What Tattoo Says About You?

What Your Tattoo Says About You –

You have a strong “sense of self” (find out what this means below).
You customize your body to express or experience ownership of it.
To you, art is not only an interest, it is a priority.
You are not (or are trying not to be) worried about the negatives.
You are willing to have regrets and make mistakes. Fears don’t control you.
You relate strongly, utterly, deeply, howlingly with an idea, image, or phrase.
You dare!
You are okay with pain. You know how to deal with it.
You think you will feel this way forever (or want to remember this feeling forever).
There’s something (or someone) you don’t want to forget.
You identify strongly with your culture (however small or large it is).

Please join the conversation by participating in the surveys below! Scroll to Continue.

Contents

1 What personality types get tattoos?
- 1.1 What is the psychology behind tattoos?
  - 1.1.1 Do tattoos mean low self-esteem?
2 What do tattoos symbolize?
- 2.1 Do tattoos say about a person?
- 2.2 Are tattoos attention seeking?
3 Do tattoos show insecurity?
4 Do tattoos make you look trashy?
5 What is the most popular tattoo?
- 5.1 Who is most likely to get tattoos?
  - 5.1.1 Are people with tattoos narcissists?
  - 5.1.2 Do tattoos change your personality?
- 5.2 Why do girls get tattoos?

What personality types get tattoos?

Author: Sophia Carter – Institution: Whitworth University ABSTRACT Research supports personality differences between tattooed and non-tattooed individuals. However, few studies have investigated whether any of these differences are associated with positive indicators for tattooed individuals.

In this study, personality differences between tattooed and non-tattooed individuals in three of the Big Five personality areas considered critical to successful employees in the workforce were examined.

Previous research has established that higher levels of conscientiousness and extraversion coupled with lower levels of neuroticism are indicators of high-quality employees. The present study attempts to augment this line of research by adding the dimension of tattoos; investigating whether individuals with tattoos report more positive personality indicators in these dimensions than individuals without tattoos.

Thus it was hypothesized that tattooed individuals would report higher levels of conscientiousness and extraversion and lower levels of neuroticism than non-tattooed individuals;
For this purpose, N = 521 individuals completed an online survey, which included the 44-Question Big Five Inventory;

An independent sample t -test revealed a statistically significant difference between tattooed ( M = 3. 41, SD = 0. 77) and non-tattooed ( M = 3. 21, SD = 0. 83) groups in the Big Five personality area of extraversion, t (521) = 0. 39, p =. 004, d = 0.

25. There were no other statistically significant differences. These findings indicate that tattooed individuals may be better employees than previously believed, as the extraversion component of the Big Five Inventory, has been found to be a critical indicator of successful job performance.

INTRODUCTION Tattoos have increased in popularity over the last two decades; almost one in five people across all age groups had a tattoo as of 2012, and one in ten people have two or more tattoos (Swami et al. , 2012). Nearly 40% of young adults (18-25) have at least one tattoo, whereas only 15-16% of members of this age group in 1990 were tattooed (Swami et al.

, 2012). Despite the increase in tattoos within younger generations, tattooed individuals face discrimination, negative stigma, and lower levels of employment than their non-tattooed counterparts (Horne, Knox, Zusman, & Zusman, 2007).

Very little research has examined whether individuals with tattoos score differently than non-tattooed individuals on scales measuring personality traits perceived as positive. This study seeks to address this gap by identifying personality differences between tattooed and non-tattooed individuals and the potential implications of those differences for employment.

Historically, the traits associated with tattooed individuals have depended significantly on the culture and circumstances of those individuals. Captain Cook explored Polynesia in 1769 and observed the social and spiritual significance of tattoos in Polynesian culture.

The location of a tattoo on an individual’s body and the specific tattoo design displayed social, hierarchal, and genealogical information about the owner of the tattoo, as well as signaling particular aspects of his or her character (Parry, 1933). Tattooing was considered a sacred ceremony, and most tattoos were thought to fetch spiritual power, protection, and strength.

Almost every Polynesian individual had tattoos, and many of Captain Cook’s men left their voyage with a permanent memento of their expedition, which was considered a great honor (Parry, 1933). Similarly, Native Americans report a long and extensive history of traditional tattoos.

Depending on the tribe, tattoos could signal hierarchy or a specific role within the tribe, mark a warrior’s prowess in battle, or be considered marks of beauty (Littell, 2003). Since then, through the shift towards Western culture and through changing definitions of art, tattoos have become more associated with criminals and the sexually promiscuous (Wohlrab, Fink, & Kappeler, 2005).

Recent studies have shown there are still many stereotypes attached to individuals with tattoos: academic struggle, broken homes, traumatic childhoods, rarely or never attending church, poor decision-making skills, and susceptibility to peer pressure (Roberts & Ryan, 2002).

However, these stereotypes may not accurately represent the current tattoo climate. Forty percent of 26 to 40-year-olds now have a tattoo, closely followed by 36% of 18 to 25-year-olds (Swami et al. , 2012). The rising popularity of tattoos among young to middle aged individuals suggests that tattoos may hold different significance sociologically, biologically, and socially than they have throughout the previous century (Wohlrab et al.

, 2005);
Research is mixed on whether the negative stereotypes associated with tattoos are accurate;
A study completed in 2007 in Germany evaluating tattooed and non-tattooed individuals using a Big Five Personality Inventory found that tattooed individuals scored higher on the subscale of extraversion, and lower on the subscale of neuroticism (Wohlrab, 2007);

More recently, a 2012 study of 540 individuals from Austria and Germany examined Big Five personality traits in participants, as well as a need for uniqueness, sensation seeking, self-esteem, religious and spiritual belief, and demographic variables. The researchers in this study concluded that not only do those with tattoos have higher levels of need for uniqueness, sensation seeking, and thrill and adventure seeking, but they have lower levels of self-esteem, attend religious services less, and are generally much less educated than individuals who did not have tattoos (Swami et al.

