US College Women Research Articles

‘We Did What We Were Told’: The ‘Compulsory Visibility’ and De-Empowerment of US College Women in Nude ‘Posture Pictures,’ 1880-1940

C’était un rite de passage notoire et redouté pour les nouvelles étudiantes des universités d’élite exclusivement féminines du nord-est des États-Unis. Dans le cadre d’un cours de « posture » obligatoire, axé sur le raffinement personnel et physique, les étudiantes étaient régulièrement pesées, rigoureusement mesurées et photographiées entièrement nues 50 fois plus souvent que leurs homologues masculins. Les données et les images étaient communiquées au gouvernement de l’État où se trouvait l’université et au Bureau national des archives eugéniques (Eugenics Record Office, ERO). Les étudiantes étaient photographiées à plusieurs reprises si leur posture devait être améliorée. Presque toutes étaient concernées. Ces images ont permis à l’ERO de créer un ensemble de « normes » d’avant la Seconde Guerre mondiale à l’aune desquelles les étudiants (et la société dans son ensemble) étaient mesurés et examinés : celles de la Nouvelle-Angleterre, de la gentry de descendance WASP/Protestante. Elles permettaient également d’identifier les étudiantes souffrant de handicaps physiques, jugées incompatibles avec l’objectif de « bonne reproduction » du mouvement eugénique, tout en encourageant les jeunes femmes (les principales actrices silencieuses de l’eugénisme) à avoir des enfants pour noyer les gènes de « ceux qui sont moralement les pires, les plus difformes » (Lavater 99). Les images de posture servaient à réguler physiquement les étudiantes afin que leur accès à l’enseignement supérieur ne les rende pas trop « masculinisées », indépendantes et réfractaires à leur rôle de mère, de mondaine et de soutien de la carrière de leur mari. La « visibilité obligatoire », selon les termes de Michel Foucault, de ces femmes exprime le « pouvoir disciplinaire » en affirmant leur condition innée de sujet. Ainsi, cette pratique photographique a contribué à former des générations de femmes universitaires à accepter, plutôt qu’à contester, les structures de pouvoir patriarcales existantes et les attentes comportementales fondées sur le sexe.

US college women’s understandings of definitions of intimate partner violence

Objective: Past research suggests students have differing definitions of sexual assault, violence and intimate partner violence (IPV). To adequately develop violence prevention efforts, it is important to examine how college students understand these terms and associated behaviours. The purpose of this study was to identify which behaviours are categorised as IPV by college women and whether there are any ‘grey areas’ when it comes to IPV. Design: A three-phase e-Delphi study was conducted with US college women to reach consensus on the behaviours commonly associated with IPV. Setting: The study was conducted in one large, Southeastern USA university. Method: In a first phase of work, participants answered open-ended questions about the behaviours they associated with IPV and related terms. In phase 2, participants categorised the behaviours identified in phase 1. In phase 3, consensus was reached by the 12 women who completed all three phases of work. Results: Women agreed on a list of 45 behaviours that constitute IPV as well as behaviours that fall into a ‘grey area’, with many of the latter occurring between boyfriends/girlfriends. Conclusion: Findings from the study contribute to the current knowledge base concerning IPV among US college students and their understanding of which behaviours are acceptable by intimate partners and which are not. Future research is needed with a larger more representative sample to extend the current findings. However, interim findings can be used to drive future research and may provide some insight into current student perceptions of IPV.

Eating disorder symptomatology, clinical impairment, and comorbid psychopathology in racially and ethnically diverse college women with eating disorders.

To examine eating disorder (ED) symptomatology, related clinical impairment, and comorbid psychopathology in college women with EDs across five racial and two ethnic groups. Participants were 690 women from 28 US universities who screened positive for an ED. Thirteen variables assessing ED symptoms, related clinical impairment, and comorbid psychopathology were compared across racial and ethnic groups using analyses of variance (ANOVAs) and independent samples t-tests. Across racial groups, significant differences emerged in binge eating and laxative use. Asian women reported significantly more binge eating than White women (p < .01). Individuals self-identified as the "Other" racial group reported greater laxative use than Asian and White women (ps ≤ .01). No other significant differences emerged across all other variables (ps ≥ .13). Across ethnic groups, Hispanic women reported significantly more laxative use (p < .01), and more comorbid insomnia symptoms (p = .03) than non-Hispanic women. No other significant differences were observed (ps ≥ .24). Findings suggest that binge eating, laxative use, and insomnia symptoms differ across racial and ethnic groups in US college women who screened positive for EDs. Findings can inform tailoring of ED screening to reduce current disparities in these underrepresented populations.

