NEW YORK, N.Y. – Tattoos can take any number of forms, from animals to quotes to cryptic symbols, and appear in all sorts of spots on our bodies – some visible in everyday life, others not so much. But one thing’s for sure – more and more Americans are getting them. About three in ten Americans (29%) have at least one tattoo, up from roughly two in ten (21%) just four years ago. What’s more, few inked Americans stop at one; among those with any tattoos, seven in ten (69%) have two or more.

These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 2,225 U.S. adults surveyed online from October 14-19, 2015.

Tattoos are especially prevalent among younger Americans, with nearly half of Millennials (47%) and over a third of Gen Xers (36%) saying they have at least one, compared to 13% of Baby Boomers and one in ten Matures (10%). Millennials and Gen Xers (37% and 24%) are also exponentially more likely than their elders (6% Baby Boomers, 2% Matures) to have multiple tattoos.

Some other interesting comparisons:

Rural (35%) and Urban (33%) Americans are both more likely to have a tattoo than Suburbanites (25%).

Those with kids in the household are much more likely than those without to be sporting at least one tattoo (43% vs. 21%).

Political persuasion doesn’t seem to factor into the decision to get a tattoo, with little difference between Republicans, Democrats and Independents (27%, 29% and 28%).

Regrets, I’ve had a few

With tattoos on the rise, regrets have risen as well; though a strong majority still has no regrets, nearly one fourth (23%) of those with tattoos say they ever regret getting one – up from 14% in 2012.

Top-ranked regrets (collected in an open-ended manner) include:

Too young when they got the tattoo,

Personality changes/Doesn’t fit my present lifestyle,

Got someone’s name that I’m no longer with,

Poorly done/Doesn’t look professional, and

Isn’t meaningful.

Hooked on a feeling

A third (33%) of inked adults indicate having a tattoo has made them feel sexy (up marginally from 30% in 2012). Roughly a third also say that it makes them feel attractive (32%), though it’s worth noting that this percentage has grown considerably from 21% in 2012. Just over a quarter (27%) say it makes them feel more rebellious and two in ten (20%) feel more spiritual as a result of their tattoos. Fewer say it makes them feel more intelligent (13%), respected (13%), employable (10%) and healthy (9%).

Perhaps the more important learning, though, is that most say that having a tattoo hasn’t made them feel any different on any of these measures.

Outside impressions

Opinions differ more broadly among those without tattoos:

Nearly half (45%) feel those with tattoos are more rebellious than those without – though it’s worth noting that this percentage continues to decline (54% held this belief in 2008; 50% in 2012), likely a byproduct of tattoos’ continued trend toward the mainstream.

On the other end of the scale, nearly half feel those with tattoos are less attractive (47%) than those without, 44% feel they’re less sexy and a third (34%) believe them to be less respectable.

attractive (47%) than those without, 44% feel they’re less sexy and a third (34%) believe them to be less respectable. Meanwhile, between a quarter and three in ten think those with tattoos are less intelligent (29%), healthy (28%) and spiritual (25%).

Across professions, visible tattoos no big deal

Further driving home the message of tattoos going mainstream, majorities of Americans would be comfortable seeing a person with visible tattoos serve in roles across a diverse range of industries and professions. Comfort ranges from highs of 86% for athletes, 81% for IT technicians and 78% for chefs, to lower majorities of 59% each for primary school teachers and judges, and even 58% for presidential candidates.

More specifically, many Americans – particularly Millennials – would be “extremely comfortable” with someone with visible tattoos in these professions – including police officers (39%, including 54% of Millennials), real estate brokers (37%/52%), bankers (36%/50%), doctors (35%/51%), judges (34%/49%) and presidential candidates (32%/46%).

That’s all well and good, but parents are likely to have a whole different set of standards when it comes to who interacts with their kids, right? Wrong. In fact, a separate poll of parents with kids under 18 in the household found that strong majorities are comfortable (roughly four in ten of them “extremely” so) with people sporting visible tattoos serving in a number of positions that involve interacting with the kiddos:

Coach (81% comfortable, 39% extremely comfortable),

High school teacher (75%, 39%),

Camp counselor (73%, 36%),

Sitter/Caregiver (73%, 37%),

Primary school teacher (71%, 37%), and

Pediatrician (71%, 40%).