, 2012). For decades, businesses have attempted to identify personality traits that predict a successful employee. When United States federal law banned the use of polygraphs for employee selection in 1988, hirers began using personality surveys as the primary method for making hiring decisions (Stabile, 2013).

Job interviewers now ask questions designed to reveal components of an individual’s personality in order to evaluate where that individual would best fit within the company structure, how committed to the job the individual would be, and their likelihood of advancing through the company ranks (Wohlrab, 2007).

However, studies as late as 2010 have shown that despite this shift to personality-based hiring, companies still discard potential employees on the basis of their tattoos (Burgess, & Clark 2010). Researchers have also attempted to determine personality traits capable of predicting successful employees.

A 2014 ten-year longitudinal study of over 8,000 individuals working within multiple big business companies revealed that there is a significant statistical difference between the managerial and working classes in three Big Five personality dimensions: neuroticism, extraversion, and conscientiousness (Palaiou & Furnham, 2014).

Conscientiousness was shown to be the best predictor of overall successful job performance and individuals who scored higher in this dimension tended to be more achievement oriented (Li, Barrick, Zimmerman, & Chiabaru, 2014).

Neuroticism successfully predicted poor work performance; the lower the levels of neuroticism, the higher the level of performance from the employee (Barrick, Mount, & Judge, 2001). Finally, higher levels of extraversion were linked to higher levels of task performance and proactivity (Pearsall & Ellis, 2006).

This study attempts to augment the area of research pertaining to tattooed individuals’ personality traits by investigating whether tattooed individuals differ significantly when compared to their non-tattooed peers in areas related to successful employee traits.

It was hypothesized that tattooed individuals would score higher in conscientiousness and extraversion and lower in neuroticism as measured by the Big Five Inventory. MATERIALS AND METHODS Participants Participants were recruited through a campus-wide e-mail at Whitworth University, Facebook psychology groups, and global online psychology research forums.

Participation was entirely voluntary, and participants could complete the study on their own time at their own pace;
521 individuals completed the survey, 411 females and 110 males, aged from 18 to 62 years old;

Materials Participants completed an online version of the 44-Question Big Five Inventory (John, Donahue, & Kentle, 1991) followed by basic demographic questions addressing age, sex, education level, and university affiliation of the participant. Participants were also asked if they had any tattoos.

Participants with tattoos were asked to indicate the size and location of those tattoos. The survey measured the Big Five areas of personality: openness to experience, neuroticism, extraversion, conscientiousness, and agreeableness.

For example, questions measuring conscientiousness asked the participant to rate statements such as: “I am someone who does a thorough job” or “I am a reliable worker” on a five-point Likert scale. Items measuring neuroticism stated, “I am someone who remains calm in tense situations” and “I am someone who is emotionally stable, not easily upset”.

Finally, items related to extraversion included statements such as “I am someone who is talkative” and “I am someone who is full of energy” (John et al;
, 1991);
Participants were asked to rate their agreement with a series of such statements on a five-point Likert on a scale of one (“strongly disagreeing”) to five (“strongly agreeing”);

The Big Five Inventory has scored between 0. 73 – 0. 82 on Cronbach’s alpha test over the course of its development, giving it a high degree of internal consistency and thus, reliability (Schmitt et al. , 2007). The survey contained nine questions regarding conscientiousness, eight questions regarding neuroticism, and eight questions regarding extraversion.

The three personality subscales of conscientiousness, extraversion, and neuroticism were scored using a formula that calculated a numerical value for each personality dimension by adding each individual’s selected scores on the Likert scale, which were then averaged between all participants for an overall mean;

RESULTS A total of N =521 individuals completed the survey. Of that 521, 411 were female and 110 were male. Participant age varied from 18 to 68 years old. Participants were current students or alumni from 54 universities of various sizes in both rural and urban locations throughout the United States.

Two hundred sixty-six (51%) identified themselves as having no tattoos and two hundred fifty-five (49%) identified themselves as having tattoos;
A two-tailed independent sample t -test revealed no statistically significant difference in levels of conscientiousness between tattooed and non-tattooed individuals ( p =;

30; Figure 1). Like conscientiousness, a two-tailed independent sample t-test revealed no statistically significance difference on the neuroticism personality scale between tattooed and non-tattooed individuals ( p =. 53; Figure 1). Results revealed a statistically significant result regarding extraversion.

A two-tailed independent sample t-test revealed a statistically significance difference between tattooed individuals ( M = 3;
41, SD = 0;
77) and non-tattooed individuals ( M = 3;
21, SD = 0;
83, p =;

004; Figure 1). DISCUSSION The purpose of this study was to investigate whether there were positive traits associated with individuals who have tattoos. It was proposed that tattooed individuals would score higher on the conscientiousness and extraversion domains and lower on the neuroticism domain as measured by the Big Five Inventory than their non-tattooed peers.

Tattooed individuals scored significantly higher in extraversion than their non-tattooed peers, but there were no significant differences in conscientiousness or neuroticism between tattooed and non-tattooed individuals;

Though tattooed individuals did not differ significantly in two of the three areas tested in this study, the significant difference in extraversion suggests that those individuals with one or more tattoos may display higher levels of task performance and proactivity in the business world (Pearsall & Ellis, 2006).

