Counting Frequency

Despite the CROWN Act of 2022, which stands for Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair, current hair bias research and frameworks have not fully accounted for how hair microaggressions connect to Black women's experiences at work. Grounded in social identity theory and conservation of resources theory, we introduce the hair and its ramifications model, a comprehensive model on the consequences of hair-related microaggressions with a distinct focus on Black women's hair. We emphasize Black women because they are the targets of hair bias for reasons that include both their racio-ethnic status and their gender status (intersectionality), which results in their unique experience of identity threats and subsequent adverse outcomes. The hair and its ramifications model offers boundary conditions that either increase the possibility that identity threat will occur after a hair microaggression or reduce the negative impact of an identity threat on perceived inclusion. We also discuss implications related to Black women's experience when the environment devalues their natural hair and encourages them to modify their hair to meet Eurocentric standards of beauty, particularly if they want to advance within organizations. Theoretical and future research implications of the hair and its ramifications model are also offered. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

Racial disparities in perinatal health continue to drive negative outcomes for Black women in the United States, often due to low-quality perinatal care. Few studies examine patients' perceptions of perinatal care. This study explored Black women's experiences of pregnancy and home birth with race-concordant certified nurse-midwives and their perceptions of care quality. This qualitative study used semistructured interviews with Black women who received perinatal and home birth care from Black certified nurse-midwives. Participants were recruited through referrals from midwives in California, Georgia, and New York. Eligible participants self-identified as Black women, received home birth care from a Black nurse-midwife, and provided informed consent. Interviews were conducted between August and November 2022, lasted approximately 60 minutes, and were audio-recorded. Transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis guided by the Donabedian model. Codes were organized around care structure, process, and outcomes, and then refined into overarching themes. Ten participants described pregnancy and home birth experiences with race-concordant nurse-midwives. Most had experienced prior hospital births, which informed their decision to seek midwifery care. Analysis produced 3 themes: (1) holistic healing, in which midwives addressed physical, emotional, spiritual, and cultural needs in supportive home environments; (2) liberation through care, in which participants experienced autonomy and empowerment in contrast to prior medicalized births; and (3) race-concordant connections, in which shared racial identity fostered trust, comfort, and personalized relationships that participants perceived as high-quality care. Black women in this study perceived race-concordant home birth midwifery care as high quality, emphasizing holistic support, autonomy, and trust. These findings highlight the importance of culturally responsive, relationship-centered care in addressing persistent perinatal inequities. Increasing racial diversity within the midwifery workforce and expanding access to race-concordant care may improve Black women's perinatal experiences and outcomes.

We sought to understand the lived experiences of Black women diagnosed with severe maternal morbidity (SMM) in communities with high maternal mortality to inform practices that reduce obstetric racism and improve patient outcomes. From August 2022 through December 2022, we conducted a phenomenological, qualitative study among Black women who experienced SMM. Participants were recruited via social media and met inclusion criteria if they self-identified as Black cisgender women, were 18-40 years old, had SMM diagnosed, and lived within zip codes in the United States that have the top-five highest maternal mortality rates. Family members participated on behalf of women who were deceased but otherwise met all other criteria. We conducted in-depth interviews (IDIs), and transcripts were analyzed using inductive and deductive methods to explore birth story experiences. Overall, 12 participants completed IDIs; 10 were women who experienced SMM and 2 were mothers of women who died due to SMM. The mean age for women who experienced SMM was 31 years (range 26-36 years) at the time of the IDI or death. Most participants had graduate-level education, and the average annual household income was 123,750 USD. Women were especially interested in study participation because of their high-income status as they did not fit the stereotypical profile of Black women who experience racial discrimination. The average time since SMM diagnosis was 2 years. Participants highlighted concrete examples of communication failures, stereotyping by providers, differential treatment, and medical errors which patients experienced as manifestations of racism. Medical personnel dismissing and ignoring concerns during emergent situations, even when raised through strong self-advocacy, was a key factor in racism experienced during childbirth. Future interventions to reduce racism and improve maternal health outcomes should center on the experiences of Black women and focus on improving patient-provider communication, as well as the quality and effectiveness of responses during emergent situations. Précis statement: This study underscores the need to center Black women's experiences, enhance patient-provider communication, and address emergent concerns to mitigate obstetric racism and enhance maternal health outcomes.