TABLE 1a

HOW MANY TATTOOS DO YOU CURRENTLY HAVE

“How many tattoos do you currently have on your body? By tattoos, we mean ink-based tattoos that have been permanently placed on your skin and that you have not had removed.”

Base: All adults

Total Generation Children in HH Metro Status Have a Tattoo Millennials (18-35) Gen X (36-50) Baby Boomers (51-69) Matures (70+) Yes No Urban Suburban Rural % % % % % % % % % % % None 71 53 64 87 90 57 79 67 75 65 — One or more (NET) 29 47 36 13 10 43 21 33 25 35 100 One 9 10 12 6 8 11 8 8 7 15 31 Two or more (NET) 20 37 24 6 2 32 13 25 17 20 69 Two 7 13 7 3 2 12 5 9 5 10 25 Three 3 6 4 1 1 5 2 5 3 2 11 Four 2 3 4 1 — 3 2 3 3 1 8 Five or more 7 15 9 2 — 13 4 9 7 7 26

Note: Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding.

TABLE 1b

TATTOO TRENDS

“How many tattoos do you currently have on your body?”

(People saying “one or more”)

Base: All Adults

2003 2008 2012 2015 % % % % All Adults 16 14 21 29 Region East 14 12 21 28 Midwest 14 10 21 27 South 15 13 18 32 West 20 20 26 27 Age 18 – 24 13 9 22 35 25 – 29 36 32 30 42 30 – 39 28 25 38 55 40 – 49 14 12 27 33 50 – 64 10 8 11 13 65 + 7 9 5 11 Sex Male 16 15 19 27 Female 15 13 23 31 Political Party Republican 14 13 17 27 Democratic 18 15 22 29 Independent 12 13 21 28

TABLE 2

EVER REGRET GETTING A TATTOO

“Do you ever regret getting a tattoo?”

Base: Currently Have a Tattoo

2003 2008 2012 2015 % % % % Yes 17 16 14 23 No 83 84 86 77

Note: Percentages may not add to 100 due to rounding.

TABLE 3

WHY REGRET GETTING A TATTOO

Top 5 Responses, by Rank

“Why do you regret getting a tattoo?”

Base: Ever regret getting a tattoo

Total Too young when I got the tattoo 1 Personality changes/Doesn’t fit my present lifestyle 2 Got someone’s name that I am no longer with 3 Poorly done/Doesn’t look professional 4 Isn’t meaningful 5

TABLE 4a

HOW HAVING A TATTOO MAKES ME FEEL

“Please complete the following sentence: ‘Compared to not having a tattoo…having a tattoo has made me feel…?’”

Base: Currently Have a Tattoo

More Less No Difference Total Men Women Total Men Women Total Men Women Sexy % 33 38 30 3 5 2 63 57 68 Attractive % 32 40 25 6 6 6 62 54 69 Rebellious % 27 31 23 4 7 1 69 62 75 Spiritual % 19 25 14 6 7 6 75 68 80 Intelligent % 13 20 8 2 3 1 85 77 91 Respected % 13 22 5 7 9 6 80 70 89 Employable % 10 16 5 9 10 8 81 74 87 Healthy % 9 16 4 5 6 4 86 78 93

Note: Percentages may not add to 100 due to rounding.

TABLE 4b

HAVING A TATTOO MAKES ME FEEL MORE…

TREND

“Please complete the following sentence: ‘Compared to not having a tattoo…having a tattoo has made me feel…?’”

Those saying more

Base: Currently Have a Tattoo

2003 2008 2012 2015 Sexy % 34 31 30 33 Attractive % 26 19 21 32 Rebellious % 29 36 25 27 Spiritual % 20 13 16 19 Intelligent % 5 5 8 13 Healthy % 4 4 9 9

Note: Percentages may not add to 100 due to rounding.

TABLE 5a

PERCEPTIONS OF PEOPLE WITH TATTOOS

“Please complete the following sentence: ‘Compared to people without tattoos, I think people with tattoos are…?’”

