Tattoo

A collection of abstracts from the articles I read with regards to Tattoos.

View entry on thoughts of tattoos here

Brief intro on tattoos

“The practice of this art form has been documented in nearly every culture and used to communicate a number of messages, including group identity, religious commitment, and individuality (Armstrong, Owen, Roberts, & Koch, 2002)” (Firmin, Tse, Foster, and Angelini, 2008, pp 195)

“Body Art is an established aspect of contemporary youth consumption practices in the UK and other industrialized nations.” (S. C. E. Riley & S. Cahill, 2005, pp 261)

“The current interest in Body Art has been traced to what can be considered a renaissance in Body Art that started in the 1960s, a renaissance that incorporated a diversity of people, including those involved in gay scenes, S&M, the avant garde, hippie culture, and the working class (Rubin 1987). In the mid- 1980s Body Art had become incorporated into fashion culture, associated with the music industry, celebrities and fashion designers. By the 1990s Body Art was a normative aspect in the appearance of participants of particular youth sub cultural scenes, such as clubbers, ravers, and ‘new age travelers,’ finally spilling over to become an established part of youth culture by the end of that decade (Featherstone 2000).” (S. C. E. Riley & S. Cahill, 2005, pp 261-262)

Why do people get tattoos?

“Any permanent mark signifies a person’s separation from the mainstream of culture and a tattoo can separate someone from society at large.” (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 47)

“She states, “tattooing is a struggle for individualization in a society that is increasingly impersonal.” (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 47)

“being tattooed is synonymous with “living the truth”; your own personal truth.” (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 47)

“Christensen (2000) found many reasons for getting tattoos including “expressing individuality, communicating rebellion, defining group membership, conveying spiritual meaning, of marking milestones such as life or death” (Christensen 2000: 432, as cited in Armstrong, Owen, Robers, and Koch 2002)” (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 47)

“Tattoos have long been associated with men because of the stereotype of the tattooed person and the pain associated with it, so when a woman gets tattoos, it is regarded as a resistance to female beauty as society commonly sees it. She writes; “it takes a strong will and sense of self (identity) to withstand the blatant and piercing stares” (p.56) because of the stigma still attached that differs in every culture and city.” (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 48)

“One athlete has tattoos that portray his attitude in life, such as “Only the Strong Survive”… I think tattoos are something that tell who you are and how you feel” (p.46)” (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 48)

“The more tattoos a person has, the less meaning the actual tattoo has.” (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 48)

“Women tend to get tattoos to mark a change in the way they see themselves, not to change the way society sees them (Keinlen, 2005).” (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 49)

Identifying with tattooing in other cultures allows people to feel like they’re connecting with the history of humanity (Rosenblatt 1997). It allows us to see tattooing as a spiritual activity because it is ancient and widespread and “is seen as an expression of a basic human need for rituals that give life meaning” (p303) and connects the tattooed person to the rest of humanity (Hardy, as cited in Rosenblatt 1997) (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 49)

It is a public display of self-concept and is important in developing the social self for some people (Koch et al. 2004) (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 50)

“For some, the pain of the needle eased the guilt of having survived and the sorrow of the loss.” (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 51)

“Like most of the people that she read about or interviewed, the meaning of what she has inked on her body is much deeper than the visual image that can be seen.” (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 58)

“ The purpose of wearing this art on one’s body rather than hanging it on a wall signifies a total commitment to what it stands for.” (Frankie J. Johnson, 2006, pp 59)

“Many Christians have sought to use tattoos as a context to proclaim their faith.” (Firmin, Tse, Foster, and Angelini, 2008, pp 196)

“For example, Body Art demonstrated virility and courage for the Romans, aided sexual pleasure in the Karma Sutra, and was used to reduce visible bulges in the fashionable, but tight, trousers worn by Britain’s Prince Albert.” (S. C. E. Riley & S. Cahill, 2005, pp 262)

Perspective on tattoos and its users.

