How Celebrities and Social Media Influence Us

While plenty of celebrities still swear that water, sleep, and olive oil are the secrets to their taut necks and jawlines at fiftysomething, we’ve entered an era of greater transparency around cosmetic treatments than ever before. Entire storylines have been built around Real Housewives’ nose jobs, stars are showing their breast implant removal scars on Instagram, and even Kylie Jenner is admitting it’s time she and her sisters have a “bigger conversation about the beauty standards we’re setting.” 

It’s not surprising, then, that 44% of Gen Zers say they’ve learned about cosmetic procedures via social media (compared to 30% of Millennials, 14% of Gen Xers, and just 8% of Boomers). 

How does hearing about and seeing increasingly more cosmetic work on our screens affect us? 

When it’s obvious that a celebrity has altered their appearance with plastic surgery:

  • 41% of women said they feel sad about the pressure celebrities feel to stay relevant, and 33% said it makes them want to avoid plastic surgery.
  • Men were less likely to empathize, with 34% answering that it seems desperate and 30% saying it makes them think the celebrity is vain.

Among respondents who named a celebrity they think has had good cosmetic work:

  • Both men and women cited Kim Kardashian and Jane Fonda most often.
  • More women chose Dolly Parton; more men chose Cher.
  • In addition to Kim Kardashian, Gen Z men picked Cardi B and Kylie Jenner.

As for which celebrities have had bad cosmetic work? Madonna (15%); Michael Jackson (8%); Joan Rivers (5%); and Kim Kardashian, Kenny Rogers, and Meg Ryan (4%) topped the list among respondents who named a celebrity.

64% of Gen Zers and 62% of Millennials said they would like to have a female celebrity’s feature. In stark contrast, 68% of Boomers do not want any female celebrity’s feature.   

These are the most in-demand features among women of all age groups who chose Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Lopez, or Angelina Jolie.

These are the most in-demand features among men of all groups who chose Brad Pitt, George Clooney, and Cristiano Ronaldo.