---
title: "The Tattoo Divide"
description: "The public is divided about the impact of more people getting tattoos: 45% say it has not made much difference, 40% say it has been a change for the worse."
date: "2009-01-06"
authors:
  - name: "Pew Research Center"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2009/01/06/the-tattoo-divide/"
---

# The Tattoo Divide

The public is divided about the impact of more people getting tattoos; 45% say it has not made much difference, 40% think it has been a change for the worse and only 7% say this has been a change for the better. As might be expected, older Americans are far more likely to view this trend negatively: 64% of those ages 65 and older and 51% of those ages 50-64 say more people getting tattoos has been a change for the worse. A majority of those under age 50 (56%) say the tattoo trend has not made much of a difference. The age differences are larger among women than men. About six-in-ten (61%) women ages 50 and older say more people getting tattoos have been a change for the worse compared with 27% of younger women. A majority (56%) of white evangelical Protestants say that more people getting tattoos has been a change for the worse; white mainline Protestants and white Catholics are more divided in their opinions. By comparison, 57% of those who are religiously unaffiliated say that more people getting tattoos has not made much difference. [Read More](https://www.pewresearch.org/pubs/1447/worst-decade-major-technological-communications-advances)