A woman's hair is often referred to as her “crown and glory”. Hair is an important physical characteristic of one's self-concept and how others perceive one's level of attractiveness. One of the major intra-American prejudices among African Americans is hair texture. This stigma is particularly prevalent among African American women. For African American women, hair carries even greater psychological complexity. Since slavery, African Americans were judged by the texture and pattern of the curls in their hair. For example, Blacks with lighter skin and straight/wavy hair had some advantages over Blacks who possessed more Afrocentric characteristics, such as darker skin and kinky hair (Myrdal, 1962; Neal and Wilson, Poussaint 1989; , 1975; Reuters, 1917). Although a plethora of commentaries have been written about black hair, there are few empirical studies that have examined the reverberating consequences of slavery, as it relates to Western hair indoctrination and its impact on identity racial/self-concept among African American women. of the complexity of hair in black womenThe origins of the controversy surrounding African-American hair date back to slavery. It was a major phenotypic characteristic used to classify the racial identity, intelligence, and attractiveness of African Americans (Guthrie, 1998). European culture was used as the reference group for comparison. Whiteness has become identified with all that is civilized, virtuous, and beautiful, while blackness has been seen as inferior, rebellious, and inadequate. Guthrie (1998) reported that the black man's hair was wool and not hair. Subsequently, this racist ideology was internalized by many African Americans, resulting in Jones and Shorter-G...... middle of paper ...... political and economic progress that African Americans have achieved in society are African American women still psychologically slaves to their hair? The purpose of this study is to examine current perceptions of hair and its importance to racial identity and self-concept among African American female college students. More specifically, this investigation addresses the following research question: Are perceptions of African American hair related to perceived attractiveness, self-concept, racial identity, and overall happiness? The hypothesis is: 1) African American women are more likely to perceive traditional hair texture, such as straight and permed hair, as more attractive than natural/kinky hair; 2) An interactive effect is expected between skin tone and hair texture on the dependent variables of attractiveness, racial identity, self-image and happiness..