A growing body of literature suggests tattooed individuals display different personality traits than their non-tattooed counterparts, and this study lends further support to this hypothesis. Specifically, the present study supports the findings from several other studies that tattooed individuals consistently score higher in extraversion than their non-tattooed peers (e.

, Stirn, Hinz, & Brahler, 2006; Swami, 2012; Swami et al. , 2012 Wohlrab, Stahl, Rammsayer, & Kappeler, 2007). This study may be limited by the high proportion of female participants ( n = 411) compared to and male participants n = 110). A study in which males and females are equally represented could be better extrapolated to the general public.

However, a similar study, performed in 2012 with 45;
6% male participants found very similar results to the present study; tattooed individuals scored significantly higher than non-tattooed individuals in extraversion, but did not score differently in any of the other Big Five personality dimensions (Swami et al;

, 2012). Future research should be conducted with a more age-diverse sample, as the present study had a mean age of 24. 47 years old. Though this study lends itself well to explaining the personality attributes of the younger generation, it does not shed any light onto the baby boomer generation, who are currently the individuals holding CEO, managerial, and most importantly, hiring positions over the younger population (Odgers Berndtson, 2012).

Over the next decade, a mass exodus of baby boomers is expected to occur, leaving open positions for the younger generation (Odgers Berndtson, 2012);
However, if baby boomers are still utilizing stigmatized hiring criteria regarding tattoos, they are excluding a class of individuals who are more proactive and task performance oriented than their age-matched peers (Pearsall & Ellis, 2006);

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Gathering more research regarding generational differences in personality attributes and attitudes towards tattoos may have the potential to change current hiring criteria. Additionally, examining the final two personality domains (agreeableness and openness to experience) in the Big Five Inventory may lead to further information regarding the relationship between tattoos and personality, which could divulge more information regarding desirable characteristics in employees.

Agreeableness has been correlated with success in several specific job fields, such as those that require considerable interpersonal interaction. Similarly, the openness to experience dimension has predicted success in fields where teamwork and training performance are important (Barrick et al.

, 2001). Finally, associations between tattoos and personality could be further explored by examining whether the effect is binary (tattoo vs. non-tattoo) or a gradient (influenced by the quantity of tattoos). Tattooing has rapidly become a prevalent phenomenon in western culture.

It may therefore be time to reexamine the stigma attached to hiring tattooed individuals. Extraversion, which indicates higher levels of task performance and proactivity in a job setting (Pearsall & Ellis, 2006), is starting, through recent research, to become associated with tattooed individuals.

The business industry stands to gain quality employees who may be well suited to long-term success and significant contributions to the company if hiring criteria regarding tattoos were to be reassessed (Sackett, Burris, & Ryan, 1989). REFERENCES

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Roberts, T. , & Ryan, S. (2002). Tattooing and high risk behavior in adolescents. Pediatrics, 110 , 1058-1063.
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Stirn, A. , Hinz, A. , & Brahler, E. (2006). Prevalence of tattooing and body piercing in Germany and perception of health, mental disorders, and sensation seeking among tattooed and body-pierced individuals. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 60 , 531-534
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Swami, V. , Pietschnig, J. , Bertl, B. , Nader, I. , Stieger, S. , & Voracek, M. (2012). Personality differences between tattooed and non-tattooed individuals. Psychological Reports, 111 , 97-106.
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Wohlrab, S. , Fink, B. , & Kappeler, P. (2005). Human body ornaments from an evolutionary perspective – Diversity and function of tattoos, piercings, and scarification. Mitteilungen der Anthropologischen Gesellschaft Wein, 134/135 , 1-10.
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What is the psychology behind tattoos?

So why are tattoos so popular? – Tattoos can symbolize a life story. In some cases, tattoos help process traumatic life events, like loss of a family member or close friend. It can also be a personal adventure. Researchers around the world who study human behaviors have been interested in finding out what makes people modify their body.

Do tattoos mean low self-esteem?

Low self-esteem in women with tattoos – A significantly greater distance between the present self and the ideal self was found in women with tattoos compared to women without tattoos. This greater distance between the present and ideal self represents low self-esteem [ 60 ].

We found more negative cognitive and emotional aspects of self-esteem in women with tattoos as compared to controls without tattoos. Our results correspond with previous studies [ 16 – 18 ]. The notion that those with low self-esteem tend to tattoo their bodies, is consistent with the phenomenon of self-mutilation in teenage girls.

It is well-known, that those with self-mutilating behavior have low self-esteem [ 61 ]. It is noteworthy that a study by Varma and Lanigan [ 62 ], showed that in 48% of the cases the main reason for tattoo removal was the desire to improve one’s self-esteem.

The hypothesis is supported by other studies showing greater maladjustment in persons with tattoos. For example, suicide victims were twice as likely to have tattoos compared to a matched sample of accidental-death victims observed in the same clinic [ 63 ].

Indeed, the higher scores on the various indices of maladjustment [ 8 ] may suggest the role of low self-esteem in predicting tattooing behavior. However, others found no differences in self-esteem between people with tattoos and those without tattoos [ 26 , 27 ].

Moreover, some researchers [ 5 , 23 ] found an increase in self-esteem after tattooing that was related to increased acceptance of one’s body;
Pajor et al [ 24 ] suggested that an increase in self-esteem in persons with tattoos stems from a feeling of being unique, and the presence of an exceptional pattern on the body which represents an emphasis of individuality;

Higher scores in only two out of nine aspects of self-esteem, namely, Competence and Personal Power scales, were detected in people with tattoos [ 24 ]. Another study [ 8 ] reported that tattooing behavior is not associated with low self-esteem, but associated with a negative attitude to one’s own body.

