The Relationship between Tendency to Cosmetic Surgery with Negative Body Image and Irrational Beliefs in Women Applying for Cosmetic Surgery: Mediation Role of Cognitive Emotion Regulation

in recent decades, new perceptions of beauty have been defined and beauty is defined as attractiveness and perfection. The aim of this study was to determine the fit of the structural model of the relationship between the tendency to cosmetic surgery with a negative body image and irrational beliefs mediated by cognitive emotion regulation in women applying for cosmetic surgery in Bushehr.

The present study was correlational and structural equation model study. The statistical population of this study is all women applicants for surgery who referred to beauty clinics in Bushehr in 2020. The sample size consists of 400 women who were selected by available random sampling method. Data collection tools were, tendency to cosmetic surgery (Etemadifar & Amani, 2013), Body image (Littleton, 2005), irrational beliefs (jones, 1969) and cognitive emotion regulation (Garnefski, 2001) questionnaires.

The results showed that negative body image and irrational beliefs predicted the tendency to cosmetic surgery in women by mediating role of cognitive emotion regulation. Also, data analysis showed the appropriateness of the indicators and indicated a good and acceptable fitness for the hypothesized model. The findings of the structural model showed that the path of negative body image and irrational beliefs with cognitive emotion regulation is significant directly and with a tendency to cosmetic surgery mediated by cognitive emotion regulation.

The results of this study can introduce a protocol for psychotherapists and counselors in providing specialized counseling to women seeking cosmetic surgery to correct irrational beliefs and cognitions and teach coping styles to reduce negative body image and irrational beliefs and increase cognitive emotion regulation.