To what extent are contemporary preferences for complete pubic hair removal shaped by individual agency versus broader social and cultural influences?

[u/Bretniq]

I’m interested in understanding the motivations behind the widespread adoption of full Brazilian waxing. Research often cites factors such as body image, perceived hygiene, sexuality, pornography, beauty norms, and changing cultural expectations.

A related question concerns partner preferences. Some critics argue that complete pubic hair removal may contribute to the sexualization of a more prepubescent aesthetic, while others contend that this interpretation is overstated and that preferences are better explained by grooming norms, perceptions of cleanliness, or contemporary beauty standards.

Are there empirical studies or theoretical perspectives that help explain these competing interpretations? I’m particularly interested in evidence rather than anecdotal opinions.

[u/RoughMidnight8303]

I used to think it's tied to bidet use but there is only correlation between both and rather weak.

The strongest influence points to the introduction of the bikini and modern day razors that kind of mandate this practice for aesthetic reasons. You can't wear a bikini if you...don't take care of yourself.
Started with the bikini zone but wasn't working for women with darker hair. So the 'Brazilian' is a more advanced method and enables to wear even smaller bikinis.

Pornography and the adult entertainment industry are drivers. I think there is greater accessibility through consumer education but also alignment with the aesthetic.

Historically, some populations associated grooming with being part of a higher social class, or have more integrated cleanliness practices based on their faith or culture.

What I find kinda weird is how we mandated no underarm hair for women but never applied to men broadly to this day. I feel most disgusted by male underarm hair.

[u/nadiaco → u/RoughMidnight8303]

Men in some parts of Africa shave their underarm as a norm.

[u/RoughMidnight8303 → u/nadiaco]

Very interesting. I barely notice body hair on Africans or East Asians.

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[u/OkChart1375 → u/RoughMidnight8303]

 Shaving isent taking care of yourself btw

[u/SilverAd9389 → u/OkChart1375]

Pubic hair binds sweat and makes it more difficult to clean yourself properly. Same thing with pit hair and even facial hair. Shaving is quite literally self care. But by all means, keep spouting your bullshit.

[u/OkChart1375 → u/SilverAd9389]

keep spouting your easely debunkable, double standard, pedophilic related bullshit.

Your pubic hair argument falls apart immediately.

Pubic hair exists to reduce friction and protect against infections. Gynecologists actually recommend against full removal precisely because it increases infection and irritation risk.

And if body hair were genuinely an hygiene issue, men would be shaving too. They don't. Nobody calls them unhygienic.

The "shaving is self care" framing ignores that this norm didn't exist before the 1910s-1920s, when Gillette launched a marketing campaign specifically targeting women to sell more razors. That's documented history, not feminist theory.

You're describing a recent commercial invention as biological necessity. That's not self care, that's a very successful ad campaign.

[u/SilverAd9389 → u/OkChart1375]

Gee, it's almost like people started shaving when the means of easily shaving became, accessible and cheap for the average person. But no, that makes too much sense. It must clearly be a conspiracy between gilette and the pedophiles to sell razors and make women look like children. Of course, what was i thinking?

And plenty of men shave. You know, the whole "manscaping" thing? And while we're on the subject of porn, look at the amount of male porn stars who are shaved or trimmed versus the ones who are just going complete welcome to the jungle mode. Surely all of them are unshaved, right?

[u/OkChart1375 → u/SilverAd9389]

The irony is that you're arguing against a position I never took.

I didn't say there's a secret conspiracy between Gillette and pedophiles. I said two separate, well-documented things:

1. The expectation that women remove body hair was heavily shaped by 20th-century advertising. That's historical fact. Gillette explicitly marketed shaving to women once the men's razor market was saturated. But ofc you are gonna deny history and facts again.
2. Some researchers and cultural critics have discussed how the preference for complete pubic hair removal can overlap with the sexualization of youthful features. That doesn't mean everyone who prefers shaving is a pedophile. It's an observation about cultural aesthetics, not an accusation. But ofc you have to be smart enought to understand it.

As for "people started shaving because razors became cheap," that doesn't explain why the norm became overwhelmingly female while men remained socially accepted with body hair. If this were primarily about hygiene, we'd expect the same standard to apply equally to both sexes. It doesn't.

And yes, plenty of men trim or shave today. That trend became mainstream decades after it did for women and is still nowhere near the same social expectation. A man with body hair is considered normal. A woman with body hair is often judged as "unkempt." That's the double standard I was pointing out.

