Television's Effects on the Future Aspirations of African American
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View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Drexel Libraries E-Repository and Archives Television’s Effects on the Future Aspirations of African American Middle School Females: A Phenomenological Study A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of Drexel University by EriCa Wellington in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education August 2016 © Copyright 2016 EriCa Wellington. All Rights Reserved This Ed.D. Dissertation Committee from The School of Education at Drexel University certifies that this is the approved version of the following dissertation: Television’s Effects on the Future Aspirations of African American Middle School Females: A Phenomenological Study EriCa Wellington Committee: ____________________________________ Deanna D. Hill, J.D., Ph.D. ____________________________________ Holly W. Carpenter, Ph.D. ____________________________________ José L. Chávez, Ed.D. ____________________________________ Date Dedication To The Little Prince: You are my biggest inspiration. Thank you for your love, patience & joy. Your handmade trinkets and positive words of wisdom continuously encouraged me as I soared through the journey of completing my doctoral degree. To my amazing mother: Thank you for being my first teacher and always believing in me. Your love and guidance has shown me the true meaning of strength and courage. To my ambitious father: Thank you for instilling in me the importance of perseverance. Good, better, best. Never let it rest, until your good is better and your better is best! To my two beautiful sisters: Words cannot express my gratitude for always being a great role model and for always being there for me. Thank you for all of your continuous love and support. To my ancestors: Thank you for the memorable moments and for paving the way for me. I give thanks that you were with me, looking over me and guiding me on this journey. Your sacrifices have not gone unnoticed. iv Acknowledgments I would like to give thanks to God to whom all blessings flow. This work would not have been possible without Your grace and mercy. I know what it’s like not to have what I need. I also know what it’s like to have more than I need. I have learned the secret of being content no matter what happens. I can do all this by the power of Christ. He gives me strength. (Phillipians 4:12-13) To Dr. Holly Carpenter and Dr. Deanna Hill: Thank you for all of your knowledge, exceptional leadership and guidance. I am grateful for your compassion, awareness and patience during my Ed.D. experience. The invaluable time that was spent and the dedication that you showed in assisting me will be forever appreciated. To Dr. José Chávez: Thank you for being a member of my dissertation committee. I appreciate the time you spent providing scholarly feedback. To Dr. Ed Bureau: Thank you for your encouragement and leadership. To Logan Murray-Boehler: Thank you for your advice and guidance. To Cohort IV: Thank you for your genuine support, encouragement and friendship, especially David, Lottie, Phe, Todd and Victor. To my extended family, dear friends, sorority sisters, and fraternity brothers: Thank you for cheering me on to complete my doctoral degree. v Table of Contents LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................... viii LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................... ix 1. INTRODUCTION TO THE RESEARCH ....................................................................1 Introduction to the Problem ..........................................................................................1 Statement of the Problem to Be Researched ..................................................................3 Purpose and Significance of the Problem ......................................................................3 Research Questions Focused on Solution Finding .........................................................4 Conceptual Framework ..................................................................................................4 Definition of Terms ........................................................................................................9 Assumptions and Limitations ......................................................................................10 Summary ......................................................................................................................11 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................................12 Introduction ..................................................................................................................12 Literature Review .........................................................................................................12 Summary ......................................................................................................................34 3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY.................................................................................36 Introduction ..................................................................................................................36 Site and Population ......................................................................................................37 Research Methods ........................................................................................................39 Ethical Considerations .................................................................................................43 vi 4. FINDINGS, RESULTS, AND INTERPRETATIONS ................................................45 Introduction ..................................................................................................................45 Findings .......................................................................................................................49 Results and Interpretations ...........................................................................................82 5. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ......................................................86 Introduction ..................................................................................................................86 Conclusions ..................................................................................................................86 Recommendations ........................................................................................................89 Summary ......................................................................................................................91 LIST OF REFERENCES ...................................................................................................93 APPENDIX A: INVITATION TO PARTICIPATE ..........................................................98 APPENDIX B: PARENTAL CONSENT AND CHILD ASSENT .................................100 APPENDIX C: SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW QUESTIONS ............................104 APPENDIX D: PARTICIPANT JOURNAL ENTRY INSTRUCTIONS ......................106 APPENDIX E: TELEVISION AND MOVIE RATINGS ...............................................107 vii List of Tables 1. Data Collection Timeline .............................................................................................43 2. Comparison on Journal Entries from P10 and P9 ........................................................48 3. Television Shows Reported by Participants ................................................................51 4. Television Shows Watched by Participants, by Format, Genre, and Rating ...............56 5. Age, Race/ethnicity, and Gender of Characters ...........................................................60 6. Themes and Sub-Themes .............................................................................................64 7. Participants’ Aspirational Institutions ..........................................................................65 8. Participants’ Inspirational Career Seen on TV and Favorite TV Character ................70 9. Participants’ Most-Watched Genres ............................................................................80 viii List of Figures 1. Conceptual framework ...................................................................................................8 2. Depiction of Social Learning Theory ..........................................................................33 ix Abstract Television’s Effects on the Future Aspirations of African American Middle School Females: A Phenomenological Study EriCa Wellington, Ed.D. Drexel University, August 2016 Chairperson: Deanna D. Hill, J.D., Ph.D. This phenomenological study examined how African American middle school girls make meaning of the television programs they watch and how their television viewing patterns inform their future aspirations. The following research questions guided the study: (a) What are the perceptions of middle-school African American adolescent girls on television programming images related to their academic learning experience? (b) How are the behaviors of African American adolescent girls shaped by the internalization of television programming images? (c) What are the perceptions of middle-school African American adolescent girls on television programming effects on their identity development and future aspirations? This study was informed by social identity theory and previous