Study #1: Which Women Remove It?
In an Internet-based survey, Indiana University researchers asked 2,451 women age 18 to 68 how they present their pubes. The results:
Full bush (nothing removed)
18–24: 12%
25–29: 16%
30–39: 19%
40–49: 28%
50+: 52%
Trimmed with scissors
18–24: 29%
25–29: 39%
30–39: 50%
40–49: 50%
50+: 37%
Some removal (shaving, waxing, electrolysis)
18–24: 38%
25–29: 32%
30–39: 23%
40–49: 16%
50+: 9%
Bald (no hair at all)
18–24: 21%
25–29: 12%
30–39: 9%
40–49: 7%
50+: 2%
Pubic hair removal is clearly age-related. The younger the woman, the more likely she is to tinker with her presentation. Among those 18 to 24, only 12 percent remove nothing, while 21 percent remove everything. But among women over 50, more than half have full bushes and only 2 percent go bald.
Relationship status and sexual orientation made little difference.
Razor shaving was by far the most popular removal method, with fewer than 5 percent of women engaging in waxing, electrolysis, or laser. Among those who shaved, most did so two to five times a month.
So, contrary to a great deal of Internet chatter, pubic hairlessness is not the new normal. American women present themselves in many different ways. The only clear trend is that the younger the woman, the more likely she is to trim, partly shave, or totally remove her pubes.
Study #2: Does It Have Anything to Do With Sex?
In a follow-up study, the same researchers used the same data set to explore the links, if any, between pubic presentation and women’s sexuality.
They found that the former had little to do with the latter.
Compared with women who retained full bushes, those who reported any hair removal were somewhat more interested in sex, and somewhat more likely to play in ways other than penis-vagina intercourse, i.e., vaginal fingering, cunnilingus, vaginal toy insertion, and vibrator use. But the differences were small.
There was no connection between pubic presentation and education, race-ethnicity, condom use, lubricant use, or anal play.
Finally, contrary to the assertions of some feminists that men pressure women to shave their pubic hair to make them look like porn stars, in this study, partner feelings had nothing to do with women’s pubic appearance. The women said they’d made their own decision, and that their choice expressed their own personal preferences.
References:
Armstrong, N.R. and J.D. Wilson. “Did the ‘Brazilian’ Kill the Pubic Louse?” Sexually Transmitted Infections (2006) 82:265.
Herbenick, D. et al. “Pubic Hair Removal and Sexual Behavior: Finding from a Prospective Daily Diary Study of Sexually Active Women in the United States,” Journal of Sexual Medicine (2012) 10:678.
Herbenick, D et al. “Pubic Hair Removal Among Women in the United States: Prevalence, Methods, and Characteristics,” Journal of Sexual Medicine (2010) 7:3322.
Schick, V. “Evulvalution: The Portrayal of Women’s External Genetalia and Physique Across Time and the Current Barbie Doll Ideal,” Journal of Sex Research (2010) 47:1.
Tiggerman, m. and S. Hodgson. “The Hairlessness Norm Extended: Reasons for and Predictors of Women’s Body Hair Removal at Different Body Sites,” Sex Roles (2008) 59: 889.