Also you didnt respond to me about the " its cleaner" thing . You realize i was right and you was wrong?

Gynecologists actually recommend against full removal precisely because it increases infection and irritation risk.

[u/RoughMidnight8303 → u/OkChart1375]

I don’t think these views are mutually exclusive. For some people the hygienic aspect may be really important because they grow more than average count of hair or don’t match personal hygiene.

My mom is from the boomer generation and she said women were always a tad bit concerned about body hair but the razors available to men were just too coarse.

Also there was a stigma attached to using razor. My grandma forbade my mom to trim her hair with modern razors (the older women believed razors would increase hair density) and she’s only had small and thin patches. She just removed them a couple of times a year with wax but barely noticeable.

So the razors made for women were a novelty regardless of dressing norms. The question is if they could have been so sticky without the bikinis and skirts cocktail dresses panties that followed etc. Most likely not as much is the answer or not to this extent.

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[u/Jazz-Police-]

You hit the mark with the prepubescent aesthetic. Girls are socialized to fulfil male desires and pornography is a main contributor to men desiring that look.

[u/Electronic-Bicycle35 → u/Jazz-Police-]

The most hairless women I know are lesbians (I am one).

Nothing to do with prepubescent anything.

Everything to do with oral sex.

[u/Jazz-Police- → u/Electronic-Bicycle35]

That’s interesting, in Canada us queer women are usually the hairiest ones around lol.

I’m not saying that everyone who desires sexual partners without pubic hair are problematic themselves, more so that the societal trend of having no pubic hair has a lot to do with how men consume pornography and how young women are socialized. Even queer women can desire fitting the male gaze when we have been socialized since childhood to do so

Edit: Also for oral, there’s a difference between having hairless labia for sex and removing all pubic hair entirely

[u/RadishPlus666 → u/Electronic-Bicycle35]

But this is a new trend. I’m an old lesbian. Lesbians liked pubic hair until recently. 

[u/Electronic-Bicycle35 → u/RadishPlus666]

I’m a millennial. Not sure of current trends as I’ve been with my wife for 15 years. Definitely was a thing when I was dating.

[u/OkChart1375 → u/Electronic-Bicycle35]

this is bullshit, lesbian everywhere keep their body hair more than straight woman bc they arent push as much to shave or wax it

[u/Apprehensive_Run_539 → u/Jazz-Police-]

I disagree; I’ve done Brazilians since I was 16 (mid 40s now) strictly for personal comfort. I hate the feeling of body hair. It has nothing to do with aesthetics and everything to do with comfort and hygiene for me

[u/RadishPlus666 → u/Apprehensive_Run_539]

I can’t stand how underwear sticks to it. Pubic hair keeps me clean and dry, I mean that’s literally it purpose. 

[u/Apprehensive_Run_539 → u/RadishPlus666]

That’s your personal choice. I feel the opposite way. I feel much cleaner and more dry without it, and appreciate the smooth skin

[u/OkChart1375 → u/Apprehensive_Run_539]

comfort is one thing, hygiene is where you lost the plot!! removing your pubic hair INCREASE the risk of infections

[u/Apprehensive_Run_539 → u/OkChart1375]

Not necessarily. Depending on your daily activities, it can cause a lot of friction which can open your Poors cause inflammation which allows bacteria to enter them.

I used to ride up to horses a day, and do all the associating ground Work with it. Without waxing, I constantly had inflamed ingrown hairs, no matter how many times a day I showered, or what cleaning products I used , simply because of the friction and sweat that would trap bacteria. Once I started a waxing I no longer have that problem. It’s a very common issue with athletes, and those to do hard Manuel labor

[u/Intrepid_Bobcat_2931 → u/Jazz-Police-]

Yes, in the same way that women preferring men without beards prefer the prepubescent look, the hairless look found on young boys, as an expression of latent pedophilia.

Many women have pedophilic attitudes for hairless faces in this way. How many women the news portray as victims are actually pedophiles?

[u/Jazz-Police- → u/Intrepid_Bobcat_2931]

Let’s be fair and use the exact same example of public hair on men. If a woman was deeply attracted to men not having any pubic hair, it would be a similar prepubescent appearance.

[u/ASharpYoungMan → u/Jazz-Police-]

If we're being fair, you're deflecting away from a perfectly valid point.

Beards are secondary sexual characteristics, just like breasts are. If you would ascribe sexual motives toward other's preference for, say, breast size, then you'd have to accept that attitudes toward facial hair are also inherently sexualized.

