Tattoos, piercings, and sexual activity
Main Article Content
In this study, I examined the correlation between having a tattoo and/or body piercing and the time at which sexual activity began. Data were gathered from a convenience sample of 2,080 students, who were recruited by approaching them on the campuses of public universities in France. Tattooed and/or pierced students reported earlier experiences of sexual intercourse than did nonpierced and nontattooed students. This effect was found with both males and females, and was reinforced when respondents had both piercings and tattoos.
Tattoos and body piercings have become increasingly popular in Western societies. There are multiple motivations for getting tattoos and piercings, which include the desire for beauty, for distinction from others, for maintenance of one’s self-identity, for the need to test one’s threshold for pain and endurance, for group affiliation and endurance, and as a form of protest against parents and society (see Wohlrab, Stahl, & Kappeler, 2007).
A host of previous researchers have shown that college students with body piercings or tattoos were more likely to engage in risky behavior than were nonpierced or nontattooed students. Armstrong, Roberts, Owen, and Koch (2004) reported that survey respondents with piercings were more likely to report binge drinking in the previous month more often than were respondents without piercings. Those with piercings also reported using illegal drugs more often than did respondents without piercings. Koch, Roberts, Armstrong, and Owen (2007) found that 83% of women with piercings had premarital sexual intercourse as compared to 63% of women without piercings. However, no difference between men with or without piercings was found regarding sexual behavior.
Several researchers have found the same patterns of results when examining tattoos. Roberts and Ryan (2002) reported that adolescents with tattoos were more likely to report higher levels of substance use, violent behavior, sexual intercourse, and school problems than were adolescents without tattoos. These differences were found with both male and female respondents. Koch, Roberts, Armstrong, and Owen (2005) reported that tattooed men became sexually active at a significantly earlier age than did nontattooed men, whereas no statistical difference was found between tattooed and nontattooed women.
The first objective in this study was to evaluate the relationship between tattoos and/or piercings and sexual activity, in a different country from those where the topic has already been researched. In a Swiss survey conducted among 18-year-old males and females, Suris, Jeannin, Chossis, and Michaud (2007) reported that pierced individuals of both genders were more likely to report smoking more and using more illegal drugs than did nonpierced individuals. Indeed, having a tattoo and/or a piercing is a new behavior in France, which has increased considerably during the last decade (Mermet, 2010). The second objective was to test the combined effect of tattoos and piercings, as most researchers have studied either tattooing or piercing in isolation. Therefore I hypothesized that respondents with tattoos and/or piercings would be more likely to report early sexual activity than would respondents without piercings or tattoos.
Method
Participants
The participants were 2,080 students (1,160 females and 920 males) enrolled in four public universities in the west of France (Brittany). All were French and Caucasian and their mean age was 20.84 years (SD = 1.35).
Procedure
A total of 104 (46 male and 58 female) research assistants helped with this study. All the research assistants were undergraduate students studying business management. The study was presented to them as a field exercise in sales. They were neatly dressed in a traditional manner for young people of their age (jeans/ sneakers/t-shirt). The study took place at various campus locations on particularly sunny spring days. Each research assistant was instructed to question 20 student passersby of the same gender as himself/herself.
The interviewer approached a student walking alone and said with a smile: “Hello, I’m conducting a short survey on students’ romantic behaviors. Would you agree to answer three questions on this topic?” If the participant agreed, the interviewer began the survey.
The term romantic behavior, rather than sexual behavior, was used to introduce the survey because results of a pretest showed that asking someone to respond to a survey on their romantic behavior was more likely to elicit consent than was asking someone to respond to a survey on their sexual behavior.
Respondents were asked “How old were you when you had sexual intercourse for the first time?” Then, the respondents were asked how many piercings they had (ranging from 0 to 5+) and how many tattoos they had (ranging from 0 to 5+). Finally, the participants were thanked for their participation in the survey.
Results
Participants were divided into four groups: only piercings, only tattoos, both piercings and tattoos, and neither piercings nor tattoos. Ages at which participants first had sexual intercourse are presented in Table 1.
Table 1. Mean Age at Initial Sexual Activity
A 2 (gender) × 4 (tattoos/piercings conditions) between groups analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed and revealed a main effect of all four tattoos/ piercings conditions (F(3, 1620) = 58.41, p < .001, ηp2 = .10). Post hoc tests revealed that the only tattoos condition was significantly different from the neither piercings nor tattoos condition (LSD test, p < .001) as well as from the both piercings and tattoos condition (LSD test, p < .001). The only tattoos condition was significantly different from the only piercings condition (LSD test, p = .057). The only piercings condition was significantly different from the neither piercings nor tattoos condition (LSD test, p < .001) as well as the both piercings and tattoos condition (LSD test, p < .001). The both piercings and tattoos condition was also statistically different from the neither piercings nor tattoos condition (LSD test, p < .001). Thus, these comparisons revealed that the only tattoos, the only piercings, as well as the both piercings and tattoos conditions were associated with becoming sexually active at a younger age as compared to the neither piercings nor tattoos control condition. It was also found that the both piercings and tattoos condition was associated with becoming sexually active at a younger age than were the only piercings or the only tattoos conditions. However, no difference was found between the only piercings condition and the only tattoos condition regarding the age at which individuals became sexually active.
Neither the main effect of participant gender (F(3, 1620) = 1.64, p = .21, ηp2 < .005) nor the interaction effect between participant gender and all four tattoos and/or piercings conditions (F(3, 1620) = 0.77, p = .97, ηp2 < .005) were significant.
Discussion
Consistent with previous studies conducted in the U.S. (Koch et al., 2005, 2007; Roberts & Ryan, 2002), our results confirm that in another culture, piercings and tattoos are associated with early sexual activity. Having tattoos and piercings are more recent practices in France (Mermet, 2010) than they are in the U.S. Among our participants, only 24% reported having at least one piercing or tattoo, whereas 50% of the participants in Koch, Roberts, Armstrong, and Owen’s (2010) study reported having at least one piercing or tattoo. However, the same pattern of results was found in both this study and in Koch et al.’s study. Researchers have found that college students with tattoos or piercings are more likely to report that they have engaged in risky behavior, such as the use of illegal drugs or alcohol abuse (Burger & Finkel, 2002; Greif, Hewitt, & Armstrong, 1999). Perhaps individuals who have tattoos and/or piercings present different social behaviors than do those who do not have tattoos and/or piercings. In a recent study in France, Guéguen (in press) reported higher levels of alcohol consumption among young men and women with tattoos and/or piercings than among young men and women without tattoos and/or piercings. Thus, it could be argued that individuals with tattoos and/or piercings express deviant behavior or are attracted to risky behaviors (Wohlrab et al., 2007), which leads them to engage in other risky behaviors (such as early sexual intercourse).
This study has some limitations. Only students were surveyed and the generalization to further populations still remains in question. Given the small number of participants in this study having several piercings and/or tattoos, it was difficult to create subgroups according to the number of piercings and tattoos on their bodies. It was also impossible to differentiate those with piercings and/or tattoos on their genitals. Koch et al. (2010) found a link between the number of tattoos and/or piercings reported by American college students and risky behaviors. These authors observed that respondents with four or more tattoos or seven or more body piercings were significantly more likely to report regular marijuana use, binge drinking, and occasional use of other illegal drugs. They also observed the same effect with respondents with piercings on their nipples or genitals.
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Table 1. Mean Age at Initial Sexual Activity
Nicolas Guéguen, Business Department, Université de Bretagne-Sud, UFR LSHS, 4, rue Jean Zay, BP 92116, 56321 Lorient Cedex, France. Email: [email protected]