Facial dissatisfaction, defined as the psychological traits of lacking confidence in one’s facial appearance, is considered a risk factor for body dysmorphic disorder and represents an important psychological aspect in clinical practice. This study explores the cognitive factors contributing to facial dissatisfaction. The applicant investigates (1) the perception of facial attractiveness in individuals with high facial dissatisfaction, (2) the relationship between facial dissatisfaction and sensitivity to facial change detection, and (3) the cultural specificity and universality of facial dissatisfaction.

(1) The findings have been published as an original research article in an international journal by SAGE (Ayase, Mori, & Kato, 2025). Specifically, the study demonstrated that individuals with high facial dissatisfaction perceive faces with larger eyes as more attractive than those with low facial dissatisfaction. This suggests that individuals with high dissatisfaction experience a greater cognitive gap between their ideal and actual facial appearance.

(2) The study is progressing steadily, and the manuscript is approaching submission. Specifically, I have identified a positive relationship between facial dissatisfaction and sensitivity to detecting facial changes in upright faces.

(3) I have hosted a European collaborator in Japan and have been working on an international collaborative paper on the Spanish version of the Face Dissatisfaction Scale, originally developed by Ayase, Mori, & Kato (2023). This study is expected to make a significant contribution to understanding the unique psychological properties of facial dissatisfaction in Japan.

Based on these findings, I have applied for a private grant to develop a new psychometric scale related to facial dissatisfaction. In the future, I aim to publish the manuscripts currently under preparation or review in international journals and evaluate the scale's psychometric properties using test theory analyses.