Inaccurate conclusions about personality and morals are often drawn from tattoos.

Approximately 32% of adults in the US currently have at least one tattoo. Although tattoos are common in many spheres of life, they continue to elicit hasty judgments about a person's character, beliefs, or lifestyle.

Those rash decisions are called into doubt by a recent Michigan State University study. According to the study, people usually misread personality traits based on the appearance, style, and substance of tattoos.

Everyday objects like politicians' ankles and teachers' forearms now contain ink. According to eight out of ten Americans, compared to twenty years ago, their societies are now more tolerant of body art.

Nevertheless, there is still a strong undercurrent of shame about tattoos. According to earlier studies, adults with tattoos were perceived as more promiscuous, deviant, and careless than their peers without tattoos.

In a seminal 2000 study, Durkin and Houghton found that tattoos were associated with delinquent behaviour in children as young as six.

Gender impacts are also shown in studies. Particularly in the hospitality and medical industries, women who have visible ink are frequently subjected to harsher criticism than men.

Hiring managers still acknowledge that visible ink can harm an application, despite modern organisations' efforts to convey inclusion. The demand for cosmetics that conceal the sleeves during interviews is fuelled by lingering bias.

Links between personality and tattoos

Photographs of 375 tattoos from 274 individuals were taken by Michigan State University psychologists Brooke Soulliere and William Chopik. Before getting their hands dirty, the volunteers finished a comprehensive Big Five personality traits survey.

According to Chopik, "we discovered that people did tend to rate the personalities of tattooed people consistently."

Another panel made a personality prediction based solely on each picture. The ink was visible to onlookers, but not the subject's face, attire, or environment. That design mimicked snap decisions made on a pavement or social media page by isolating the tattoo as the only discernible indication.

According to Soulliere, 18 features—including size, colour, and placement—were examined in the study. The team was able to determine which visual clues, if any, were reliable by comparing each signal to personality scores.

Rarely do tattoos convey genuine personality.

The majority of viewers formed the same assumptions, according to the results, which demonstrated agreement among raters. But agreement does not equate to accuracy.

It was incorrect to assign traits like neuroticism, conscientiousness, extraversion, and agreeableness. The raters' guesses were not saved by their confidence.

The lens model, which psychologists use to explain this pattern, claims that people interpret outward signs to deduce hidden characteristics. One such lens is a tattoo, although the perspective it offers may be hazy. Over the past ten years, studies have connected jurors' criminal stereotypes to skulls, firearms, or jail images.

Laptops with stickers on them tell a similar tale. By looking at customised decals, raters were able to precisely assess an owner's extraversion and openness.

Personality and tattoo meaning frequently conflict.

Identity claims, as defined by psychologists, are frequently involved in tattooing. While an other-directed claim indicates loyalty to a sports team or military unit, a self-directed claim can commemorate a child's birthdate.

When outsiders guess the message without context, it becomes problematic. Although many will perceive danger or rebellion, a snake entwined with roses could symbolise healing from disease.

Anthropologists observe that body art has been symbolic for millennia in many cultures, from Japanese irezumi to Polynesian rite-of-passage marks. Viewers in the West who are not familiar with these customs might instead create their own stories.

Misreading is accelerated by social media. A stranger can be forced into a public persona based just on a tattoo on their wrist that is visible under café lights by a single viral photo.

Only tattoos are associated with openness.

One tiny bit of accuracy was discovered by the Michigan State team. When a tattoo was described as quirky, silly, or just plain strange, viewers tended to rate the wearer as highly receptive to new experiences.

According to Soulliere, "people assume that someone who has a goofy or wacky tattoo is open to experience, and they are correct about that."

Curiosity, inventiveness, and a need for novelty are all indicators of openness. A humorous cartoon or an entire sleeve of abstract colour can more accurately allude to those qualities than a skull encircling a dagger.

Some conventional thinkers prefer bold graphics on a dare, whereas many open-minded others choose minimalist ink. Scientists believe that selection, not signal, is responsible for the accuracy. The art style predicts the attribute because people with high openness may be drawn to unique imagery.

Personality bias and tattoos have an impact on life.

People make snap decisions on tattoos in courtrooms, clinics, dating apps, and classrooms. Mistaking conscientiousness for agreeableness can influence employment, sentencing, and trust judgments.

Bias also affects oneself. Individuals who are aware of the preconceptions could alter their ink selections to steer clear of particular imagery, subtly restricting their ability to express themselves.

Future studies could examine whether accuracy is increased by including context, such as the meaning behind a tattoo. Experts advise against making too many assumptions about a pop-culture tribute, a dragon, or a rose at this time.

Minimising personality bias and tattoos

Awareness is the first step, and research like this one provides a fact-based justification for individuals to think things through before making snap judgments.

Implicit bias courses are already included in law enforcement and customer service training programs, but tattoos are rarely featured on those slides.

Quick reminders that body art by itself only indicates a taste for ink could be added by organisations. A supervisor is less likely to associate a forearm phoenix with unreliability if they are aware of this fact.

Little things build up. Instead of assuming the meaning of a new tattoo, ask an employee about it to start a conversation and avoid a potential bias trap.