Date
7-4-2023
Department
School of Education
Degree
Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership (EdD)
Chair
Gail Collins
Keywords
grit, perseverance, persistence, motivation, goal obtainment, higher education, attrition, young single mothers
Disciplines
Educational Leadership
Recommended Citation
Kirkpatrick, Christine Marie, "A Phenomenological Study that Examines the Perseverance of Young Single Mothers Who Have Earned a College Degree" (2023). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 4574.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/4574
Abstract
The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study is to understand perseverance in young single mothers who have earned a college degree. The theory guiding this study is Duckworth’s theory of grit since many students who complete undergraduate degrees experience barriers related to the components of grit. Participants for this study were single mothers who have completed a college degree from an institution of higher learning in central Pennsylvania by the age of thirty. Data for the study were collected utilizing one-on-one interviews, personal timelines, and focus group discussions. Data were analyzed using Moustakas’ data analysis processes, including horizonalization, reduction, and elimination to determine the invariant constituents; clustering and thematizing the invariant constituents; identifying themes; constructing textural descriptions of the experiences; and finally construction textural-structural descriptions of the meanings of the experiences.
