Differences in Alcohol Consumption and Self-Esteem between Tattooed and Non-Tattooed People
Author(s): Stevi Deschler, Alla Sawatzky, Kathrin Wendler and Erich Kasten
Abstract
Background. The primary aim of this research was to examine differences in alcohol consumption and self-esteem between tattooed and non-tattooed people. The secondary objective of this study was to examine the correlations between the number of tattoos and the alcohol consumption as well as the self-esteem. Methods. Two standardized test were used: the “Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test” (AUDIT) for investigation of alcohol drinking behaviour and the “Multidimensional Self-Esteem Scale”. In addition, the number, size and body parts of tattoos were asked with a non-standardized questionnaire. Results. A total of 228 German persons (127 tattooed and 101 non-tattooed) participated in an online survey, aged between 17 and 65 years (M = 26.41, SD = 9.03). The results indicate that there were no significant group differences concerning the alcohol consumption, as well as there was no correlation between tattoos and the self-esteem. Equally, there was no correlation between the number of tattoos and the alcohol consumption. A positive correlation between the number of tattoos and the self-esteem was found. Conclusion. Tattooed people do not seem to consume more alcohol or have lower self-esteem than non-tattooed people. This study shows that the number of tattoos is associated with the self-esteem. No differences between tattooed people and nontattooed people could be found in this study. An explanation is that regarding the explosion of costs for professional made tattoos, the area of customers changed from outsiders of the society to people with average and high earnings.