Date of Conferral
11-18-2025
Date of Award
November 2025
Degree
Ph.D.
School
Psychology
Advisor
Melody Moore
Abstract
The Strong Black Woman (SBW) schema has been explored during the past two decades; however, limited research has been conducted on the phenomenological experiences of Black women who identify with the characteristics of the SBW schema and their impact on Black and African American marriages. The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of married African American women in modern day marriages who endorse the characteristics of the superwoman schema. This qualitative study was an interpretative phenomenological analysis and focused on the lived experiences of this population. Individual interviews of 12 married African American women who identified as SBW were analyzed. This study used two conceptual frameworks: the superwoman schema and the suffocation model. Study findings indicated that the SBW identity is deeply ingrained in all aspects of a SBW marriage. Emerging themes included SBW identity: resilience and burden, marriage expectations and models, partnership and intimate communication, resilience and renewal, and a subtheme of military marriage as an amplifier. Implications for positive social change include developing culturally responsive counseling practices, premarital education, and community-based support programs as pathways to sustaining healthy marriages for African American women who endorse the SBW schema.
Recommended Citation
Jackson, Arielle, "The Experience of Modern Day Marriages for Women Who Identify as Strong Black Women" (2025). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 18785.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/18785
