The body modification culture is an under-researched social group. Psychologists have yet to examine a wide range of body modification behaviors to obtain a more robust appreciation for developmental and social factors that influence psychological outcomes specific to emerging adults in college. In light of this need, the current study sought to investigate the prevalence of a wide range of tattoo behaviors, differences in identity development and well-being (by gender and tattoo status) and the potential moderating effects of identity development and well-being on the tattoo status-risky behavior relationships. The sample included 330 undergraduate students (228 women and 96 men), 36.4% reported at least one tattoo. The most salient motivations behind tattoo acquisition were beauty/art/fashion, personal narrative, and expression of individuality. Results did not reveal a significant main effect for tattoo status on identity development and well-being measures. However, a main effect for gender was revealed, suggesting that women report higher levels of identity development and eudaimonic well-being compared to men. Tattoo status was positively related to illicit drug use and risky sexual behaviors, however, regression analyses did not detect significant moderating effects between tattoos and risky behaviors for identity development and well-being constructs. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are explored.
","abstract_html":"<p>The body modification culture is an under-researched social group. Psychologists have yet to examine a wide range of body modification behaviors to obtain a more robust appreciation for developmental and social factors that influence psychological outcomes specific to emerging adults in college. In light of this need, the current study sought to investigate the prevalence of a wide range of tattoo behaviors, differences in identity development and well-being (by gender and tattoo status) and the potential moderating effects of identity development and well-being on the tattoo status-risky behavior relationships. The sample included 330 undergraduate students (228 women and 96 men), 36.4% reported at least one tattoo. The most salient motivations behind tattoo acquisition were beauty/art/fashion, personal narrative, and expression of individuality. Results did not reveal a significant main effect for tattoo status on identity development and well-being measures. However, a main effect for gender was revealed, suggesting that women report higher levels of identity development and eudaimonic well-being compared to men. Tattoo status was positively related to illicit drug use and risky sexual behaviors, however, regression analyses did not detect significant moderating effects between tattoos and risky behaviors for identity development and well-being constructs. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are explored.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Lohr, Stephanie"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science in Experimental Psychology (M.S.)","degree_level":"Thesis (restricted to Georgia Southern)","degree_discipline":"Department of Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Rebecca Ryan","Janice Steirn"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2013,"date_issued":"2013-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2013-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:27:41Z","subjects":["ETD","Tattoos","Identity Development","Well-being","Risky Behaviors","Students","Applied Behavior Analysis","Counseling Psychology","Experimental Analysis of Behavior","Health Psychology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/etd/841","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Rebecca Ryan","Janice Steirn"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Lohr, Stephanie"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2013-09-17T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Department of Psychology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis (restricted to Georgia Southern)"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science in Experimental Psychology (M.S.)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["ETD","Tattoos","Identity Development","Well-being","Risky Behaviors","Students","Applied Behavior Analysis","Counseling Psychology","Experimental Analysis of Behavior","Health Psychology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/etd/841"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The body modification culture is an under-researched social group. Psychologists have yet to examine a wide range of body modification behaviors to obtain a more robust appreciation for developmental and social factors that influence psychological outcomes specific to emerging adults in college. In light of this need, the current study sought to investigate the prevalence of a wide range of tattoo behaviors, differences in identity development and well-being (by gender and tattoo status) and the potential moderating effects of identity development and well-being on the tattoo status-risky behavior relationships. The sample included 330 undergraduate students (228 women and 96 men), 36.4% reported at least one tattoo. The most salient motivations behind tattoo acquisition were beauty/art/fashion, personal narrative, and expression of individuality. Results did not reveal a significant main effect for tattoo status on identity development and well-being measures. However, a main effect for gender was revealed, suggesting that women report higher levels of identity development and eudaimonic well-being compared to men. Tattoo status was positively related to illicit drug use and risky sexual behaviors, however, regression analyses did not detect significant moderating effects between tattoos and risky behaviors for identity development and well-being constructs. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are explored.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Tattoos and Risky Behaviors in Emerging Adults: Exploration for Possible Moderating Factors"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Rebecca Ryan","Janice Steirn"],"dc:creator":["Lohr, Stephanie"],"dc:date.available":["2013-09-17T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The body modification culture is an under-researched social group. Psychologists have yet to examine a wide range of body modification behaviors to obtain a more robust appreciation for developmental and social factors that influence psychological outcomes specific to emerging adults in college. In light of this need, the current study sought to investigate the prevalence of a wide range of tattoo behaviors, differences in identity development and well-being (by gender and tattoo status) and the potential moderating effects of identity development and well-being on the tattoo status-risky behavior relationships. The sample included 330 undergraduate students (228 women and 96 men), 36.4% reported at least one tattoo. The most salient motivations behind tattoo acquisition were beauty/art/fashion, personal narrative, and expression of individuality. Results did not reveal a significant main effect for tattoo status on identity development and well-being measures. However, a main effect for gender was revealed, suggesting that women report higher levels of identity development and eudaimonic well-being compared to men. Tattoo status was positively related to illicit drug use and risky sexual behaviors, however, regression analyses did not detect significant moderating effects between tattoos and risky behaviors for identity development and well-being constructs. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are explored.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/etd/841"],"dc:subject":["ETD","Tattoos","Identity Development","Well-being","Risky Behaviors","Students","Applied Behavior Analysis","Counseling Psychology","Experimental Analysis of Behavior","Health Psychology"],"dc:title":["Tattoos and Risky Behaviors in Emerging Adults: Exploration for Possible Moderating Factors"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Department of Psychology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis (restricted to Georgia Southern)"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science in Experimental Psychology (M.S.)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:27:41Z"}