What do tattoos symbolize?

The tattooed right hand of a Chiribaya mummy is displayed at El Algarrobal Museum, near the port of Ilo in southern Peru. The Chiribaya were farmers who lived from A. 900 to 1350. Joann Fletcher Humans have marked their bodies with tattoos for thousands of years. These permanent designs—sometimes plain, sometimes elaborate, always personal—have served as amulets, status symbols, declarations of love, signs of religious beliefs, adornments and even forms of punishment.

Joann Fletcher, research fellow in the department of archaeology at the University of York in Britain, describes the history of tattoos and their cultural significance to people around the world, from the famous ” Iceman,” a 5,200-year-old frozen mummy, to today’s Maori.

What is the earliest evidence of tattoos? In terms of tattoos on actual bodies, the earliest known examples were for a long time Egyptian and were present on several female mummies dated to c. 2000 B. But following the more recent discovery of the Iceman from the area of the Italian-Austrian border in 1991 and his tattoo patterns, this date has been pushed back a further thousand years when he was carbon-dated at around 5,200 years old.

Can you describe the tattoos on the Iceman and their significance? Following discussions with my colleague Professor Don Brothwell of the University of York, one of the specialists who examined him, the distribution of the tattooed dots and small crosses on his lower spine and right knee and ankle joints correspond to areas of strain-induced degeneration, with the suggestion that they may have been applied to alleviate joint pain and were therefore essentially therapeutic.

This would also explain their somewhat ‘random’ distribution in areas of the body which would not have been that easy to display had they been applied as a form of status marker. What is the evidence that ancient Egyptians had tattoos? There’s certainly evidence that women had tattoos on their bodies and limbs from figurines c.

4000-3500 B. to occasional female figures represented in tomb scenes c. 1200 B. and in figurine form c. 1300 B. , all with tattoos on their thighs. Also small bronze implements identified as tattooing tools were discovered at the town site of Gurob in northern Egypt and dated to c.

1450 B. And then, of course, there are the mummies with tattoos, from the three women already mentioned and dated to c. 2000 B. to several later examples of female mummies with these forms of permanent marks found in Greco-Roman burials at Akhmim. What function did these tattoos serve? Who got them and why? Because this seemed to be an exclusively female practice in ancient Egypt, mummies found with tattoos were usually dismissed by the (male) excavators who seemed to assume the women were of “dubious status,” described in some cases as “dancing girls.

” The female mummies had nevertheless been buried at Deir el-Bahari (opposite modern Luxor) in an area associated with royal and elite burials, and we know that at least one of the women described as “probably a royal concubine” was actually a high-status priestess named Amunet, as revealed by her funerary inscriptions.

And although it has long been assumed that such tattoos were the mark of prostitutes or were meant to protect the women against sexually transmitted diseases, I personally believe that the tattooing of ancient Egyptian women had a therapeutic role and functioned as a permanent form of amulet during the very difficult time of pregnancy and birth.

This is supported by the pattern of distribution, largely around the abdomen, on top of the thighs and the breasts, and would also explain the specific types of designs, in particular the net-like distribution of dots applied over the abdomen.

During pregnancy, this specific pattern would expand in a protective fashion in the same way bead nets were placed over wrapped mummies to protect them and “keep everything in. ” The placing of small figures of the household deity Bes at the tops of their thighs would again suggest the use of tattoos as a means of safeguarding the actual birth, since Bes was the protector of women in labor, and his position at the tops of the thighs a suitable location.

This would ultimately explain tattoos as a purely female custom. Who made the tattoos? Although we have no explicit written evidence in the case of ancient Egypt, it may well be that the older women of a community would create the tattoos for the younger women, as happened in 19th-century Egypt and happens in some parts of the world today.

What instruments did they use? It is possible that an implement best described as a sharp point set in a wooden handle, dated to c. 3000 B. and discovered by archaeologist W. Petrie at the site of Abydos may have been used to create tattoos. Petrie also found the aforementioned set of small bronze instruments c.

1450 B. —resembling wide, flattened needles—at the ancient town site of Gurob. If tied together in a bunch, they would provide repeated patterns of multiple dots. These instruments are also remarkably similar to much later tattooing implements used in 19th-century Egypt.

The English writer William Lane (1801-1876) observed, “the operation is performed with several needles (generally seven) tied together: with these the skin is pricked in a desired pattern: some smoke black (of wood or oil), mixed with milk from the breast of a woman, is then rubbed in.

It is generally performed at the age of about 5 or 6 years, and by gipsy-women;
” What did these tattoos look like? Most examples on mummies are largely dotted patterns of lines and diamond patterns, while figurines sometimes feature more naturalistic images;

The tattoos occasionally found in tomb scenes and on small female figurines which form part of cosmetic items also have small figures of the dwarf god Bes on the thigh area. What were they made of? How many colors were used? Usually a dark or black pigment such as soot was introduced into the pricked skin. / This mummified head of a woman from the pre-Inca Chiribaya culture, located at the Azapa Museum in Arica, Chile, is adorned with facial tattoos on her lower left cheek. Joann Fletcher / The tattooed right hand of a Chiribaya mummy is displayed at El Algarrobal Museum, near the port of Ilo in southern Peru. The Chiribaya were farmers who lived from A. 900 to 1350. Joann Fletcher / A tattooed predynastic female figurine (c. 4000-3500 B. ) is displayed at the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology in Oxford. Joann Fletcher / The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is home to this tattooed predynastic female figure. Joann Fletcher / This female figurine from Naszca, Peru, is now displayed at the Regional Museum of Ica. Joann Fletcher / Small bronze tattooing implements (c. 1450 B. ) from Gurob, Egypt, can be found at the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology in London. Joann Fletcher / This blue bowl (c. 1300 B. ), housed in the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden in Leiden, Amsterdam, features a musician tattooed with an image of the household deity Bes on her thigh. Joann Fletcher What has surprised you the most about ancient Egyptian tattooing? That it appears to have been restricted to women during the purely dynastic period, i.