Base: All Adults

More Less No Difference Total Have a tattoo Total Have a tattoo Total Have a tattoo Yes No Yes No Yes No Rebellious % 40 28 45 6 4 7 54 68 49 Attractive % 16 33 8 36 9 47 48 57 44 Sexy % 15 35 7 33 8 44 52 57 49 Spiritual % 9 14 7 20 7 25 71 79 68 Respectable % 7 13 5 26 7 34 66 81 60 Intelligent % 4 7 2 23 7 29 74 86 69 Healthy % 4 7 2 22 8 28 74 86 70

Note: Percentages may not add to 100 due to rounding.

TABLE 5b

PERCEPTIONS AMONG THOSE WITHOUT A TATTOO – TREND

“Please complete the following sentence: ‘Compared to people without tattoos, I think people with tattoos are…?’”

Base: Adults Without Tattoos

More Less 2003 2008 2012 2015 2003 2008 2012 2015 Rebellious % 57 54 50 45 2 3 4 7 Attractive % 4 4 4 8 42 47 45 47 Sexy % 8 6 5 7 36 39 39 44 Spiritual % 3 5 4 7 29 25 25 25 Intelligent % * 1 2 2 31 27 27 29 Healthy % 1 2 1 2 21 25 25 28

Note: Percentages may not add to 100 due to rounding; * indicates less than .05%

TABLE 6a

COMFORT WITH THOSE WITH VISIBLE TATTOOS SERVING IN DIFFERENT PROFESSIONS

“Thinking about the following occupations, how comfortable, if at all, would you be with a person with a visible tattoo serving in such a position?”

Base: All adults

Comfortable (NET) Extremely comfortable Somewhat comfortable Not comfortable (NET) Not very comfortable Not at all comfortable Athlete % 86 51 35 14 9 6 IT technician % 81 43 38 19 10 8 Chef % 78 43 35 22 13 9 Police officer % 70 39 31 30 17 13 Real estate broker/agent % 68 37 32 32 19 12 Camp counselor % 67 36 31 33 20 13 Banker % 64 36 28 36 21 15 Doctor % 62 35 27 38 18 20 Primary school teacher % 59 32 27 41 20 21 Judge % 59 34 25 41 18 23 Presidential candidate % 58 32 26 42 17 25

Note: Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding.

TABLE 6b

EXTREMELY COMFORTABLE WITH THOSE WITH VISIBLE TATTOOS SERVING IN DIFFERENT PROFESSIONS

“Thinking about the following occupations, how comfortable, if at all, would you be with a person with a visible tattoo serving in such a position?”

Base: All adults

Total Generation Children in HH Have a tattoo Millennials (18-35) Gen X (36-50) Baby Boomers (51-69) Matures (70+) Yes No Yes No % % % % % % % % % Athlete 51 66 63 35 23 63 44 74 41 Chef 43 60 54 28 15 54 37 69 32 IT technician 43 58 54 29 19 53 37 67 33 Police officer 39 54 49 24 17 49 33 64 28 Real estate broker/agent 37 52 44 23 16 47 31 61 27 Banker 36 50 45 23 15 46 31 62 26 Camp counselor 36 52 41 25 13 47 30 61 26 Doctor 35 51 42 22 15 46 29 61 25 Judge 34 49 38 22 15 43 29 60 23 Presidential candidate 32 46 39 21 13 42 27 58 22 Primary school teacher 32 46 39 21 12 42 27 57 22

Note: Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding.

TABLE 6c

NOT COMFORTABLE WITH THOSE WITH VISIBLE TATTOOS SERVING IN DIFFERENT PROFESSIONS

“Thinking about the following occupations, how comfortable, if at all, would you be with a person with a visible tattoo serving in such a position?”

Base: All adults

Total Generation Children in HH Have a tattoo Millennials (18-35) Gen X (36-50) Baby Boomers (51-69) Matures (70+) Yes No Yes No % % % % % % % % % Presidential candidate 42 26 39 53 59 33 46 17 52 Judge 41 28 37 50 62 31 47 17 51 Primary school teacher 41 26 34 55 62 30 47 18 51 Doctor 38 23 31 51 60 26 44 15 47 Banker 36 23 27 48 54 26 41 14 44 Camp counselor 33 19 28 43 55 23 38 13 41 Real estate broker/agent 32 21 27 40 47 24 36 13 40 Police officer 30 17 25 39 51 20 35 9 39 Chef 22 12 14 30 41 14 26 8 27 IT technician 19 14 11 24 33 14 21 8 23 Athlete 14 9 8 18 31 10 17 6 18

Note: Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding.





