Carolette Norwood

Assesses the social cognitive factors, such as knowledge of risk, perceived efficacies, and perceptions of risk and barriers, on condom attitudes and usage of 424 female African American undergraduates at a large urban university.

Discusses perspectives in Africana feminist thought in three regions: Africa, North America, and the Caribbean. Highlights the great commonalities in Africana women’s lived experience under colonialism and slavery that helped shaped and develop this distinct brand of feminism.

Examines body image concerns among African American women. Examines unique issues pertaining to beauty and body image for African American college-age women. Analyzes data pertaining to issues related to hair, skin tone, body type, and message sources. Suggests a reconceptualization of body image for African American women where relevant characteristics such as hair and skin tone are given more priority over traditional body image concerns often associated with European American women.

Assesses socio-behavioral influence on HIV testing among non-marginalized African American women. Discusses how risk perception, perceived barriers, and positive attitudes towards condoms are significantly associated with decreased odds of getting tested.

Builds on the few formal studies of informal banking systems in Sub-Saharan Africa, and evaluates the extent to which participation in these systems is associated with women’s empowerment status. 

Examines the influence of informal banking club participation on family planning practices in rural Ghana. Tests the thesis that family planning practices are improved by club participation in an African context, using rural Ghana as a case study. Suggests that club membership and membership length is not associated with family planning practices; however, age, education level, number of children and empowerment status are.