It seems that brighter colors were largely used in other ancient cultures, such as the Inuit who are believed to have used a yellow color along with the more usual darker pigments. pre-332 B. Also the way in which some of the designs can be seen to be very well placed, once it is accepted they were used as a means of safeguarding women during pregnancy and birth.

Can you describe the tattoos used in other ancient cultures and how they differ? Among the numerous ancient cultures who appear to have used tattooing as a permanent form of body adornment, the Nubians to the south of Egypt are known to have used tattoos.

The mummified remains of women of the indigenous C-group culture found in cemeteries near Kubban c;
2000-15000 B;
were found to have blue tattoos, which in at least one case featured the same arrangement of dots across the abdomen noted on the aforementioned female mummies from Deir el-Bahari;

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The ancient Egyptians also represented the male leaders of the Libyan neighbors c. 1300-1100 B. with clear, rather geometrical tattoo marks on their arms and legs and portrayed them in Egyptian tomb, temple and palace scenes. The Scythian Pazyryk of the Altai Mountain region were another ancient culture which employed tattoos.

In 1948, the 2,400 year old body of a Scythian male was discovered preserved in ice in Siberia, his limbs and torso covered in ornate tattoos of mythical animals. Then, in 1993, a woman with tattoos, again of mythical creatures on her shoulders, wrists and thumb and of similar date, was found in a tomb in Altai.

The practice is also confirmed by the Greek writer Herodotus c. 450 B. , who stated that amongst the Scythians and Thracians “tattoos were a mark of nobility, and not to have them was testimony of low birth. ” Accounts of the ancient Britons likewise suggest they too were tattooed as a mark of high status, and with “divers shapes of beasts” tattooed on their bodies, the Romans named one northern tribe “Picti,” literally “the painted people.

” Yet amongst the Greeks and Romans, the use of tattoos or “stigmata” as they were then called, seems to have been largely used as a means to mark someone as “belonging” either to a religious sect or to an owner in the case of slaves or even as a punitive measure to mark them as criminals.

It is therefore quite intriguing that during Ptolemaic times when a dynasty of Macedonian Greek monarchs ruled Egypt, the pharaoh himself, Ptolemy IV (221-205 B. ), was said to have been tattooed with ivy leaves to symbolize his devotion to Dionysus, Greek god of wine and the patron deity of the royal house at that time.

The fashion was also adopted by Roman soldiers and spread across the Roman Empire until the emergence of Christianity, when tattoos were felt to “disfigure that made in God’s image” and so were banned by the Emperor Constantine (A.

306-373). We have also examined tattoos on mummified remains of some of the ancient pre-Columbian cultures of Peru and Chile, which often replicate the same highly ornate images of stylized animals and a wide variety of symbols found in their textile and pottery designs.

One stunning female figurine of the Naszca culture has what appears to be a huge tattoo right around her lower torso, stretching across her abdomen and extending down to her genitalia and, presumably, once again alluding to the regions associated with birth;

Then on the mummified remains which have survived, the tattoos were noted on torsos, limbs, hands, the fingers and thumbs, and sometimes facial tattooing was practiced. With extensive facial and body tattooing used among Native Americans, such as the Cree, the mummified bodies of a group of six Greenland Inuit women c.

1475 also revealed evidence for facial tattooing;
Infrared examination revealed that five of the women had been tattooed in a line extending over the eyebrows, along the cheeks and in some cases with a series of lines on the chin;

Another tattooed female mummy, dated 1,000 years earlier, was also found on St. Lawrence Island in the Bering Sea, her tattoos of dots, lines and hearts confined to the arms and hands. Evidence for tattooing is also found amongst some of the ancient mummies found in China’s Taklamakan Desert c.

1200 B. , although during the later Han Dynasty (202 B. -A. 220), it seems that only criminals were tattooed. Japanese men began adorning their bodies with elaborate tattoos in the late A. 3rd century. The elaborate tattoos of the Polynesian cultures are thought to have developed over millennia, featuring highly elaborate geometric designs, which in many cases can cover the whole body.

Following James Cook’s British expedition to Tahiti in 1769, the islanders’ term “tatatau” or “tattau,” meaning to hit or strike, gave the west our modern term “tattoo. ” The marks then became fashionable among Europeans, particularly so in the case of men such as sailors and coal-miners, with both professions which carried serious risks and presumably explaining the almost amulet-like use of anchors or miner’s lamp tattoos on the men’s forearms.

What about modern tattoos outside of the western world? Modern Japanese tattoos are real works of art, with many modern practioners, while the highly skilled tattooists of Samoa continue to create their art as it was carried out in ancient times, prior to the invention of modern tattooing equipment.

Various cultures throughout Africa also employ tattoos, including the fine dots on the faces of Berber women in Algeria, the elaborate facial tattoos of Wodabe men in Niger and the small crosses on the inner forearms which mark Egypt’s Christian Copts.

