Modern Practices:

No culture accepts the body in its natural state. Makeup, body paint, war paint, tattoos, body piercing and scarification have played a role in history and fashion throughout time. When speaking of self-mutilation, we may wonder about how tattoos and piercings in Western Culture fit that label.

Modern self-mutilative practices are accepted in many forms in the Western World. It is not uncommon to see a women with a nose ring or a man sporting a tattoo. These individuals often derive pleasure and a sense of satisfaction from their body-modifications, as the self-mutilation turns from a psychological problem to a fashion statement. Body-modification also often serves as a rite of passage into adulthood.

As Farber states,
we cannot assume anything at all about what any self-harm behavior means to any individual or what role it plays. What is socially acceptable, even desirable, within a subculture, may be repugnant to the larger mainstream culture.