A new study has revealed that facial plastic surgery improves perception of you with regard to likeability, social skills, attractiveness and femininity.
The relationship between facial features and personality traits has been studied in other science fields, but it is lacking in the surgical literature, according to the study background.
The study of the MedStar Georgetown University Hospital included preoperative and postoperative photographs of 30 white female patients who had facial plastic surgery from 2009 through 2013. The procedures included face-lift, upper and lower eyelid surgery, eyebrow-lift, neck-lift and/or chin implant.
Individual raters scored the photographs for six personality traits (aggressiveness, extroversion, likeability, trustworthiness, risk seeking and social skills), as well as attractiveness and femininity.
There was statistically significant improvement between preoperative and postoperative scores for likeability, social skills, attractiveness and femininity when all the facial plastic surgery procedures were evaluated together. Improvement in scores for the other traits was not statistically significant, according to the results.
The comprehensive evaluation and treatment of the patient who undergoes facial rejuvenation requires a broader understanding of the many changes in perception that are likely to occur with surgical intervention. The face is not defined by youth alone, the study concludes.