What do Maori facial designs represent? In the Maori culture of New Zealand, the head was considered the most important part of the body, with the face embellished by incredibly elaborate tattoos or ‘moko,’ which were regarded as marks of high status;

Each tattoo design was unique to that individual and since it conveyed specific information about their status, rank, ancestry and abilities, it has accurately been described as a form of id card or passport, a kind of aesthetic bar code for the face.

After sharp bone chisels were used to cut the designs into the skin, a soot-based pigment would be tapped into the open wounds, which then healed over to seal in the design;
With the tattoos of warriors given at various stages in their lives as a kind of rite of passage, the decorations were regarded as enhancing their features and making them more attractive to the opposite sex;

Although Maori women were also tattooed on their faces, the markings tended to be concentrated around the nose and lips. Although Christian missionaries tried to stop the procedure, the women maintained that tattoos around their mouths and chins prevented the skin becoming wrinkled and kept them young; the practice was apparently continued as recently as the 1970s.

Why do you think so many cultures have marked the human body and did their practices influence one another? In many cases, it seems to have sprung up independently as a permanent way to place protective or therapeutic symbols upon the body, then as a means of marking people out into appropriate social, political or religious groups, or simply as a form of self-expression or fashion statement;

Yet, as in so many other areas of adornment, there was of course cross-cultural influences, such as those which existed between the Egyptians and Nubians, the Thracians and Greeks and the many cultures encountered by Roman soldiers during the expansion of the Roman Empire in the final centuries B.

Do tattoos say about a person?

Everything About Your Tattoo Says Something – A tattoo is like a snapshot of an idea, feeling, or memory that you want to carry with you forever. It’s visual proof that something—or someone—really happened. Whether you get the tattoo because you’re afraid you might forget or because you know you never will, your tattoo is full of meaning.

It just speaks to you;
And it might “speak” to anyone who sees it, too;
Like it or not, a tattoo does “say” something about its wearer;
Like any choice of clothing or hairstyle, if it’s on you and it’s visible, it is something people will read into;

Even if it doesn’t involve text, its placement, size, color, style, and the image itself will all convey various ideas and impressions to anyone who looks at your tattoo. Interpreting and reading between the lines is just human nature. Still, there are some old-fashioned ideas and impressions about tattoos and tattooed people that are no longer valid.

Although some stigmas still exist, especially against tattooed women , perceptions about tattoos have eased dramatically in the last 20 years. Recent studies and statistics show dramatic shifts in perceptions.

Below, you’ll find out what a tattoo really says about a person.

Are tattoos attention seeking?

Tattoos and Narcissism – Regardless of personal views, there’s something a little self-obsessed about tattoos, isn’t it? People who get tattoos are very much focused on their self-image. It’s important to them how they are perceived, otherwise they wouldn’t get tattoos in visible places.

Self-image is also important to narcissists. But a narcissist’s self-image is a grandiose projection of a warped and fragile ego, while most inked individuals are simply expressing who they are. Sure, sometimes tattoos are meant to cloak personal insecurities or project a desired trait.

But more than anything, tattoos are artistic representations of our inner world, and what it is about ourselves we consider unique. It’s not the attention-seeking that drives people to get tattoos. It’s the desire to be unique. Tattoo wearers spend a lot of time looking for the right design, the right inscription, the right tattoo artist.

It’s very deliberate, with a touch of perfectionism;
It can take someone years to find that distinctive design that will set them apart from the crowd;
And since inking went mainstream, it’s even harder to have a tattoo that’s one of a kind;

Could that obsession with uniqueness be narcissistic? In a book “Tattoo: Secrets of a Strange Art” author Albert Parry says that people want to get unique tattoos “to express their love for themselves and their proud belief that they are different from other people.

Do tattoos indicate mental illness?

Abstract – Psychiatric disorders, such as antisocial personality disorder, drug or alcohol abuse and borderline personality disorder, are frequently associated with tattoos. Finding a tattoo on physical examination should alert the physician to the possibility of an underlying psychiatric condition.

Do tattoos have health benefits?

Tattoos reduce stress – In addition to immunoglobulin A, the above study also tested for cortisol levels. Cortisol is a stress hormone. It was tested in the study because cortisol is an immune response suppressant. Multiple tattoos were found to reduce cortisol levels, improving the immune system benefits of tattoos, but also helping with stress reduction. High levels of cortisol are associated with many of the physical and mental detriments of stress:

Migraines/headaches
Increased weight gain
Inhibited memory & learning
Elevated blood pressure

And that is just to name a few. The body produces cortisol in an attempt to reduce pain. But the associated effects aren’t always worth this benefit. Multiple tattoos result in the cortisol hormone response to be less active. That means less cortisol is produced, resulting in stress reduction.

Do tattoos make you hotter?

In a study, women rated tattooed men as healthier but not more attractive than men without tattoos. Men viewed tattooed men as more attractive but not healthier than men without tattoos. Women judged men with tattoos as worse potential parents and partners than men without tattoos.

Do tattoos show insecurity?

If you think that a tattoo will get you noticed among your friends and acquaintances, then it’s time to jiggle the thought, for a study has found that the “cool” body art is a sign of low self-esteem. According to psychologists, the art could conceal a poor personal opinion of oneself.

Marie Randle, from Liverpool Hope University, who carried out the study, said: “Tattooing has become more popular in recent years, especially among young women and there is a growing fascination with the tattoos of celebrities.

“The findings of this study suggest that tattoos are not just fashion accessories but driven by a wide range of motivational factors that are significantly associated with self-esteem. “This strongly suggests that people consider getting tattooed should be encouraged to question their motivation before deciding to permanently change their appearance.

