I Want Cosmetic Surgery to Look Like Pippa
August 10th, 2011
I Want Cosmetic Surgery to Look Like Pippa?
Recent headlines recount the uptick in the popularity of Prince William and his new bride. Both Kate and her sister Pippa have become instant media celebrities. Along with the newfound fame, are the throngs of people wanting to copy their fashion style, their beauty secrets and the like. I am not surprised that plastic surgeons have been inundated with patient requests to have their appearance altered to look like Pippa.
Is this normal? As a general statement, this is outside the normal range of appropriate expectations for plastic surgery. While I have not personally had such a request in my practice, I would refer these patients for a psyche evaluation.
The Halo Effect: Power of First Impressions
August 4th, 2011
Are first impressions important? Do attractive people have an unfair advantage? According to the halo effect, while not a fair or necessarily an accurate assessment, first impressions are indeed very powerful. When people receive positive visual messages and cues from a pleasing appearance, they will assume that other aspects about you are equally as positive. This compounding effect is referred to as the halo effect.
Solomon Asch, the human behaviorist who is considered an early pioneer of social psychology is well-know for research in this area. The results of his famous study suggest that attractiveness is a central trait, so we take it another step further to presume all the other traits of an attractive person are just as attractive and sought after. The linking of disconnected traits is the basis for making first impressions and why they are so hard to overcome.
As silly as it seems, results from a more recent study by Bryn Mawr College confirms his earlier research. As a cosmetic surgeon, I make a living helping people improve their appearance. I do believe in the notion that when you look good, you often feel better, but I find it fascinating that the perceptions of appearance and physical beauty also involve the unconscious. I’ll think twice now about running up to the grocery store in my dirty gardening clothes, lest I be judged too harshly!
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