Date
4-26-2024
Department
School of Behavioral Sciences
Degree
Doctor of Education in Community Care and Counseling (EdD)
Chair
Yulanda Tyre
Keywords
Non-traditional, Black, female, doctoral, generativity, transition, Schlossberg, Erikson, completer
Disciplines
Adult and Continuing Education | Education
Recommended Citation
Robinson, Aree E., "Understanding Persistence Factors for Non-Traditional Black Female Doctoral Graduates: A Qualitative Approach" (2024). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 5448.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/5448
Abstract
The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to explore the experiences of non-traditional Black female graduates of doctoral programs in central Tennessee. For the purposes of this research, non-traditional Black female graduates was generally defined as Black females who pursued and completed a doctoral degree at forty-plus years of age and identified with any of the following statuses: 1) parenting dependent children, 2) primary caretaker for elderly parent(s), and/or 3) full-time employee. The Central Research Question was: What are the experiences of non-traditional Black female graduates of doctoral programs in Tennessee? Schlossberg’s transition theory and Erickson’s psychosocial development theory informed the research regarding the transitional experiences that occur during adulthood, the techniques employed by adults to cope and adjust to the transition, and the influence of social and cultural engagement for overcoming barriers. Interviews were used for data collection. Ten graduates were purposefully selected to participate. The data were analyzed using the process of organizing themes, bracketing, and coding using ATLAS.ti software.