” To reach the conclusion, researchers quizzed 48 people, some of whom had tattoos covering much of their body, reports The Telegraph. They found that there were four main reasons why people got tattoos – to be rebellious, to belong to a group, for aesthetic reasons and because of a strong emotional attachment.

However, Randle said that not everyone who had a tattoo had poor self-esteem. “We found that having tattoos was just one predictor of self-esteem and not everybody who has tattoos has low self-esteem,” the expert said. The findings were presented at the British Psychological Society annual conference in Brighton..

Do tattoos make you look trashy?

Are Tattoos Trashy? – Someone looking to get a tattoo may put their appointment on hold in fear of looking trashy, but are tattoos really trashy? The opinion that tattoo are trashy is becoming a thing of the past. In fact, 42% of people do not think tattoos affect a person’s appearance at all and that number is growing. 24% of people even find them to make someone more attractive, while only 22% still have a negative opinion of them. However, as with every style trend out there it is not an absolute.

You might be interested: What Soap To Use On Tattoo?

Why do females get tattoos?

Sukran Sahin, journalist, 33 – Sukran Sahin: ‘It felt empowering to create something irreversible and visible, and not to be afraid of what others think. ‘ Photograph: Christina Theisen and Eleni Stefanou I got my tattoo about nine years ago, when I was 24, so I wasn’t that young and it wasn’t on a whim. I was thinking about it for a year. I’m not sure why I chose an anchor. I guess I like the maritime theme.

The writing on it is more significant. It says, “The common breed”, which is a line from a Suede song. Suede sang about life on the margins, in council homes. I’m from a working-class immigrant background, and for the first time I felt sure about my identity.

I wanted to do something to remind me of that moment. It felt empowering to create something irreversible and visible, and not to be afraid of what others might think. I’m not frightened of being judged – and women with tattoos are often judged, more than men.

I felt the tattoo artist talked me into getting it a bit bigger and more elaborate than I would have liked. But I’ve never regretted it. In fact, I’m thinking of adding some colour. My family’s reaction was a bit sceptical.

They asked whether I could remove it. My mother wasn’t too happy, but I wasn’t expecting her to be. I’m going to get another one: a hand holding a pen, on the same arm. Pen and paper have always accompanied me. I might do more in time. There’s loads of space.

Do tattoos have energy?

Tattoos: Open portals into your energy field Now that getting inked is more mainstream, there needs to be awareness as to how tattoos link into your subtle body energy field. Your tattoo is going to connect you with something permanently, so being mindful as to why you want to be inked should be the first decision you make before getting a tattoo.

Your intentions should be set beyond the watermark of vanity, and you should consider art that will enhance your frequency, and fit into the framework of your beliefs;
Sometimes a tattoo represents a certain milestone in your life, or it may serve as a reminder of something you have accomplished, so ask yourself if you want your tattoos to serve as a body map showing your stops along the way;

A lot of people choose images that represent their profession, group affiliations, and names of lovers. Some people identify with their animal totem and choose an image that transfers the power of that animal onto their body and into their energy field.

Whatever you choose, the intention behind your choice will influence your consciousness in either raucous, or illusive ways. Intentions are such a powerful tool and where we put our focus is where we create our experienced reality.

I know a group of women who wanted to get tattoos of ribbons to support cancer. One of the women in the group didn’t want the tattoo because she felt that it would be too much focus on the illness and she feared co-creating it in her own body. Your beliefs are what initially charge the tattoo.

Sometimes tattoos can shift your energy field into a higher vibration and make you feel better about yourself, for instance, if you want to camouflage a scar so you won’t feel self-conscious;
Intentionally looking for an invigorating image might lead you to choose a mandala tattoo inked with blue and green hues to promote energy for healing, whereas tattoo art featuring sharp teeth, or something macabre, may feed the fear embodied in the scar and produce a frequency that incites the area instead of muting it;

Always be cognizant of the colors which in themselves are expressed energy frequencies. Sometimes you will be drawn to colors that resonate with your aura, or be attracted to colors that your energy field needs for enrichment. Tattoos take on the vibrations from your intention, image, and also the colors you choose for ink.

Looking at tattoos through the metaphysical lens, the desires, and intentions, behind getting body art are triggered by deep cellular memory;
Tattoos give us a window into the soul and the images we are drawn to may be links into the subconscious, dreams, or past life incarnations, especially the tribal and face tattoos;

On a deep level we are drawn to art that represents who we are, or we want images to give us what we feel we lack, and use the tattoo as an enhancement for our own energy. Intention is the moving force behind the vibration of your tattoo and the emotion behind it will always lend a massive amount of power to its effect.

Meditation is a good way to get clear on what you want, and set the intention behind getting tattooed;
I’m not suggesting that you Zen out (although that is a good idea) but take the time to strongly imagine the tattoo energy on your skin;

Burn incense, sage your space, creatively doodle pictures, and look at images to see what strongly resonates to you. Ask yourself what the tattoo will represent to you? Do you see it as a personal expression, or are you getting it just because other people will think it is cool? Does it embody an archetype with whom you strongly identify, or are you exposing your shadow.

Big question-How will your tattoo personally empower you? Don’t kid yourself about tats because they have a way of attracting energy toward you. The metals in the ink give the tattoo permanence but in an esoteric sense, these same metals magnetize the design leaving it a charged body talisman.

Your body is your sacred space, and where you put your tattoo is where you are putting your desires and holding energy points that give off a unique frequency. This is why your intention has to be clear or you will be anchoring nebulous energy into your body, mind, and spirit.

