Socializing Singlehood: Personal, Interpersonal, and Sociocultural Factors Shaping Black Women’s Single Lives

Popular discourse characterizes single Black women as desperate and dysfunctional, constructions of single status that reinforce broader stereotypes of Black women. Unfortunately, relatively little is known about how Black women define singlehood for themselves. The relative omission of Black women’s self-defined experiences of unmarried life from research is a gap that limits scholarly understandings of singlehood and Black women’s lives. To address this gap, 24 semi-structured interviews were conducted with single, cisgender, heterosexual Black women aged 25–46 years from diverse educational and marital history backgrounds. Thematic analysis yielded nine themes across sociocultural (complex portrayals and liberation), interpersonal (advice, support, and judgment), and personal (purpose, security, freedom, and frustration) life domains. Participants enacted a range of strategies in unmarried life including strategic singlehood, the intentional practice of maintaining single status to foster growth, maintain freedom, or ensure safety. Differences in singlehood were observed by maternal status, age, and marital history. Findings suggest singlehood is socialized through scripting and gendered racial socialization processes. Media featuring single Black women, advice and judgments from family, and shifting gender roles for women contributed to single socialization processes. Study findings suggest new directions for practice, research, and policy. Online slides for instructors who want to use this article for teaching are available on PWQ's website at http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/suppl/10.1177/0361684320939070

Hubungan Usia Menarche, Riwayat Kontrasepsi dan Riwayat Perkawinan dengan Hasil Pemeriksaan Inspeksi Visual Asetat

ABSTRAK Pemeriksaan Inspeksi Visual Asetat (IVA) adalah salah satu metode deteksi dini penyakit kanker serviks yang cukup efektif di Indonesia. Beberapa faktor dapat berpengaruh terhadap kejadian lesi pra kanker. Tujuan Penelitian untuk mengetahui hubungan usia menarche, riwayat kontrasepsi, riwayat perkawinan dengan hasil pemeriksaan inspeksi visual asetat (IVA). Jenis penelitian kuantitatif non eksperimen. Populasi wanita usia subur yang melakukan pemeriksaan IVA di di Kabupaten Pekalongan sebanyak 151 responden. Pengambilan sampel dengan total populasi. Analisa data dengan uji chi square. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan tidak terdapat hubungan antara usia menarche dengan hasil pemeriksaan IVA (p:0.125); tidak terdapat hubungan antara riwayat kontrasepsi dengan hasil pemeriksaan IVA (p:1.000), dan tidak terdapat hubungan antara riwayat perkawinan dengan hasil pemeriksaan IVA (p:0,114). Upaya deteksi dini perlu dilakukan pada wanita usia subur tanpa memperhatikan faktor risiko.Kata Kunci: faktor risiko, inspeksi visual asam asetat (IVA) ABSTRACTInspection of Visual Acetate Inspection (IVA) is one of the effective methods of early detection of cervical cancer in Indonesia. Several factors can influence the incidence of pre-cancerous lesions. The aim of the study was to determine the relationship of age of menarche, contraceptive history, marital history with the results of visual acetate (IVA) inspection. Type of non-experimental quantitative research. The population of women of childbearing age who conducted IVA examinations in Pekalongan District was 151 respondents. Sampling is total population. Data analysis with chi square test. The results showed that there was no relationship between age of menarche and the results of IVA examination (p: 0.125); there was no association between contraceptive history and the results of IVA examination (p: 1,000), and there was no relationship between marital history and IVA examination results (p: 0.114). Early detection efforts need to be carried out on women of childbearing age regardless of risk factors. Keywords: risk factors, Inspection of Visual Acetate Inspection (IVA)