In Venezuela, black and racially mixed women are undergoing rhinoplasty in an effort to appear whiter. However, a new study from Dartmouth College has found that the procedure is only temporarily improving self-esteem and body image in a culture that places high value on whiteness.

In Venezuela, as well as many other countries, cosmetic surgery has become increasingly popular. Fueling the increased popularity is an obsession with physical appearance that has driven many women to get breast implants, face lifts, liposuction and a host of other cosmetic procedures. The recent trend has sparked a lot of controversy globally and at home. For example, late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez blamed cosmetic surgeons as the reason Venezuelan women were pressured into unnecessary surgery they were unable to afford.

Assistant professor of anthropology, Lauren Gulbas oversaw the study. She examined the aesthetic ideals promoted by cosmetic surgery professionals and local ideas of race in Caracas, focusing mainly on rhinoplasty. Her article, titled “Embodying Racism: Race, Rhinoplasty, and Self-Esteem in Venezuela” was published in the journal Qualitative.

The study included 63 white, black or racially mixed women. Twenty-four of whom had previously undergone rhinoplasty and 39 of whom had a desire to have the procedure performed. Every woman in the study wanted a “well-formed nose” that was tall and slender, which are characteristics associated with being white. These characteristics are supposedly considered the “gold standard” in rhinoplasty. All study participants that were black or racially mixed and had a broad, flat nose, associated with their African heritage, wanted a new nose to look whiter and improve their self-esteem.

In Venezuela, racial categories are defined mostly by skin color. The system is flexible and on the surface it appears to promote equality by encouraging racial fusion with European, Indian and African ancestry. However, in practice, Venezuelan heritage prioritizes lighter skin tones and European features, Gulbas explains.

Gulbas writes in her article, “Rhinoplasty is offered by physicians and interpreted by patients as a resolution to body dissatisfaction and low self-esteem. Patient’s efforts to alter the nose reveal attempts to change not only how the body looks, but how it is lived. As a result, cosmetic surgery only acts as a stop gap measure to heighten one’s self-esteem and body image.”