Tattoos are a millennia-old practice estimated to adorn up to one in four people in the world today. (ViDI Studio/Shutterstock)
Study explores how different groups judge body art today
In a nutshell
- Despite tattoos becoming mainstream, German survey respondents generally rated non-tattooed bodies as more beautiful than tattooed ones, with facial tattoos receiving the lowest ratings across all groups
- Three key factors shaped how people judged tattooed bodies: age (under/over 50), professional experience (tattoo artists vs non-artists), and personal experience (having tattoos vs not having them)
- Younger people, professional tattoo artists, and individuals with tattoos themselves were significantly more accepting of heavily tattooed bodies, though even these groups rated facial tattoos lower than other forms of body art
HAMBURG, Germany — In a world where up to 25% of people sport tattoos, you might think we’ve moved past judging body art. Think again. A new study from German researchers reveals that despite tattoos’ mainstream status, most people still find non-tattooed bodies more beautiful—though your age, experience, and professional background might significantly shape that judgment.
The study, published in PLOS One, examined how different groups perceive the beauty of tattooed individuals. Researchers at Germany’s Helmut Schmidt University recruited 487 participants to rate the attractiveness of models with varying degrees of tattoo coverage, from none to extreme full-body designs. Notably, the researchers specifically chose natural, geometric, and animal-inspired designs, deliberately excluding any tattoos containing writing or religious or political content.
Results reveal that three key factors influence our aesthetic judgment of tattoos: professional expertise (comparing tattoo artists with at least 7 years of experience to non-artists), personal experience (comparing tattooed versus non-tattooed individuals), and age as a reflection of social norms (comparing those under and over 50 years old).
Past research has explored how tattoos affect our assumptions about someone’s personality or their appeal as a potential romantic partner. However, this study breaks new ground by focusing purely on aesthetic appreciation. In other words, how visually pleasing or beautiful we find tattooed individuals, regardless of any other judgments we might make about them.
In designing their experiment, researchers photographed two models, a 30-year-old male and a 24-year-old female, from multiple angles. Using high-quality temporary tattoos, they created six different versions of each model: no tattoos (baseline), light coverage, moderate coverage, heavy coverage, extreme coverage, and extreme coverage including facial tattoos. Both models had average heights and healthy body mass indexes to control for other physical factors that might influence attractiveness ratings. Participants rated each image’s beauty using a 7-point scale.
The results revealed fascinating patterns across different groups. Tattoo artists showed a marked preference for heavily tattooed individuals compared to non-experts, rating them significantly higher in beauty. This expertise effect was particularly pronounced for heavy and extreme tattoo coverage. However, even professionals gave lower ratings to facial tattoos.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, participants who had tattoos themselves tended to rate tattooed individuals more favorably than those without body art. Non-tattooed individuals actually gave higher beauty ratings to completely tattoo-free models compared to their tattooed counterparts.
The results were more nuanced when it came to age differences. The only significant difference between age groups appeared in ratings of extreme tattoo coverage, where younger participants (under 50) rated heavily tattooed individuals as more beautiful than older participants. This generation gap might reflect changing social norms and greater exposure to tattoos among younger people, particularly through social media and celebrity culture.
The timing of these findings is particularly relevant given tattoos’ cultural evolution. The 1950s marked a resurgence of tattooing in Western culture, with acceptance growing significantly through the 1990s. Now, some researchers suggest we may have moved beyond “the height of fascination” with tattoos, as indicated by the generally higher beauty ratings for non-tattooed bodies across all groups.
The findings paint a picture of a society in transition, where professional expertise, personal experience, and generational differences can determine how we perceive tattooed bodies. As one generation’s rebellion becomes another’s norm, these results may serve as a snapshot of changing attitudes toward body modification in the early 21st century.
Paper Summary
Methodology
The study employed an online survey through Unipark, running from May 2022 to January 2023. Participants rated photographs of two models in various states of tattoo coverage, viewed from multiple angles. The models wore neutral black underwear and maintained neutral facial expressions. Each participant rated the beauty of every image on a 7-point scale ranging from “not at all beautiful” to “very beautiful.” The researchers deliberately excluded tattoo designs containing writing or religious/political content, focusing instead on natural, geometric, and animal-inspired motifs.
Results
Images without tattoos received the highest overall beauty ratings, while those with facial tattoos scored lowest across all groups. Three key patterns emerged: 1) Tattoo artists gave higher beauty ratings to heavily tattooed individuals compared to non-experts, 2) People with tattoos rated tattooed individuals more favorably than non-tattooed people did, and 3) Younger people rated extreme tattoo coverage more positively than older participants.
Limitations
The research had several limitations, including the use of only two models of specific ages, which doesn’t account for how age might affect tattoo appreciation. The study also used a simplified age categorization (over/under 50) that might miss nuanced age-related differences. Additionally, the tattoo designs were limited to natural and geometric patterns, excluding other popular styles that might influence aesthetic appreciation differently.
Takeaways and Discussion
The research suggests that our appreciation of tattoos is heavily influenced by our personal experience with them, our professional expertise, and our age-related social conditioning. However, there appears to be a universal aesthetic limit when it comes to facial tattoos. Future research opportunities include examining more than two age categories, studying a broader range of tattoo designs, and investigating how factors like sexual orientation might influence aesthetic appreciation of tattoos.
Funding and Disclosures
The authors declared no competing interests and received no specific funding for this work.
Publication Information
Published in PLOS One on December 11, 2024. Authors: Selina M. Weiler, Christian Duer, and Dustin Krämer from the Thomas Jacobsen Institution: Helmut Schmidt University / University of the Federal Armed Forces Hamburg, Germany.
