eas of Melanesia), whereas in others, it is prohibited. Prohibition often simply relegates masturbation to private locations. In China, Taoist manuals describe masturbation as an essential way to circulate sexual energy in the body (Chia & Abrams, 1997).
In some religious traditions, masturbation is discouraged or forbidden. These cultural views toward masturbation have much to do with whether masturbation is perceived to be “normal” in a particular culture. For example, Asian American women have been found to masturbate significantly less than non-Asian women (Meston et al.,
1996) . Although masturbation is becoming more acceptable in African American women, research has found that the majority of black women feel uncomfortable with self-pleasuring (Wyatt, 1998).