Australian women's motivations for, and experiences of, cosmetic surgery: A qualitative investigation

S Bonell; E Austen; S Griffiths

Journal article

Australian women's motivations for, and experiences of, cosmetic surgery: A qualitative investigation

S Bonell, E Austen, S Griffiths

Body Image | ELSEVIER | Published : 2022

DOI: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2022.02.010

Abstract

Little qualitative literature has examined women's motivations for undergoing cosmetic surgery or their experiences throughout the surgery process (e.g., consultation, aftercare, and recovery). To fill this gap, we interviewed 15 Australian women (Mage = 37.67) who had undergone cosmetic surgery. We conducted a reflexive thematic analysis from which we generated five overarching themes. Broadly, participants described the ‘cosmetic surgery lifestyle’ as being normalised in contemporary Australian society. In terms of their own cosmetic surgery experiences, several expressed suffering from severe depression immediately post-surgery. Most participants also discussed how interactions with other..

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University of Melbourne Researchers

Emma Austen Author

Scott Griffiths Author

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Grants

Awarded by National Health and Medical Research Council

Funding Acknowledgements

Sarah Bonell is under the supervision of Scott Griffiths, who is supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council Early Career Fellowship (grant number: 1121538). The funder had no role in the design of the study, the collection or analysis of data, write-up of the manuscript, or the decision to submit the manuscript for publication.