Saturday, March 27, 2010

It seemed like such a good idea at the time

There's been a lot of blogging about tattoos as of late; the following article I found quite interesting:

It seemed like such a good idea at the time...
Your tattoo, that is.


A report in the July 2008 issue of Archives of Dermatology found that women are more likely to seek tattoo removal than men and may be motivated by the social stigma associated with tattoos and negative comments made by others.


Researchers at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center conducted a survey of 66 men and 130 women who visited one of four dermatology clinics for tattoo removal in 2006. Survey respondents had an average age of 30 and answered 127 questions. Their answers were compared with responses to a similar survey conducted in 1996.


In 2006, participants reported they had gotten a tattoo to feel unique or independent or to make certain life experiences stand out. In contrast, the main reasons for seeking tattoo removal included just deciding to remove it, embarrassment, lowering of body image, getting a new job or career, problems with clothes, being stigmatized or marking an occasion, such as a birthday, marriage or newly found independence.


The 2006 survey also found that participants who had their tattoos removed were more likely to be women who were white, single, college-educated and between the ages of 24 and 39.


While the women were pleased with their tattoos when they got them, their feelings changed over the following one to five years. "While men also reported some of these same tattoo problems leading to removal, there seemed to be more societal fallout for women with tattoos, as the tattoos began to cause embarrassment, negative comments and clothes problems and no longer satisfied the need for uniqueness," the study authors write.


Source: Consumer Guide to Plastic Surgery

10 comments:

Charlie said...

I have a feeling that a certain daughter of yours will not appreciate this post.

Apropos to nothing, a blog friend in her mid-twenties wrote about a tattoo she had engraved on her breast. It was something framed by a square and I replied, "Wait twenty years and that square will resemble a map of Africa."

She's isn't my blog friend any longer.

Robert the Skeptic said...

Charlie I'm just the messenger here... providing objective and unbiased statistical information.

Anonymous said...

I have many tattoos but love all of them, even 15 or so years later. I designed them all and scoured the country looking for a great tattooist. However I have friends who have tattoos and they absolutely detest them... They're not for everyone!

Robert the Skeptic said...

Distracted I think your comment about tattoos not being for everyone is quite true.

Gorilla Bananas said...

Cutting through all the euphemistic jargon, women want to get rid of the tattoo when they realise it makes them look like a hoochie. I suppose some women don't care if they look like a hoochie - and I admire them for it!

Robert the Skeptic said...

Bananas Yeah, there's hoochies then there are the women with the multiple piercings... I will cop to finding an artfully place tattoo somewhat sexy, but a bunch of metal poking out of various parts of skin... that's pretty scary.

Mary Witzl said...

I'm torn on the tattoo issue. On one hand, I'm all for independence, giving the finger to authority, and flaunting convention. On the other hand, I'm adverse to pain, nervous about needles, and a total cheapskate.I go for the paste-on tattoos.

(At work, without my glasses. My apologies for the inevitable typos.)

Gutsy Living said...

I am surprised to hear that women get embarrassed after a while. I went to Sedona with a friend in her late fifties who decided to get a tattoo. I'm not a fan and I cannot appreciate the "art."

kara said...

there are some people who i'd like to hold down and forcefully remove their tattoos for them. if i see ONE MORE tweety bird, i sweartogod...

Robert the Skeptic said...

Mary I agree... what's wrong with paste-on tattoos? They are a fashion statement, but fashions, hair styles, all change. A paste-on tattoo could be fun at certain occasions.

Gutsy Yes, it is indeed an art form. But it is with you every moment of every day. The permanence is the issue for me.

Kara I agree totally!! I would support legislation banning Tweety Bird tattoos. Nancy loves Tweetie, by the way, but hates needles... catastrophe averted there.