Does Social Media Engagement Influence Men’s Consideration of Cosmetic Surgery?

Abstract

Men’s cosmetic surgery rates are increasing globally. Existing literature suggests that social media engagement encourages women to undergo cosmetic surgery, yet the relationship between social media and cosmetic surgery for men remains underexamined. The aim of this study was therefore to explore if social media engagement impacted men’s interest in undergoing cosmetic surgery. Using an adapted version of the Passive and Active Use Measure to assess social media engagement, the relationship between social media engagement and cosmetic surgery consideration was explored. Among 311 American adult men (Mage = 37.7), passive social media engagement (e.g., viewing photos, browsing profiles) was found to have a small positive relationship with consideration of cosmetic surgery (p < .05, 95% CI [0.12, 0.49]). Conversely, Active Non-social media engagement (e.g., posting videos, tagging) and Active Social media engagement (e.g., posting statuses, commenting) did not predict cosmetic surgery consideration. These results demonstrate that the ways in which men use social media (rather than whether or not they use social media in general) determines their interest in cosmetic surgery. While social media engagement is a known correlate for appearance dissatisfaction in women, this study provides evidence that social media engagement is potentially also harmful to men’s body image. This preliminary research may contribute to informing best clinical practice for men experiencing body dissatisfaction. Namely, reducing passive social media use may alleviate men’s likelihood of pursing cosmetic surgery, in turn reducing their exposure to the physical and psychological risks associated with undergoing cosmetic surgery.