Digital Commons at St. Mary's University Theses & Dissertations University Archives 4-2020 Tattoo Adversity, Regret, and Removal: Constructivist Grounded Theory Luis R. Esparza Follow this and additional works at: https://commons.stmarytx.edu/dissertations Part of the Counseling Psychology Commons Recommended Citation Esparza, Luis R., "Tattoo Adversity, Regret, and Removal: Constructivist Grounded Theory" (2020). Theses & Dissertations. 37. https://commons.stmarytx.edu/dissertations/37 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the University Archives at Digital Commons at St. Mary's University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses & Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons at St. Mary's University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. TATTOO ADVERSITY, REGRET, AND REMOVAL: CONSTRUCTIVIST GROUNDED THEORY A DISSERTATION Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of St. Mary’s University in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in Counseling Education and Supervision By Luis R. Esparza, MA., LPC San Antonio, TX. April 2020 ProQuest Number:27833393 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent on the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. ProQuest 27833393 Published by ProQuest LLC (2020). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All Rights Reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, MI 48106 - 1346 TATTOO ADVERSITY, REGRET, AND REMOVAL: CONSTRUCTIVIST GROUNDED THEORY APPROVED: ____________________________________ Dana L. Comstock-Benzick, Ph.D. Dissertation Adviser ____________________________________ Christine D. Wong, Ph.D. Committee Member ____________________________________ Priscilla Reyna-Vasquez, Ph.D. Committee Member APPROVED: ___________________________________ Leona Pallansch, Ph.D. St. Mary’s University Graduate Dean ___________________________________ Date ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I want to thank my dissertation adviser Dr. Dana L. Comstock-Benzick for her invaluable assistance, patience, and insight leading to the writing of this paper. My sincere thanks to my two-dissertation committee members, Dr. Christine D. Wong and Dr. Priscilla Reyna-Vasquez for their invaluable support and understanding during the time that went into the assembly of this paper. I particularly want to express my appreciativeness to my family and friends for their support and encouragement that made this research possible. iii Running head: TATTOO ADVERSITY, REGRET, AND REMOVAL TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgments............................................................................................................. iii List of Tables .................................................................................................................. viii Abstract ............................................................................................................................. ix CHAPTER I THE COMPLEXITY OF TATTOOS ................................................................................ 1 Psychological Complications ................................................................................. 6 Physical Complications .......................................................................................... 7 Laser Tattoo Removal ............................................................................................ 9 Tattoo Removal Challenges ................................................................................. 10 Relational Betrayal............................................................................................... 12 Statement of the Problem ..................................................................................... 15 Research Questions .............................................................................................. 17 Rational for the Study .......................................................................................... 17 Limitations of the Study....................................................................................... 19 Definition of Significant Terms ........................................................................... 19 CHAPTER II REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ................................................................................. 23 Tattoos and Culture .............................................................................................. 24 Tattoos in United States ....................................................................................... 24 Tattoo Complexities Among Gender ................................................................... 26 Tattoo Types ........................................................................................................ 28 iv TATTOO ADVERSITY, REGRET, AND REMOVAL Tattoo Regret ....................................................................................................... 29 Tattoo Health Risks.............................................................................................. 32 Tattoo Removal .................................................................................................... 35 Relational-Cultural Theory .................................................................................. 38 Relational-Cultural Perspective of Tattoo Betrayal ............................................. 40 Summary .............................................................................................................. 41 CHAPTER III METHODS ...................................................................................................................... 43 Research Design................................................................................................... 43 Grounded Theory ................................................................................................. 43 Constructivist Grounded Theory.......................................................................... 44 Research Participants ........................................................................................... 46 Data Collection ................................................................................................... 47 Data Analysis ...................................................................................................... 48 Open coding ............................................................................................. 49 Focused coding ........................................................................................ 50 Theoretical coding ................................................................................... 50 Theoretical memo writing ........................................................................ 51 Emerging categories................................................................................. 52 Theoretical sampling ................................................................................ 52 Theoretical saturation............................................................................... 53 Role of the Researcher ......................................................................................... 54 v TATTOO ADVERSITY, REGRET, AND REMOVAL CHAPTER IV RESEARCH FINDINGS ................................................................................................. 59 Participant Narratives....................................................................................................... 59 Diane ................................................................................................................. 59 Ezequiel................................................................................................................ 64 Jane ................................................................................................................. 67 Marcus ................................................................................................................. 70 Mrs ................................................................................................................. 73 Rigo ................................................................................................................. 76 Zack ................................................................................................................. 78 Presentation of Themes and Subthemes .......................................................................... 81 Frame of Reference .......................................................................................................... 82 Transformation .................................................................................................... 82 Emotional Regulation .......................................................................................... 83 Context Perspective ............................................................................................ 84 Evolvement ...................................................................................................................... 85 Maturity...............................................................................................................