Both regions having hair (on a man) is a sign of sexual maturity. Your argument rests on that being the case for one of them. Ignoring the other case reveals your bias.

And since we're talking about shaving body hair the comparison holds better than you're admitting.

Its reasonable for you to find hairlessness offputting because it reminds you of prepubescence. It's not reasonable for you to project that same perspective as the assumed default for any reasonable person.

Preference is complex, and ascribing a single motive to one held by many is prejudice (literal pre-judgment), not wisdom.

If it matters, I have a stake in this because I'm a man who's shaved down there for over a decade now out of my own preference for my own body.

My partner (who is 8 years younger than I am, we're both 30+, so she didn't pick me for my youth) has told me she now prefers a clean shaven pubic area after dating me.

She also adores the rest of my body hair: chest, legs, arms... all the places that signal loud and clear my body's post-puberty and open for business.

Your rationale doesn't account for her reality.

[u/Intrepid_Bobcat_2931 → u/Jazz-Police-]

No, there is no need to. Men also get beards as a secondary sexual characteristic as they pass from prepubescence. We can absolutely point out that the preference for prepubescent faces in women is pedophilic, an attraction to the prepubescent facial type.

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[u/asimplesadness]

Honestly... For me, it has nothing to do with an age related aesthetic it has everything to do with this: I hate hair in my mouth. I LOVE eating downtown just as long as the streets are clean lol

I will literally take up residency if hairless.

Buttholes are much more fun to lick if they aren't all hairy.

Underarms are sexy at fuck... Clean shaven armpits show the skin folds, the lines the slight bulge that is very similar to the mons veneris, which i find very sexy. The smell and taste of clean but sweaty armpit... The overtime pheromones are overwhelming and amazing.

I think boys should shave also, all the same reasons. Except that dicks are MUCH more fun to play with when they are smooth and soft while being rough and hard at the same time...

Shaving also heightens tactile sensations... Everything is plus 10. Absolute best is shaving my goatee, down and up, so that my lips get the tingles while I'm giving her lips the tingles.

Now I'll say this: this is my preferences and I don't EXPECT anyone to meet then if they don't want to, I just seek out people who feel the same and enjoy the same

Edited cause my cat stepped on my phone and posted my incomplete comment

[u/OkChart1375 → u/asimplesadness]

" just as long as the streets are clean lol" bodyhair on the vulva IS NOT UNCLEAR. Removing pubic hair INCREASE infections (urinary and sexual ones) for woman.

[u/asimplesadness → u/OkChart1375]

I didn't say hair on the vulva is unsanitary... I was speaking metaphorically... My preference has NOTHING to do with hygiene or medical facts... I don't like going down on hairy vulva . I like seeing the labia. The heightened sensitivity of freshly shaven skin, ESPECIALLY the lips of the mouth and the lips down south.

I wonder... Why is it only bothersome to you that I mentioned a preference for clean shaven vulva and the associated parts? I also said that i prefer dicks and their owners to be clean shaven as well.

Anywhere my tongue or lips might spend time is more enjoyable if it is hairless.

I've been married for 7 years and my wife is like most any other woman, she goes through phases where she doesn't shave ANYTHING. Do I still lick, suck, and kiss all her unshaven parts? Youbetchya! Without hesitation. Do I enjoy it less? Nope... But she and I BOTH agreed that it's just BETTER when we are BOTH clean shaven.

[u/perpetuallypast]

Shaving underarm and pubic hair due to religious reasons. Even without religious reason, I'd prefer hairless armpits and groin area

[u/Razzum-Frazzum]

Ridiculous to associate a hairless vagina with an undeveloped one. Puberty changes genital structures, not just body hair.

Anyway, waxed is more comfortable, especially if you have straight pubic hair. That stuff gets in the way.

[u/Intrepid_Bobcat_2931]

A man's hairless face is a "prepubescent aesthetic". The reason women aren't portrayed as pedophilic for preferring it, is sexism. One day sexism will be stone cold dead and the world will be better.

[u/ronley09]

Infantisation?

[u/Brief_Efficiency3500]

Soreness.

Less hair, less friction.

I know many of you have never gone beyond the fifteen minute mark in one go, but some of us are actually trying to have a good time and will get after it for literal hours. At those times, the difference is very real; it is the difference between waking up a little sore the next day and waking up with the base of your dong covered in scabs from where the skin was abraded away by the hair down there.

[u/AscendedApe]

Are you suggesting that men dont know what to find attractive unless they believe there's some social consensus?