GENDER

The impact exerted by Physical Attractiveness in every culture continues to be greater for females than males. One indication that males around the world place greater importance on Physical Attractiveness of females is a 2002 magazine survey conducted with readers in the United States and the following other countries: Australia, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Russia, Serbia, Slovenia, South Africa, and United Kingdom (UK). Researchers asked respondents, “Whom would you most like to sit next to on a long airplane flight?” They placed persons based on Physical Attractiveness (i.e., supermodels) at the top. Based on these data, Physical Attractiveness Phenomenon seems clearly in charge; in fact, respondents placed people synonymous with high Physical Attractiveness not just merely at the top but a very large distance from other choices. Even the second preferred choice (country’s leader) was approximately one-half the first choice percentage, followed by professional entertainers, financial advisers, religious leaders, and others.

Females are held to higher standards by both genders and are subjected more frequently to negative effects stemming from envy when the “pleasure of regarding beauty turns to resentment.” Gender stereotypes persist, with importance ratings different for males and females of all ages. People equate higher Physical Attractiveness with greater femininity for females and greater masculinity for males. Males continue to place greater emphasis on their mate’s Physical Attractiveness, including mate retention, than do females. Especially in the domain of facial attractiveness, gender difference is well established, with no question that females are “judged by their [physical] attractiveness to a greater extent than are males, and that these judgments have real consequences for them. Also, despite its abstract nature, Physical Attractiveness of females as opposed to males is more precisely defined or delineated, more well known, and has higher agreement.

However Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is a medical ailment believed to inflict males and females about equally. Professionals define BDD as extreme subjective feelings of ugliness regardless of a quite normal appearance, and people with BDD exhibit obsession with one or more facial or body features that may or may not deviate from norms of appearance. Individuals of both genders with these mental distortions seem to think, “I must be perfect, I must be noticed; the only way to feel better is to look better; if I am not the best looking in a social gathering I cannot have a good time; if my body part of concern is not beautiful, then it must be ugly.” Correspondingly, BDD aligns closely with differing values imposed through Physical Attractiveness Phenomenon upon and within people of higher and lower Physical Attractiveness. Few medical practitioners knew of BDD before the early 1990s, but the ailment is neither new nor rare. Even though the diagnostic sourcebook (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) for clinicians of psychiatry and psychology did not recognize BDD until its 1987 DSM-III-R, it was written about as early as 1891. Professionals estimate body dysmorphic disorder to inflict approximately 1.5 percent of people and actual rates are likely higher due to motivations among those inflicted to keep their ailment secret.

Plastic surgery is becoming more popular among Americans. TV shows such as “Extreme Makeover” and “Nip/Tuck” made people more aware of the possibilities of plastic surgery. About 71% of all surgical procedures and 87% of all non-surgical procedures were performed on women.