Date of Conferral

7-30-2026

Date of Award

July 2026

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Counselor Education and Supervision

Advisor

Alexandra Lawless

Abstract

The problem addressed in this study was that the dual pandemics of COVID-19 and structural racism in 2020 created compounded personal and professional stressors for African American mothers who are professional counselors, yet little was known about how they appraised these stressors and selected coping strategies. The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to describe what it means to be an African American mother and professional counselor making decisions about coping strategies to manage personal and professional stressors during the dual pandemics of COVID-19 and structural racism in 2020. Guided by Heideggerian hermeneutic phenomenology and informed by the Transactional Theory of Stress and Coping, this study explored participants' lived experiences, appraisal processes, and coping responses. Data were collected through semi-structured, audio-recorded interviews with 10 independently licensed African American mothers who were professional counselors and analyzed using iterative thematic analysis guided by the hermeneutic circle. Five themes emerged: being threatened by uncertainty, being without boundaries, being bound by expectations and constant obligations, being called to care, and being renewed by faith and reframing. Findings indicated that participants engaged in ongoing primary appraisal, secondary appraisal, and meaning-focused coping as they navigated intersecting responsibilities associated with motherhood, professional counseling, the COVID-19 pandemic, and structural racism. Implications for positive social change include improving culturally responsive counselor education, supervision, and workplace support.

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