Black US college women’s strategies of sexual self-protection

While previous scholarship on the sexual practices of college students in the USA has explored how the co-constitution of whiteness, economic privilege and gender inequality are central to ‘hooking up’, less attention has been paid to how the sexual culture of predominantly white universities shape Black college women’s sexual practices. In this article, we use an intersectional theoretical framework informed by Black feminism to analyse interviews with Black, cisgender, heterosexual women, aged 18–22, attending a university in the south-eastern USA. We explore how they interpret the university’s sexual culture and in turn how that informs their sexual decision-making. We find that the intersection of racism and sexism limits Black college women’s sexual partner options and leads them to pursue sexual relationships outside the university setting. While most do not engage in committed romantic relationships with off-campus partners, they do engage in a range of strategies to protect their social, emotional and sexual well-being. The study findings expand the scholarship on hook-up culture by centring the narratives of a group often excluded from the literature.

Factors associated with reporting of sexual assault among college and non-college women

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine factors impacting college and non-college women reporting sexual assault to police. The goal is to increase knowledge regarding differences in the rates of reporting and reasons for reporting across these two groups.Design/methodology/approachParticipants were drawn from a national telephone survey of US women and a sample of US college women. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to determine factors influencing the reporting of sexual assault to police.FindingsNon-college women were more likely than college women to report to police. Women who perceived their victimization as rape were much more likely to report to the police and women who had contact with a helping agency were also much more likely to report their assault. Contacting a helping agency is more relevant to non-college women’s reporting to police, while considering the assault a rape is more important for college women.Practical implicationsThe results suggest that significant work is needed to encourage women in college to view sexual assaults as worthy of reporting. Boosting victim awareness and access to services is paramount. Providing education and empowerment to student victims to inform their perceptions about the definition of rape is vital, as women perceiving sexual assault as rape are more likely to report the incident.Originality/valueThe research significantly adds to the literature indicating differences in rates of reporting and the factors that impact reporting uniquely for college vs non-college women.

Messages about sexuality: an ecological perspective

The goal of this two-part study was to identify the perceived influence of sexuality messages from parents, peers, school and the media – four microsystems within the Ecological Model – on emerging adult US college women's sexual attitudes. Findings suggest that parents were the most likely source of the message to ‘remain abstinent until marriage’, and participants reported this message as being more influential when coming from school than from the media. The school and the media were the most likely sources of the messages to ‘be safe and use protection’ and to ‘use birth control so you don't get pregnant’. College women reported that the message to ‘use protection’ influenced their sexual behaviour more, however, when it came from their parents than from school, and more when it came from school than from the media. These results have implications for future prevention programming. Specifically, with respect to these messages, and without generalising beyond these data, parents and school appear to be more influential than peers and the media, and thus should be leveraged in development of new sex education and safer sex programmes.

Using a Reasoned Action Approach to examine US college women’s intention to get the HPV vaccine

Objective: Although at high risk of contracting the human papillomavirus (HPV), less than one-half of US college women have been vaccinated. The purpose of this study was to identify underlying factors influencing college women’s intention to get the HPV vaccine via developing an instrument using the Reasoned Action Approach (RAA). Setting: Data were collected from college women at a large, public university in the Midwest USA via paper–pencil surveys. Design: The survey instrument was based on the RAA’s major constructs (attitude towards the act, perceived norms, perceived behavioural control) and was administered to a sample of 279 female college students. Results: Results indicated that attitude towards the act (β = .360, b = .694, standard error [ SE] = .092, t = 7.53) and perceived norms (β = .396, b = .544, SE = .068, t = 8.031) were the major predictors of intention to get vaccinated. Specifically, perceived consequences of getting the vaccine, such as protection against HPV and cervical cancer, were primary determinants influencing intention, and participants indicated that salient referents influenced their intention to get vaccinated. Conclusion: Using theory-based approaches to study a particular health behaviour such as HPV vaccination can aid the design of interventions as they help specify the underlying determinants influencing behaviour. Our findings suggest that such interventions should focus on attitudes and perceived norms, as these constructs were the strongest predictors of intention to get the vaccine. Our findings also add to the current body of literature supporting the relationship between the RAA constructs.

Never Let Them See You Sweat: Silencing and Striving to Appear Perfect among U.S. College Women

Drawing on Goffman’s (1959) impression management, the present study examined how silencing the self (Jack & Dill, 1992) related to psychological distress in US college women. A sample of 149 women aged 18 to 25 enrolled at a large southwestern U.S. university completed a series of survey instruments aimed at gaining knowledge of how several potentially pressure-filled domains of women’s college environment (i.e., Body Image, Romance, Peers, Academics) may factor into a relationship between Silencing and Distress. Path analysis revealed that Silencing was directly, positively related to each source of pressure with the exception of Academic Engagement (where a negative relationship existed). Furthermore, Silencing was directly, positively related to Anxiety and Depression. Additionally, internalization of the thin ideal and competitiveness were predictive of distress among women who Present Perfection, or strive to appear perfect to others. Cluster analyses revealed 4 interpretable clusters of factors related to distress: Middle-of-the-Road, Moderately Appearance Focused, Other-Focused, and Reject Appearance Norms. The Other-Focused women showed the highest levels of distress and lowest academic engagement while those who Reject Appearance Norms showed the lowest distress and highest academic engagement. These relationships indicated that higher levels of attempting to appear perfect to others were related to higher levels of distress among US college women in our sample. This study points to a factor “Presenting Perfection” that may be instrumental in understanding self-silencing behaviors in college women, as well as further understanding the relation between body image, orientation toward others’ judgments, and distress.

