One-third of Americans are tattooed, study finds

(WGN) – Look at the person to your left. Look at the person to your right. Odds are, one of you has at least one tattoo.

A new survey conducted by the Pew Research Center appears to suggest that sporting a tattoo has become broadly accepted among Americans in recent decades. What’s more, Pew’s study indicates a trend which seems to span fairly evenly across a variety of demographics.

The survey, which polled nearly 8,500 people, found that 32% of adults say they have at least one tattoo — and the majority of those adults actually had more than one.

As for who is most likely to have a tattoo, the survey broke down results by: gender; race and ethnicity; age; education; income; religion; and sexual orientation. Those demographics were further broken down by the likelihood of having only a single tattoo versus multiple tattoos.

Though the combined percentages show a decent amount of variance, the likelihood of having a single tattoo is almost equal across all groups at approximately 11%.

What do the combined percentages show?

% of surveyed Americans who have at least one tattoo

Total: 32%

Gender

Men: 27%
Women: 38%

Race and Ethnicity

White: 32%
Black: 39%
Hispanic: 35%
Asian: 14%

Age

18-29: 41%
30-49: 46%
50-64: 25%
65+: 13%

Education

H.S. or less: 39%
Some College: 35%
Bachelor’s: 24%
Postgraduate: 21%

Income

Lower: 43%
Middle: 31%
Higher: 21%

Sexual Orientation

LGB: 51%
Straight: 31%

The survey also found there were no major differences in likelihood to have a tattoo between political affiliations; between veterans and non-veterans; and whether someone lived in an urban, suburban, or rural community.

As for why so many Americans have tattoos, the most commonly cited reason (at 69%) was to honor or remember someone or something.

The full survey results, which include findings concerning the perception of tattoos, can be found at the Pew Research Center’s official website.