“They reported that less religious participants were more likely to have tattoos.” (Firmin, Tse, Foster, and Angelini, 2008, pp 195)

“For example, Forbes (2001) suggested that tattoos might not always connotate  signs of rebellion or impromptu actions in drunken states… Interestingly, all the study’s participants had tattoos that were not visible without removing clothing.” (Firmin, Tse, Foster, and Angelini, 2008, pp 196)

“Nonetheless, we take note of the Bible instructions to honor one’s parents… For the few who did discuss with their parents, their decisions appeared to run counter to their parents’ wishes.” (Firmin, Tse, Foster, and Angelini, 2008, pp 202)

“Body art is further problematized, in that for some Christians it is considered an act that defaces the image of God.” (S. C. E. Riley & S. Cahill, 2005, pp 262)

“We found no relevant differences between modified and non-modified individuals in relation to demographic variables. This indicates that some of the traditional attitudes towards tattoos and piercings appear to be outdated. However we found striking differences in personality traits which suggests that body–modified individuals are greater sensation seekers and follow a more unrestricted mating strategy than their non-modified contemporaries.” (S. Wohlrab et al., 2007, pp 931)

“Furthermore, men and women seemed to highlight their secondary sexual characteristics with body modification. Men were mainly tattooed on their arms, whereas women had more tattoos in their pre-abdominal and backside regions. These patterns may draw attention to the male’s shoulder to hip ratio and the female’s waist to hip ratio, both criteria in assessing physical attractiveness (Maisey, Vale, Cornelissen, & Tovee, 1999; Singh 1993). Males had more piercings in eyesbrows, whereas women were pierced more often in their belly buttons and noses. Prominent eyebrows in men are considered attractive by women (Perrett et al., 1998; Thornhill & Gangestad, 1999) .They are found to signal high levels of testosterone and, thus, immunocompetence (Folstad & Karter, 1992; Thornhill & Moller, 1997). The nose is a major criterion for evaluating female facial attractiveness (Jones, 1996). A highly valued characteristic in women is also a flat abdomen as this signals fertility (Grammer et al., 2003) (S. Wohlrab et al., 2007, pp 947-948)

From Urban Dictionary,

2. tramp stamp
“Tramp Stamp” is a derogatory term referring to a tattoo which a women places on her lower back. It is especially popular among women born in the late 70’s, 80‘s, and even early 90’s. Fair or unfair, these tattoos have a socially constructed connotation associated with them. These women are labeled as tramps, whores, or other derogatory sexually promiscuous terms. Although these are often bias generalized claims, there have been sociological studies done by the American Psychological Association, Federal Bureau of Prisons, and other demographic researchers showing strong correlative evidence associating tattoos with high risk behavior, illegal substance abuse and sexual promiscuity. These risk factors are greatest in the age range which these types of tattoos are gaining main stream popularity. Some have also jokingly stated that by 2050, the “tramp stamp” will be renamed the “gramp stamp”.
Those chicks with tramp stamps are the kinds of girls you take home to bang. Don’t get into relationships with them because they are often immature gold digging sluts who sleep with everyone. Oh yeah, make sure you use a rubber because you don’t want to end up with chlamydia trachoma (which 1 in 20 women have between the ages of 14-39 according to the center of disease control… probably much higher if they have a tramp stamp considering the scientific coloration between sluttiness and tramp stamps). Also, if they pop out a baby (which they often do), they may have issues getting epidurals through their tattoos in the lower back.

Source: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=tramp+stamp

Graphs source: (S. Wohlrab et al., 2007, pp 938-939)

Reference List:

“Differences in Personality Characteristics Between Body-Modified and Non-Modified Individuals: Associations With Individual Personality Traits and Their Possible Evolutionary Implications.” Silke Wohlrab1, Jutta Stahl 2, Thomas Rammsayer 2 and Peter M. Kappeler1, 1Department of Sociobiology/Anthropology, Institute of Zoology and Anthropology, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany, 2 Georg-Elias-Mueller-Institude for Psychology, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany, European Journal of Personality, Eur J. Pers. 21: 931-951 (2007)

“Managing Meaning and Belonging: Young Women’s Negotiation of Authenticity in Body Art”. Sarah C. E. Riley & Sharon Cahill, Journal of Youth Studies, Vol 8, No. 3 September 2005 pp. 261-279

“Christian Student Perceptions of Body Tattoos: A Qualitative Analysis.”Michael W. Firmin, Luke M. Tse, Janna Foster, Tammy Angelini. Cedarville Uni versity. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 2008, Vol 27, No.3, 195-204

2 thoughts on “Tattoo

  1. Pingback: |Thots Behind Tattoos| « Beautiful Life

  2. Pingback: Tramp Stamp « Beautiful Life

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