The Relationship Between Social Anxiety and the Desire for Cosmetic Surgery: The Mediating Role of Body Image and Appearance-Based Rejection Sensitivity

Abstract

Abstract Due to the increasing prevalence of cosmetic surgeries, it seems necessary to investigate the psychological factors involved in this issue. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the relationship between social anxiety and the desire for cosmetic surgery (DCS) through the mediating role of body image and appearance-based rejection sensitivity (ABRS). This was a correlational study, of structural equation modeling (SEM) type. The statistical population included all students studying at universities of Kermanshah, Iran in the academic year 2020-2021, out of whom 326 were selected through convenience sampling method. Participants filled out Henderson-King’s attitudes towards cosmetic surgery, Connor et al.’s social phobia, Littleton et al.’s fear of body image, and Park’s ABRS questionnaires. Pearson’s correlation coefficient and SEM were used in LISREL8.8 and SPSS-22 software to analyze the data. The results revealed that the hypothesized model had a good fit in the study sample. It was also found that the avoidance and physiological distress components of social anxiety are related to DCS through body image and ABRS, respectively. Accordingly, measures to increase knowledge about psychological factors, especially social anxiety, affecting DCS in cosmetic physicians and clients of beauty clinics, are recommended.