typically those who are neither extremely attractive nor extremely unattractive but closer to being average looking (Gerrig & Zimbardo, 2008). That is because both highly attractive and unattractive people are often judged prematurely by the way that they look: good looking people, in particular, may come to believe that their primary value is their looks (Gerrig & Zimbardo, 2008).
The connection between self-esteem and desire for physical enhancement through cosmetic surgery pertains to all ages but is especially significant for teenagers by virtue of the extreme importance of self-esteem issues that normally are part of adolescent development (Pitts-Taylor, 2007). Therefore, if distinguishing between psychologically healthy and psychologically unhealthy reasons for desiring cosmetic surgical procedures is important in the general prospective patient population, it is only that much more important an issue in connection with teenagers.
The Influence of Modern Media on Teen Perceptions and Values
Naturally, the modern media are strong influences on adolescent values and perceptions of reality. Today, teenagers are bombarded with images of physical perfection in the air-brushed pictures in advertisements and in the carefully managed appearance of their favorite musical and motion picture artists. Similarly, the advertisement of so many cosmetic surgery procedures and clinics on television and in other forms of media promote the perception that cosmetic surgery is necessary or that it is a normal solution to any aspect of non-contentment with one's physical appearance. At a more fundamental level, the popularity and increasingly common resort to surgery to correct minor physical imperfections also promotes the belief that physical perfection is the baseline for everyone.
Appropriate Parental Positions on the Issues
Parents whose children express the desire for cosmetic surgery should first consider whether or not the procedure at issue is an understandable source of unnecessary anxiety. Certainly, a harmless mole...
Generally, those types of cosmetic procedures should be considered in a different manner than the types of enhancements that are genuinely superficial, such as breast augmentation for teenagers. Generally, parents of all teenagers should emphasize that looks are superficial but parents of teenagers who wish to ameliorate a conspicuous (albeit cosmetic) source of understandable social anxiety might be well advised to pursue a cosmetic fix. Conversely, parents of teenagers who desire to enhance their looks in the pursuit of perfection might be best advised to deny those requests. At the very least, they might condition any consideration of such desires upon consultation with psychological experts capable of evaluating and addressing potential underlying self-esteem and other psychological factors that might be issues responsible for the desire for truly superficial cosmetic enhancements.
Reference
Gerrig, R. And Zimbardo, P. (2008). Psychology and Life. New Jersey: Pearson.
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Lite, J. And Dillon, N. (2007). "Kanye West's mom dies after cosmetic surgery" The New
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http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/2007/11/13/2007-11-13_kanye_wests_mom_dies_after_cosmetic_surg.html
News Medical.Net. (2007). "Risks of cosmetic surgery under the spotlight again"
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http://www.news-medical.net/print_article.asp?id=32545
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