Date of Conferral

8-21-2024

Date of Award

August 2024

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Human Services

Advisor

Dr. Barbara Benoliel

Abstract

The rate of obesity continues to rise among adults in the United States, and African American (AA) women are at greater risk in comparison with any other group. This matter has become an alarming public health crisis. Obese AA women also face a higher risk of discrimination in the workforce. The purpose of this qualitative, multiple case study was to increase the understanding of the perceptions and experiences of bachelor degree educated, overweight AA women during the postgraduate phase, who entered the workforce within the past 10 years. The theoretical framework used in this study was Crenshaw’s intersectionality theory. The research question queried the social experiences and perceptions of this group. Six AA women participated in individual, online interviews to provide data for cross-case analysis. Five themes were extracted from the analysis: their strong sense of self-advocacy, self-awareness, self-identity, their efforts in career navigation, and the significance of having a positive support system. These findings contributed to the social determinants of health and positive social change by adding new information related to the perseverance and resilience among overweight AA women, and the inequities that they continue to encounter in society.

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Public Health Commons

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