This thesis considers the extent to which factors involved in women's reproductive identity construction constrain their capacity to protect themselves from HIV infection. It proposes that currently available prevention methods are impracticable for women in this setting, because it is only through unprotected sexual intercourse that they achieve "Proper Womanhood". The thesis is divided into three parts. Part I addresses the historical and epistemiological roots of the problem, and the methodological approach taken. Four bodies of literature are reviewed for this purpose. Part II consists of six case studies, which provide the empirical foundations for the analysis presented in Part It is argued that since the colonial era, Kampala women have struggled to establish their rightful place in the city. Doing so, however, has often meant choosing between social respectability and economic independence. This history has influenced the development of the Proper Woman construct, and contributes to its power. New dilemmas brought by the AIDS pandemic both underscore the relevance of Proper Woman values and present new obstacles to attaining them. Although AIDS is recognised as a clear and present danger, remaining HIV negative is not yet seen as a priority overriding all others. For women in this corner of Kampala, despite AIDS and the exigencies of city life, striving for decency and demonstrating respect and respectability, give shape to daily life, and meaning to the future. The thesis concludes with a discussion of how interventions should take account of the existing normative structure, and particularly of existing values and norms that influence sexual and reproductive behaviour in relevant ways.