We frequently, get request from students asking for us to help them contact modified people to interview for their thesis or whatever. Sometimes, we post them, sometimes we don’t. However, when one of our own ask for our help, we will always happily oblige.

Tigricula, sent us this request, not only is she an IAM member and part of the modded community, but she emphasizes her respect for the individuals being interview and is even offering a small monetary compensation for their time. That speaks volumes, compared to the usual request sent in by psych majors trying to prove anyone with stretched ears MUST have been touched inappropriately by their family members, or whatever foolish hypothesis they want to put forth.

I am a PhD student in library and information science, and I’m currently researching how people get information about body modification procedures. I’m particularly interested in how people research some of the more intense procedures, like tongue splitting, ear pointing and genital modifications. I’m looking for people to interview about the role of technology, the internet and social media in terms of finding out about body modification practices. Interviews could be done in person (if you’re on the East Coast of the US) or virtually (Skype or chat), and I’m able to offer people $30 as an honorarium for their time and help. If this sounds like something that would interest you, please get in touch with me at [email protected] or on IAM, username tigricula.

One last thing – I’ve participated in the body modification scene for nearly a decade, and I’m grateful to both the online and offline facets of this community for being a place where I’ve made some really important friendships. I also happen to be a PhD student who studies information and subcultures. I point this out to say that respect for this community is really important to me, as is confidentiality of participants. Please feel free to contact me with any questions about or suggestions for how I’m conducting research on this project.