Hair It Is: Examining the Experiences of Black Women with Natural Hair - Open Journal of Social Sciences

JSS > Vol.2 No.1, January 2014

Hair It Is: Examining the Experiences of Black Women with Natural Hair ()

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Download as PDF (Size: 317KB) PP. 86-100

DOI: 10.4236/jss.2014.21010 22,321 Downloads 39,453 Views Citations

Author(s)

Tabora A. Johnson, Teiahsha Bankhead

Affiliation(s)

Department of Social Work, California State University, Sacramento, US.
Education Department, Medgar Evers College CUNY, Brooklyn, US.

ABSTRACT

Who am I and how do I feel about who I am, are essential questions that help define and construct identity. For Black women and girls, identity is inextricably linked to their relationship to and presentation of their hair. Our research presents findings from an Internet based survey conducted with 529 Black women exploring their experiences when wearing their hair in its natural state (not thermally or chemically straightened). These are preliminary findings from the study with reference to the composition of the study participants and how they responded to key questions related to how they perceived when wearing their hair naturally.

KEYWORDS

Black Women; Identity; Hair; Self-Esteem

Share and Cite:

Johnson, T. and Bankhead, T. (2014) Hair It Is: Examining the Experiences of Black Women with Natural Hair. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 2, 86-100. doi: 10.4236/jss.2014.21010.

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