TABLE 7

AGE AT WHICH YOU’D ALLOW YOUR CHILD(REN) TO…

“At what age would you allow your child(ren) to get/do each of the following?”

Base: Parents with kids <18 in HH

Total Parent Gender Parent Age Men Women 18-34 35-44 45+ % % % % % % TATTOOS Would ever allow (NET) 63 58 66 72 66 51 Under age 18 7 8 7 13 6 4 Age 18 41 38 44 51 44 30 Age 19-20 2 1 2 1 2 1 Age 21 12 11 13 7 13 16 Would never allow 37 42 34 28 34 49 Mean 17.9 17.3 18.2 17.0 18.3 18.5 PIERCED EARS Would ever allow (NET) 86 83 89 89 88 82 Under age 18 76 74 79 81 77 71 Age 18 8 6 9 8 7 8 Age 19-20 * * 1 — 1 * Age 21 2 3 1 1 2 3 Would never allow 14 17 11 11 12 18 Mean 9.2 10.5 8.3 7.4 9.4 11.0 PIERCING SOMEWHERE ELSE ON THEIR FACE Would ever allow (NET) 48 45 50 62 45 36 Under age 18 11 10 11 20 8 5 Age 18 27 24 30 34 29 19 Age 19-20 1 1 2 1 1 1 Age 21 8 10 7 6 7 11 Would never allow 52 55 50 38 55 64 Mean 17.3 16.8 17.7 16.4 17.9 18.2 PIERCING SOMEWHERE ELSE ON THEIR BODY Would ever allow (NET) 52 49 55 63 54 40 Under age 18 9 12 8 15 9 4 Age 18 32 26 37 41 34 23 Age 19-20 2 1 2 1 3 1 Age 21 9 10 8 7 9 12 Would never allow 48 51 45 37 46 60 Mean 17.5 16.9 18 16.7 18.0 18.3

Note: Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding.

* indicates <0.5% selected this response

— indicates no selections for this response





TABLE 8a

COMFORT WITH THOSE WITH VISIBLE TATTOOS IN ROLES INTERACTING WITH YOUR CHILDREN

“Thinking about the following people who may interact with your child(ren), how comfortable, if at all, would you be with a person with a visible tattoo serving in such a role?”

Base: Parents with kids <18 in HH

Comfortable (NET) Extremely comfortable Somewhat comfortable Not comfortable (NET) Not very comfortable Not at all comfortable Coach % 81 39 42 19 11 8 High school teacher % 75 39 36 25 13 12 Camp counselor % 73 36 38 27 16 11 Sitter/Caregiver % 73 37 36 27 14 12 Primary school teacher % 71 37 34 29 16 13 Pediatrician % 71 40 30 29 16 13

Note: Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding.

TABLE 8b

EXTREMELY COMFORTABLE WITH THOSE WITH VISIBLE TATTOOS IN ROLES INTERACTING WITH YOUR CHILDREN

“Thinking about the following people who may interact with your child(ren), how comfortable, if at all, would you be with a person with a visible tattoo serving in such a role?”

Base: Parents with kids <18 in HH

Total Parent Gender Parent Age Men Women 18-34 35-44 45+ % % % % % % Pediatrician 40 35 45 52 42 28 Coach 39 34 43 53 42 24 High school teacher 39 32 44 51 42 24 Primary school teacher 37 31 42 48 40 25 Sitter/Caregiver 37 30 43 49 38 26 Camp counselor 36 27 42 46 39 23

Note: Percentages may not add to 100% due to rounding.





Methodology

This Harris Poll was conducted online within the United States between October 14 and 19, 2015 among 2,225 adults (aged 18 and over). Additional polling was conducted online in the United States between November 6 and 16, 2015 among 1,093 parents (aged 18 and over) with children under 18 in the household. Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online.

All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, The Harris Poll avoids the words “margin of error” as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Poll surveys. The data have been weighted to reflect the composition of the adult population. Because the sample is based on those who agreed to participate in our panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.

The results of this Harris Poll may not be used in advertising, marketing or promotion without the prior written permission of The Harris Poll.

The Harris Poll® #12, February 10, 2016

By Larry Shannon-Missal, Managing Editor, The Harris Poll