A Black feminist study of freedom, community care, and self-definition among Black college women attending predominantly White institutions.

Abstract

Many Black women consider learning and educational access an essential part of their personal growth, professional aspirations, and in some cases, their freedom. Examining freedom by centering on Black college women's perspectives may encourage scholars to reimagine what is possible, useful, and necessary in how we approach the purpose and desired outcomes for students in higher education. In the present study, we used Black feminism in qualitative inquiry (Evans-Winters, 2019) and analyzed semistructured interview data from 26 Black women (18-22 years) enrolled at predominantly White institutions in the United States. We identified two broad themes during the coding process: (a) fostering freedom in community with others and (b) finding freedom within themselves. Our findings highlight how Black college women prioritize freeing self-definitions amidst identity-based expectations and pressures at their institution and in broader society. The authors discuss how institutions of higher education can support Black women's freedom, as well as the implications of the women's narratives for frameworks of identity development.

A reconsideration of group differences in social psychology: Towards a critical intersectional approach

“…A significant number of studies and storytelling projects have used critical intersectional approaches to illuminate both risk and neglected intersections, potentially facilitating more targeted interventions and social change. Research in developmental science, for example, examines the evolving nature of ethnic‐racial identity, highlighting important intersections across race, gender, socioeconomic position, and social identity broadly, including both positive and negative implications across educational settings (Ghavami et al., 2016; Jackson et al., 2022; Leath et al., 2023; Leath & Jones, 2022; Lei & Rhodes, 2021; Rogers, 2020). Psychological and health‐focused research has used intersectionality to understand gendered racism (Jones et al., 2021; Lewis et al., 2017; Opara et al., 2023; Spates et al., 2020; Syed & Ajayi, 2018), disability (Bailey & Mobley, 2019), reproductive justice (Ross, 2017), sexual harrassment and sexual violence through a racism lens (e.g., racialized sexual harassment) (Buchanan & Ormerod, 2002), the experiences of stigmatized, low‐income women and heightened risk for certain health outcomes (e.g., HIV, food, and housing insecurity) (Guidroz & Berger, 2009; Versey & Russell, 2022), issues for policy and practice (Fine et al., 2021; Hankivsky & Jordan‐Zachery, 2019; Thornton‐Dill & Zambrana, 2009; Yuval‐Davis, 2009), and studies centering on the lived experiences of (and erasure of) Black women in academia and research (Alexander‐Floyd, 2012; Bailey & Trudy, 2018; Lewis, 2023).…”