Breast cancer incidence rates for Black women are lower than that of their white counterparts, yet the mortality of Black women is 40 percent higher. Among women under 50, the mortality disparity is even greater: double that of white women. The gap between breast cancer incidence and mortality among Black women is complex and multifactorial. Social, economic, behavioral factors may partially account for the disparity, along with historical and systemic racism causing trauma and mistrust within this community. Black women are also more likely than white women to have inadequate health insurance or access to health care facilities, which may affect access to screening, follow-up care, and completion of treatment. This study measures social, economic and behavioral factors that affect access to adequate healthcare through listening sessions entitled 'Pull Up A Seat: Shining a Light on the Experiences of Black Women with Breast Cancer’. 'Pull Ups' are events in partnership with The Tigerlily Foundation and GRASP, bringing together health equity experts, healthcare providers, scientists, researchers, clinicians and Black women with a history of breast cancer. Each meeting consists of a lecture on broad topics such as racism in medical research, clinical trial exclusion/inclusion criteria and history of mistrust from Black community. After the lecture, breakout rooms led by Black patient advocates are held for healthcare providers with the concept that patients are experts in living with the disease and have much to share – and teach – healthcare providers and researchers. Our methodology will be based on surveys post-event to attendants and an impact report with metrics and teachings to health providers and researchers to determine learning and changes to be made in practices. We believe this program created for and by black patients affected by breast cancer from across diverse and underserved populations will help increase the participation of black women with breast cancer in clinical trials through patient empowerment and health provider awareness of unconscious biases. In addition, we believe this program will result in co-creating solutions to limit barriers for Black women. Citation Format: Julia Maues, Maimah Karmo, Shanda Cooper, Sheila McGlown, Jamil Rivers, Chawnte Randall, Tania Koulakian, Christine Hodgdon, Isaac Chan. 'Pull Up A Seat': A program shining a light on the experiences of Black women with breast cancer for healthcare providers and the scientific community [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Virtual Conference: Thirteenth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2020 Oct 2-4. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2020;29(12 Suppl):Abstract nr PO-033.

Within correctional settings, incarcerated women have disproportionately high rates of experiencing staff-perpetrated sexual victimization. In addition, only a small proportion of incarcerated women formally report their victimization experiences to correctional staff and even fewer reports are fully investigated by internal investigators and found to be substantiated. Given the multiple steps in this process, incarcerated women face several possible justice gaps in receiving preventive and intervention-focused responses from correctional staff. Racial differences among incarcerated women's experiences of these steps have not been explored. This study used a structural intersectional framework to examine racial differences in these areas: incarcerated women's experiences of staff-perpetrated rape, reporting decisions, and correctional staff's investigation decisions. With a sample of 180 incarcerated women, this study included analysis of archival data (i.e., settlement claim forms and internal investigation files) from a class action lawsuit involving incarcerated women who had experienced staff sexual misconduct. Black women represented over half of the incarcerated women who experienced staff-perpetrated rape. There were no statistical differences between Black and White women with regard to the characteristics of their victimization experiences, and they had similar rates of reporting their victimization to institutional staff. However, significant differences were found between women with regard to prison staff's responses to their reports; Black women were less likely to have their reports investigated by staff and were more likely to have their investigated reports found to be unsubstantiated. A detailed analysis of 100 specific incidents showed similar findings. Thus, while justice gaps existed for all women, gaps in institutional responses were exacerbated for Black women. Centering incarcerated Black women's experiences is pivotal for guiding efforts to transform correctional settings, to prevent and address staff-perpetrated sexual victimization, and to build safety for incarcerated women.

Black women are disproportionately affected by HIV in the U.S. PrEP could decrease the risk of acquiring HIV. This scoping review seeks to understand the experiences of Black women along the PrEP Care Continuum. We searched PubMed, Embase, PsycInfo, and Google Scholar to identify peer-reviewed studies published between July 16, 2012, and December 15, 2021. Articles were included if they discussed PrEP among Black women in the U.S. Two authors screened titles/abstracts and full-text articles. One author extracted and thematically summarized findings (n = 33). Black women reported low levels of PrEP awareness and knowledge, and negative experiences with providers. Women also experienced negative perceptions of PrEP from their social networks, stigma, and mistrust. Future research should focus on helping Black women to overcome PrEP-related barriers. Additionally, future research should further examine barriers to PrEP initiation, adherence, and retention for Black women, as only three studies discussed these aspects of the Continuum.