An investigation of body image concern and the effects of sociocultural factors among UK first year university students

Evidence suggests that body image concern is becoming a normative discontent among young women and more recently among men with around 80e90% of US college women were being dissatisfied with their body image. Concerns about personal body image can result in deleterious effects onmental and physical well-being such as eating disorders, and reduced self-esteem. Sociocultural factors, family, friends and the media, can play a significant role in the development of body image concern. However, it has been suggested that the impact of those factorsmight be different for adolescent boys and young men. A Recent study of body image perceptions among university students showed that men tended to express more positive body image compared with women. A study of UKuniversity students has shown an association between the media internalization and greater body surveillance,which thencould lead tohigher levels ofbodyshameand lower levels of self-esteem and body satisfaction. In response to the recentUKwhitepaper onpromotingbetter publichealth,

Body Dissatisfaction and Disordered Eating Among Early Adolescents From Korea and the US

Multidimensional measures of body dissatisfaction and disordered eating were studied in samples of 12–15 years old middle school children. Consistent with feminist theories associating body dissatisfaction with rapid social change, Korean girls (n = 272) exhibited the greatest body dissatisfaction and the most behaviors associated with disordered eating and were followed in order by Korean boys (n = 276), US girls (n = 251), and US boys (n = 220). The results, which replicated Jung and Forbes (2006) report of greater body dissatisfaction among Korean than among US college women, suggest that (1) these differences originate prior to adolescence, and (2) the sociocultural variables producing greater body dissatisfaction in Korean girls and women also influence body dissatisfaction among boys.

Risky Situation or Harmless Fun? A Qualitative Examination of College Women’s Bad Hook-up and Rape Scripts

College students appear to be increasingly engaging in casual, non-committed sexual relationships, which may represent potential situations in which sexual assaults occur. The current study sought to assess if college students regard rape as a potential outcome of hooking up through examination of students’ rape and hook-up scripts. A multi-ethnic sample of 109 US college women (54% European American, 19% Latina, 21% African American) described a typical rape and bad hook-up. Hook-up scripts generally did not include the possibility of sexual assault and instead focused on psychological consequences (e.g., shame). Participants’ rape scripts generally did not occur in the context of casual sexual encounters. Implications of the results for understanding students’ sexual behavior and developing rape prevention programs are discussed.

Multidimensional Assessment of Body Dissatisfaction and Disordered Eating in Korean and US College Women: A Comparative Study

Body dissatisfaction was studied in 139 Korean and 102 US college women. Because tumultuous social change has produced marked conflicts between traditional Confucian values and a modern industrial society in which women hold increasing social, political, and economic power, it was hypothesized that Korean college women would have greater body dissatisfaction and more behaviors associated with disordered eating than US college women. As hypothesized, when body size (BMI) was controlled the Korean sample exhibited greater body dissatisfaction than the US sample as measured by the discrepancy between actual and ideal BMI, discrepancies between the participants’ bodies and three ideal bodies on the Figural Rating Scale (Stunkard, Sorenson, & Schulsinger, The genetics of neurological and psychiatric disorders, Raven Press, New York, pp. 115–120, 1983), all three measures from the Body Esteem Scale (Franzoi & Shields, Journal of Personality Assessment, 48:173–178, 1984), and all three measures from the Body-Esteem Scale for Adolescents and Adults (Mendelson, Mendelson, & White, Concordia University Research Bulletin, 16:1–12, 1997). Although the Korean sample had more behaviors characteristic of disordered eating on the Eating Disorders Inventory (Garner, Olmstead, & Polivy, International Journal of Eating Disorders, 2:15–31, 1983) Bulimia Scale, no differences were found between samples on scores on the Drive for Thinness Scale.

Dieting Behavior of Asian College Women Attending a US University

Dieting behavior, body dissatisfaction, self-esteem, and food intake of 73 Asian women attending a US university were investigated and compared retrospectively with attitudes of 247 US-born female students at the same university. The Asian women reported restrained eating and body dissatisfaction only about half as often as the US women did. In both the Asian and US college women, body dissatisfaction scores were significantly correlated to body mass index and self-esteem scores. Fourteen percent of the Asian women in the restrained eating/body dissatisfied group, and 40% of the US students in that group reported intentional vomiting for weight control. Some of the Asian international students practiced undesirable dieting behaviors and reported body dissatisfaction levels similar to those of many US college women. College health professionals should recognize that disordered eating among Asian women must not be overlooked because of stereotypical perceptions about Asian women's body size and type.