It can range from the socially acceptable decoration (e.g., pierced ears in many societies), over religiously mandated (e.g., circumcision in a number of cultures) to corporal punishment and provocative statement by the rebellious (e.g., nostril piercings in punk subculture), some even get physically addicted to the andrenaline/endorphine release associated with a painful procedure. Some people experience an abstract but distinct compulsion to modify their body that appears to have no underlying or external reason.

Nearly every human society practices or has practiced some type of body modification in its broadest definition, from Maori tattoos to Victorian corsets to modern breast implants.

Some futurists believe that eventually humans will pursue body modification for technological reasons, with permanently implanted devices to enhance mental and physical capabilities, thereby becoming cyborgs. For the substantial number of people with heart pacemakers and brain implants such as cochlear implants and electrical brain stimulators for Parkinson's disease, this is already a reality.

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