Ink and Identity: Personality perceptions based on tattoos

Abstract

People with and without tattoos are often judged differently, but previous research often neglects the type and characteristics of tattoos. We examined these questions in 274 adults (Mage = 24.59, SD = 7.17; 71.2 % women; 77.2 % White) with 375 tattoos who agreed to have their tattoos photographed for the study and completed a battery of personality measures. Although there was consensus about the personalities of people who had a particular tattoo (i.e., judges agreed in their perceptions of people with tattoos), these judgments were largely inaccurate, with a few exceptions. Specifically, judgments of openness to experience (based solely on tattoos) were modestly accurate and attributable to how “wacky” the tattoo was.