Brief encounters: Assembling cosmetic surgery tourism

Abstract

This paper reports findings from a large-scale, multi-disciplinary, mixed methods project which explores empirically and theoretically the rapidly growing but poorly understood (and barely regulated) phenomenon of cosmetic surgery tourism (CST). We explore CST by drawing on theories of flows, networks and assemblages, aiming to produce a fuller and more nuanced account of - and accounting for - CST. This enables us to conceptualise CST as an interplay of places, people, things, ideas and practices. Through specific instances of assembling cosmetic surgery that we encountered in the field, and that we illustrate with material from interviews with patients, facilitators and surgeons, our analysis advances understandings and theorisations of medical mobilities, globalisation and assemblage thinking.

Examining medical tourists' intention to visit a tourist destination: Application of an extended MEDTOUR scale in a cosmetic tourism context

“…Trying to conform to these externally imposed beauty standards has created a significant boom in cosmetic surgery tourism. For example, the “Korean Look” is regarded as highly fashionable, and thus, numerous Chinese youth are attracted to South Korea for cosmetic surgery on their eyelids, nose, breasts, and so forth (Holliday, Bell, Cheung, Jones, & Probyn, ). As Viladrich and Baron‐Faust () argued, cosmetic surgery tourists are “a growing group of transnational patients who visit distant locations to improve their bodies while enjoying recreational activities” (p.119).…”

“…As indicated by Holliday et al (2015), Chinese adults have shown an increasing trend to pursue a better appearance through cosmetic surgeries. One popular destination for this is South Korea, which is one of the internationally recognized destinations that provide professional cosmetic surgery services (International Society of Esthetic Plastic Surgery, 2016; Kim, Lee, & Jung, 2013).…”

Tourism destinations as multiplicities: The view from Assemblage Thinking

“…Its use as a distinct ontology for tourism, and tourism places is in very early stages. Recent applications concern tourism, not tourism destinations directly (Anderson, ; Bell, Holliday, Jones, Probyn, & Taylor, ; Holliday et al, ; Mostafanezhad, ; Waitt & Duffy, ), adopt the Deleuzian approach but do not further employ assemblage as an analytic along the lines of AT as concisely articulated by DeLanda () and adopted by others (Anderson & McFarlane, ).…”

“…Building and real estate interests often catalyze the process as the emergence of regional level TAs in the Mediterranean and other world regions evinces. Presently, tourism entrepreneurs and intermediaries increasingly influence the formation of novel TAs such as cosmetic surgery and medical tourism, volunteer tourism, and others (Holliday et al, 2015;Mostafanezhad, 2014). More importantly, they shape the representation and determine the character and fate of destinations through marketing, social and discursive practices, and coding devices, producing particular discourses, narratives, and potted historical narratives that frame, inform, and influence tourist practices and performances (Edensor, 2000;Framke, 2002;Lew, Hall, & Williams, 2014 Thus, the emergence and cohesion of particular TAs is intentionally or unintentionally encouraged or discouraged.…”

“…One notable development was the introduction of complexity science notions and the recognition of tourism destinations as complex coupled human-environment, or socioecological systems (SESs) (Brouder & Eriksson, 2013;Farrell & Twining-Ward, 2004Ioannides & Debbage, 2014;McKercher, 1999). A second notable development was the adoption of relational approaches to the study of dynamic tourism phenomena and destinations that stress the notions of ordering, network, assemblage, and multiplicity (Franklin, 2004;Holliday, Bell, Cheung, Jones, & Probyn, 2015;Sheller & Urry, 2004a;van der Duim, 2007).…”