This paper examines the uses, methods, strengths, and weaknesses of cosmetics as a historical archive to better understand the experiences of Black women in North America during the twentieth century. Encompassing cosmetic products, advertisements, magazines, and companies, the archive of cosmetics documents Black women’s secondary role within the cosmetic industry as both buyers and businesswomen. As large, white-owned cosmetic companies virtually dominated the makeup industry, Black women were sidelined and racially exploited, largely rendered unable to exercise the agency to determine their own beauty standards through dictating the representation of, messaging around, and distribution of beauty products designed for Black women. Their lack of agency within the cosmetic industry will be explored through the beginning of the twentieth century, during which the emphasis on skin lightening products reinforced the undesirability of dark skin. Throughout the later twentieth century, despite the emergence of the ‘Black is Beautiful’ campaign, there was instead a predominately superficial shift in the cosmetic industry with companies releasing new lines specifically designed to suit dark skin. Moreover, the experiences of Black women in the United States and Canada will be analysed through the use of case studies of Madame C.J. Walker and Viola Desmond to further contextualise and compare the exclusion of Black women within the cosmetic industry across North America.

Mainstream pornography is popular, freely accessible, and infused with themes of male dominance, aggression, and female subservience. Through depicting sex in these ways, mainstream pornography has the potential to influence the further development of harmful sexual scripts that condone or endorse violence against women and girls. These concerns warrant the adoption of a harms-based perspective in critical examinations of pornography's influence on sexual experiences. This chapter reports on findings from interviews with 24 heterosexual emerging adults living in Aotearoa/New Zealand about how pornography has impacted their lives. Despite a shared awareness among participants of mainstream pornography's misogynistic tendencies, and the potential for harm from those displays, men's and women's experiences were profoundly gendered. Men's reported experiences were often associated with concerns about their own sexual behaviors, performances, and/or abilities. Conversely, women's experiences were often shaped by how pornography had affected the way that men related to them sexually. Their experiences included instances of sexual coercion and assault which were not reported by the men. These findings signal the need for a gendered lens, situated within a broader harms-based perspective, in examinations of pornography's influence.

Black women experience significant disparities in morbidity and mortality related to hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC). Early identification of women with HBOC is essential for proactive screening and timely diagnosis. However, evidence suggests that Black women receive genetic testing for HBOC at lower rates than their White counterparts. We conducted in-depth qualitative interviews with 107 Black women with a personal or family history of breast or ovarian cancer, to understand their perceptions of their familial risk of HBOC and interest in genetic testing. In phase 1 of this study, participants were recruited from the networks of patient support organizations and historically Black sororities representing mostly highly educated and well insured patients. In phase 2, participants were recruited from a family medicine safety net clinic in Jacksonville, FL for socioeconomic diversity. Participants in both cohorts frequently expressed a lack of awareness about their family cancer history and identified many barriers to family disclosure of a cancer diagnosis. These include a culture of silence around medical issues and a belief that personal difficulties should be kept to oneself. Practical and cultural barriers to family history sharing were magnified among those with lower socioeconomic status. Many participants in both cohorts indicated a strong desire to understand their own risk of HBOC. They also expressed interested in genetic testing to proactively mitigate risk to themselves and future generations. Understanding of the potential relevance of HBOC testing to one’s personal health and post-test actionability was variable across both groups, although perceptions of genetic testing were generally favorable. These findings suggest that culturally tailored educational materials and alternative clinical modalities to collect family health history may be beneficial to improve timely identification of Black women who meet NCCN Guidelines for HBOC testing. Specifically, greater attention should be given to addressing barriers that led to underestimation of HBOC risk among patients experiencing disparities driven by adverse social determinants of health. Citation Format: Kirsten Riggan, Jane Yap, Ewan Cobran, Michele Halyard, Sarah James, Marion Kelly, Daphne Phillips, Megan Allyse. Perceptions and Experiences of Black Women on Family History Sharing and Genetic Testing for Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2023 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2023 Dec 5-9; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(9 Suppl):Abstract nr PO4-09-08.

