Exploring the Personality Characteristics of Rhinoplasty Patients: Perfectionism, Rumination, and Self-Compassion

Abstract

Objective: This study investigates differences in personality characteristics, including perfectionism, ruminative thinking style, and self-compassion, between individuals who have undergone rhinoplasty and a control group without any history of cosmetic surgery. Methods: The study included 33 adult patients who underwent rhinoplasty between 2021 and 2023 at Bursa Uludağ University Faculty of Medicine Hospital and 33 adult patients who visited our centre for other complaints as a control group. The rhinoplasty group consisted of primary surgical patients with functional and cosmetic concerns, excluding those who sought revision surgery or had only functional problems. The control group consisted of individuals with no prior cosmetic surgery history and no expectations of aesthetic interventions. Psychiatric analysis was performed using Frost multidimensional perfectionism scale, ruminative thinking style questionnaire, and self-compassion scale. Results: This research revealed that individuals who had rhinoplasty scored higher in perfectionism 109.3 (±23.3) and ruminative thinking 87.9 (±22) compared to those who did not undergo surgery 94.15 (±22.2) and 77.7 (±23), respectively. Additionally, the rhinoplasty group had lower self-compassion scores, 80.4 (±17.3), than the control group, 86.1 (±11.2). Statistically significant differences were observed in perfectionism between the groups (p = 0.009). In rhinoplasty patients, a notably positive correlation was found between perfectionism and ruminative thinking scores (r = 0.482; p = 0.005), while a moderately significant negative correlation was observed between self-compassion and ruminative thinking scores (r = − 0.465; p = 0.006). Conclusion: Individuals who undergo rhinoplasty generally show increased levels of perfectionism and are more prone to ruminative thinking. They also demonstrate reduced self-compassion compared to non-surgical control groups. Cosmetic surgeons should be aware of these psychological trends and consider using appropriate scales during pre-surgery consultations and follow-up visits. Adopting this informed approach can improve the surgeon–patient relationship and help overcome communication challenges. Level of Evidence III: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266.