Abstract
Mother-daughter relationships play a significant role in how Black women develop their self-concept. Yet, there are few studies exploring young Black women’s identity development in relation to their interpretation of how their mothers conveyed certain beliefs and values about how to navigate society. In the current study, we addressed this gap in the literature by exploring Black adult daughter’s perspectives on their mother’s gendered racial socialization of strength and resilience as a culturally specific coping mechanism. We analyzed semi-structured interview data from 36 Black women (17–24 years, M = 20) in college, and used deductive coding methods to elaborate on Woods-Giscombé (2010) Superwoman Schema (SWS) framework as thematic categories (i.e., obligation to present an image of strength, suppress emotions, help others, resist vulnerability, and intense motivation to succeed). Our results advance strength as a culturally significant component of gendered racial socialization in Black mother-daughter relationships, and we demonstrate how young Black women, as their mothers’ daughters, render their own definitions of strength and resilience. We also offer insight on the role of the SWS in Black mothers’ health, particularly in relation to how mothers may self-silence and overwork themselves to provide for their children. Understanding the functionality of strength may (1) assist parents in encouraging self-reliance in ways that support Black girls’ overall wellbeing; (2) promote future research studies that consider the multidimensionality of strength as a cultural asset and liability; and (3) improve the efficacy of therapeutic approaches for Black women.
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Given the sensitive nature of the qualitative data, the interviews are not publicly available. The interview protocol is available upon request from the corresponding author.
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06 October 2023
A Correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-023-01427-0
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This study was funded through a small grant provided through the Center for the Education of Women at the University of Michigan.
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The corresponding author contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Dr. Seanna Leath, Khrystal Johnson, and Jordan Taliaferro. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Drs. Seanna Leath, Janelle Billingsley, and Martinque Jones, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Leath, S., Billingsley, J., Jones, M. et al. Raising Resilient Black Women: A Study of Superwoman Mothering and Strength as a Form of Gendered Racial Socialization in Black Mother-Daughter Relationships. Sex Roles 89, 625–642 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-023-01417-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-023-01417-2