Superwoman schema, socioeconomic status, and self-reported disease activity: The Black Women’s Experiences Living with Lupus (BeWELL) study

Superwoman Schema is a multidimensional framework that describes how Black women manage interpersonal and societal roles. This cross-sectional study examined how patterns of Superwoman Schema subscales (obligations to manifest strength, suppress emotions, resist vulnerability, and help others, and intense motivation to succeed) and socioeconomic status (SES; perceived financial strain, income-to-poverty ratio, and education) related to self-reported disease activity among 437 Black women in metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Latent profile analysis identified three typologies: Strained Superwomen (high on Superwoman dimensions with low SES), Low Superwomen (low on Superwoman dimensions with average SES), and Resourced, Striving Superwoman (above average obligation to manifest strength and intense motivation to succeed with high SES). After accounting for covariates, Strained Superwomen had the highest self-reported disease activity. These results suggest that endorsement of Superwoman Schema is common among Black women with SLE and is related to more disease activity in low-resourced contexts.