See your intention as the beginning point of the tattoo ritual;
Yes, I did say ritual, because there is a process to mindfully getting a tattoo;
Carefully determine what design you want inked because creating art, in the mystical sense, has manifesting abilities;

Imagery starts with what you see through the mind’s eye that directly links into your consciousness. There is a bit of creative visualization in designing your tattoo and it will carry the meaning you put into it. The law of attraction also works for tattoos, because what you intently set into motion will attract the same thing back to you.

Tattoos go beyond skin deep-they go soul deep, and are very revealing. Tattoos are energy hot spots because the ritual of wounding the skin and drawing blood releases intense energy that becomes part of the tattoo.

Keep these points in mind as you contemplate getting inked. · intention · desire · purpose · permanency · portal Once you decide to get a tattoo, choosing the artist and the shop is more important than you may realize.

Aside from looking at the quality of their work, the artist’s energy essence will also be part of your tattoo;
Getting inked is a very intimate experience;
It is a spiritual vehicle for transmitting energy, because an invisible cord attaches the tattooist’s energy into yours;

In a sense, tattooing is a magic ritual that creates images, draws blood, which is our life force, and also creates a symbolic bond between you and the artist. There are many tattooists who honor getting inked and see it as a form of spiritual therapy that helps you express yourself in a creative way.

Some shops really get into creating the perfect atmosphere for getting tattooed and they burn incense, and sage, to keep away negative energy. Your tattoo artist is, in a sense, a quasi-Shaman performing a ritual and some tattooist help you choose a design, as well as the location of your tattoo, based on your aura in order to enhance positive energy for you.

Keep in mind that from the metaphysical perspective, tattoos are an energy portal into your subtle body, and starting out with unacceptable conditions can mark you with a negatively charged tattoo that can cause a disturbance in your energy field. Your tattooist will be imbuing their energy into your subtle body so be cognoscente of what you are sensing from them.

Don’t insist on a design that they are not comfortable inking onto your skin;
Do you really want that energy tagged into your tattoo? Once you finally decide to take the plunge, you should also carefully choose where you go to get your tattoo;

You may be somewhat prepared for a little pain or possibly a design that doesn’t turn out exactly as you had envisioned, but you most likely didn’t give too much thought to the safety of your energy field. You not only absorb the energy of the tattooist, but also the parlor, that is a harbor for residual energy left behind from other people getting inked.

Their excitement, fears, and desires, are all components of highly charged energy, so much so, that you can almost hear the walls talk. Emotional energy is very transmissible and you can unknowingly take it into your subtle body.

I wonder how many of us with tattoos are aware of the modern day alchemy inked onto and into our skin. The underbelly of the art is pure mysticism. It all starts with our original intention which readies the skin canvass for getting tattooed. Namaste! For more information on opening up your unique energy field and extrasensory senses read The Book of Transformation:Open Yourself to Psychic Evolution, the Rebirth of the World, and the Empowering Shift Pioneered by the Indigos https://newpagebooks.

What does 3 dots tattoo mean?

The Bottom Line – Ultimately, the real meaning of the three dots tattoo is up to you. It’s your interpretation that counts. It doesn’t matter if everyone else gets the same tattoo, but the location, placement, and the story behind it is what matters. If you want a creative and long-lasting tattoo, we are happy to help you.

What is the most popular tattoo?

Hearts are also a common tattoo request. – Kapowski said customers often ask for small tattoos of hearts. Amanda Edwards/WireImage/Getty Images Hearts are a simple and universally popular tattoo design that can symbolize love or simply make for fun body art. Kapowski told Insider that people are often interested in getting hearts inked on their hip or behind their ears.

Who is most likely to get tattoos?

Purpose: Despite recent increases in the popularity of tattooing, little is known about the prevalence and characteristics of adults who have ever been tattooed. We investigated demographic and behavioral correlates of ever getting tattooed in an adult population.

Methods: Computer-assisted telephone interviews were completed by a representative sample of 8656 men and women ages 16-64 years in Australia;
Results: A total of 14;
5% of respondents had ever been tattooed, and 2;

4% of respondents had been tattooed in the year before the interview. Men were more likely than women to report a tattoo, but the highest rates of tattooing were found among women in their 20s (29. 4%). Men and women ages 20-39 were most likely to have been tattooed, as were men with lower levels of education, tradesmen, and women with live-out partners.

Tattooing was also associated with risk-taking behaviours, including smoking, greater numbers of lifetime sexual partners, cannabis use (women only) and ever having depression (men only);
Conclusions: Tattooing has increased in popularity during the past decade;

Yet tattoos still appear to be a marker for risk-taking behavior in adults..

Are people with tattoos narcissists?

In particular, the recurrent dysfunctional traits are anxious, phobic, obsessive, somatic and bipolar in subjects with less than 25% of the body surface covered by tattoos, while borderline, narcissistic, antisocial, sadistic and masochistic traits are more frequent in subjects with more than 26% of the body surface.

Do tattoos change your personality?

Having tattoos isn’t necessarily a bad thing (though it can cause some health issues. ) Past studies have shown that employer bias doesn’t really exist, meaning having tattoos won’t inhibit you from getting a job. Sometimes, they can look really cool and give you an appeal compared to someone without them.

Why do girls get tattoos?

I felt the tattoo artist talked me into getting it a bit bigger and more elaborate than I would have liked. But I’ve never regretted it. In fact, I’m thinking of adding some colour. My family’s reaction was a bit sceptical.

Julia