The no-bra movement is a trend among women who chose not to wear bras. While this movement could be traced back to the 1960s, it was significantly amplified by social media and the apparition of hashtags such as #freethenipple or #nobrachallenge. In 2020, in France, 53 percent of women who were not wearing bras in public spaces were doing it to feel more comfortable. Moreover, 17 percent of them mentioned the wish to free themselves from aesthetic norms imposed on women's bodies as an important reason not to wear a bra.
For what reasons did you decide not to wear a bra outside of home?
Characteristic
Share of respondents
The discomfort of wearing a bra (pain, irritation, heat...)
53%
The negative impact bras may have on my breasts
24%
The lack of breast support of bras
23%
The wish to free yourself from aesthetic norms imposed on female bodies and breasts
17%
The wish for your breasts to appear "natural"
16%
The wish to fight against the sexualization of women's breasts forcing to hide them
15%
The sentiment that not wearing a bra makes you more desirable
10%
Critics on the topic read on social media or while discussing it with friends/activists
Women that have gone braless in public at least once
Method of interview
Computer-assisted web interviews (CAWI)
Supplementary notes
The question was phrased by the source as follows: "In your choice not to wear a bra under a top (e.g.: T-shirt, blouse, dress...) outside of your home, did the following aspects play a role, decisive or important but non-decisive?"
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IFOP, & Various sources (Xcams). (July 15, 2020). For what reasons did you decide not to wear a bra outside of home? [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved July 22, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1137687/french-women-reasons-to-go-braless/
IFOP, und Various sources (Xcams). "For what reasons did you decide not to wear a bra outside of home?." Chart. July 15, 2020. Statista. Accessed July 22, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1137687/french-women-reasons-to-go-braless/
IFOP, Various sources (Xcams). (2020). For what reasons did you decide not to wear a bra outside of home?. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: July 22, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1137687/french-women-reasons-to-go-braless/
IFOP, and Various sources (Xcams). "For What Reasons Did You Decide Not to Wear a Bra outside of Home?." Statista, Statista Inc., 15 Jul 2020, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1137687/french-women-reasons-to-go-braless/
IFOP & Various sources (Xcams), For what reasons did you decide not to wear a bra outside of home? Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1137687/french-women-reasons-to-go-braless/ (last visited July 22, 2024)
For what reasons did you decide not to wear a bra outside of home? [Graph], IFOP, & Various sources (Xcams), July 15, 2020. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1137687/french-women-reasons-to-go-braless/
