The present study Investigated the role of the breast
and the uterus in the feminine self-concept of black
and white South African women.
It was hypothesised that the loss of the breast would
be more traumatic for the white woman than for the
black woman. This rested on the belief that the role
of the female breast as an erotic stimulus for the
male and an assurance of femininity for the female
appears to be more pronounced in Western society than
in African societies. In addition, it was suggested
that the loss of the uterus would be more traumatic
for the black woman than for the white woman as the
meaning of the uterus appears to go beyond that of a
childbearing organ, in so far as it is linked wo the
issue of sexual desirability*
Two groups of black women undergoing mastectomy and
hysterectomy and two groups of white women undergoing
similar operations were assessed pre- and postoperatively.
Women completed the Berscheid, Walster and Bohrnstedt
Body Image Scale (1972) which elicited data on body
image, self-concept and satisfaction with intimate
relationships. The observed data were analysed using
analyses of convariance.
No significant differences between the black and white
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:wits/oai:wiredspace.wits.ac.za:10539/18040 |
| Date | 02 July 2015 |
| Creators | Kuny, Hillary |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf |
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