Researching difference and diversity within women's movements: Sisterhood and after

How to engage and apply intersectionality is still a point of contention among scholars. In this conceptual paper, we use examples from our preliminary research on the experiences of middle-class Black women with depression and Black Muslim women who have experienced intimate partner violence to illustrate how we applied intersectionality as a framework and a method. We highlight the foundational literature that informed our applications. We then describe how we employed intersectionality in our respective studies. Through our reflections, we conclude that intersectionality was, and continues to be, a necessary frame for guiding our work due to its rendering visible for critique and intervention categories of privilege and oppression and our centering the experiences of Black women. We, however, note having felt limited in our ability to fully apply intersectionality in our preliminary research. We conclude that what was missing for us reflects critiques of a gap in social work feminist scholarship that is a central tenet of intersectionality: liberation. We posit ways of doing intersectional research that liberates by offering recommendations for research, education, and policy.

The experience of black women around image and aesthetics is a topic of great relevance; firstly because it is an issue with little scientific approach; second, because it invokes a critical reading of the different forms of oppression and historical invisibilization, to which they have been subjected from the hegemonic aesthetic, and third, because in these circumstances it is necessary to make visible the way in which women resist scenarios of racism, exclusion and denial, from different initiatives that are properly articulated to natural Afro hair and the relationship they build with it. In this order of ideas, this paper aims to present theoretical reflections on some processes of resistance, brokered by black Columbian women from their hair, as part of the vindication of their identity and positioning towards the hegemonic aesthetic. A qualitative methodology is proposed, which uses documentary review as a technique, in order to identify different initiatives that have been investigated from research processes, to evidence the construction of identity processes in black women from natural Afro hair. Within the discussions, the need to address from the academy, the contexts of discrimination and racialization suffered by black women from their hair, to elucidate the way in which they carry out actions of resistance and collective contestation as strategies that allow not only the conservation of historical memory from the meaning that hair represents, but also but also, the strengthening of ethnic/cultural identity.

Recent research on Black women working in corporate America and higher education shows significant career deterrents as women navigate their career journeys related to promotion and retention. Current literature focuses on the experiences of Black women seeking career advancement from an administrator and faculty perspective. Nevertheless, Black women from managerial and nonmanagerial classifications also seek career advancement, with minimal to no access to mentorship or resources as guidance. The goal of this chapter is to explore how Intersectional Black Feminism (IBF) as a conceptual framework (Parker, 2022), coined by the author, highlights the lived experiences of Black women in the workplace and how such experiences have affected them and acknowledge how the duality of intersectional identities captures the true essence of Black women and how they show up in society. Additionally, IBF leads to identifying strategies to remedy long-standing issues. Lastly, this chapter will address the issue of retention, as Black women navigating their career journeys are typically viewed as diversity hires for quota purposes, yet disparities remain concerning retention. This chapter affirms Black women and provides the hope to evolve and thrive in their careers.

Black women’s marriage rates have consistently been on the decline since the 1960’s and currently, Black women are the least likely to get married across all races and genders (Bureau 2020). Scholars have been using these statistics to tell monolithic narratives of Black womanhood, and even blame Black women for larger issues within the Black community (Collins 2000, Johnson and Loscocco 2015; Moynihan 1965). Prior scholars have also attempted to provide solutions to this problem, while never even approaching Black women, to suggest ways that they can increase their marriage rates and consequently uplift Black families and the Black community as a whole (Banks 2010). My dissertations steps in to address this phenomenon by going straight to Black women to directly capture their relationship experiences. Using focus groups, I conduct an exploratory research project seeking to understand how Black women describe their heterosexual experiences, if these experiences differ by educational attainment, how Black women feel they are being received within intimate marketplaces, and how their background impacts their perceptions. I find that the Black women within my dissertation display a hyperawareness of the impacts of mass incarceration on the Black community and are increasingly more open to men with criminal backgrounds as a means to expand their dating pools. I also find that most of my respondents reject romantic societal notions of marriage in favor of a more practical and mutually beneficial interpretation. Lastly, I find that in many cases, my respondents tend to favor prioritizing their own self-improvement in terms of degree attainment and career advancement rather than pursuing a relationship, in addition to practicing radical self-love. I conclude by discussing the implications of these findings and ultimately urge that future scholars speak directly to Black people when discussing Black issues.

Black women's embodied intersecting systems of oppression: A systematic narrative review of body image and maladaptive eating behavior.