Body Art as a Source of Employment Discrimination

Abstract

Although body art (tattoos and piercings) has increased in popularity, it often puts individuals at a disadvantage when seeking employment. We examine if body art discrimination is based on type or severity of body art, how hiring managers perceive applicants with body art on job-related traits, and if certain individuals are more biased against body art. Participants with supervisory experience (N = 143) evaluated equally qualified Caucasian female job applicants in their mid-20s who varied on body art (no body art, mild tattoo, extreme tattoos, mild piercing, extreme piercings). We found that applicants with extreme tattoos were less likely to be hired and applicants with mild or severe tattoos were offered lower starting salaries than those without body art. Applicants with extreme tattoos were perceived as less competent and committed than applicants without body art. Finally, male participants and those with less supervisory experience were less likely to hire applicants with extreme tattoos. Managers with no or few tattoos were less likely to hire applicants with extreme tattoos or extreme piercings whereas managers with more piercings were less likely to hire applicants without body art.