Tattooed and pierced people are seen as more promiscuous, Psychology Today finds. In other news—dog bites man! "A team of anthropologists at the University of Goettingen in Germany found that men and women with tattoos or piercings beyond earlobes are more sensation-seeking and promiscuous than the unadorned—as well as less friendly." Sure, there's nothing that says "fuck you" to society as well as a pierced or tattooed face. But are they actually more promiscuous, or just seen that way?

Tattoos and piercings send social signals. In some cultures, you're saying, "I'm healthy"—suffering the pain and health risks of body modification demonstrates biological fitness. In ours, the message is more like, "I'm down for anything."
But now that body art has crossed from punk rock to soccer mom, it doesn't mean all that it used to. The Germans found that the ornamented are no more extroverted, neurotic, careless, or open to new experiences. And they score no differently on measures of sexual orientation, masculinity, femininity, body image, or association with subcultures. Further, a team of sociologists at Texas Tech found no link among Southern college students between religiousness and number of piercings or tattoos.