The Hairless Ideal

Women and Their Body Hair

Bibliographic Data

ID12005362
AuthorsSusan A Basow (Lafayette College, corresponding author)
Year1991
Volume15
Issue1
Pages83-96
Publication date1991-03-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePsychology of Women Quarterly (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0361-6843 • E-ISSN: 1471-6402
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1111/j.1471-6402.1991.tb00479.x
OpenAlexW2049598865
LanguageEN
Citations received38
References cited6

A major component of “femininity” in the United States today is a hairless body, a norm that developed in the United States between 1915–1945. Little has been written regarding the development of this norm, and virtually no empirical research has been done to assess how universally ascribed to is this standard or why women actually remove their leg and underarm hair. More than 200 women from two national professional organizations responded to a mailed questionnaire (response rate 56%). The majority (around 80%) remove their leg and/or underarm hair at least occasionally. Two types of reasons for shaving emerged: feminine/attractiveness reasons and social/normative reasons. Most women start shaving for the latter reasons but continue to shave for the former reasons. Certain groups, however, were least likely to remove leg and/or underarm hair: strongly feminist women and self-identified lesbians. The results of the study are discussed in terms of the function the hairlessness norm may serve in our culture

Attractiveness · Body hair · Developmental psychology · Femininity · Hairless · Norm (philosophy · Normative · Political science · Psychoanalysis · Fashion and Cultural Textiles · Feminist Theory and Gender Studies · Law · Medicine · Psychology · Social Psychology

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