Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

2023

Document Type

Dissertation

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Traci P. Baxley

Abstract

This narrative research study focuses on the lived experiences of Black female doctoral students navigating predominantly White colleges and universities (PWIs) and their connections within cultural safe spaces. Through the lens of Black Feminist Theory and the application of a Black Feminist-Ecological Perspective, this study investigates how Black female doctoral students are defining cultural safe spaces and how these safe spaces support their academic and personal lives. Specifically, this study explored the narratives of nine Black female doctoral students and how they define and locate cultural safe spaces. This study expanded on the limited existing research on Black women in doctoral programs by delving into a more nuanced look into understanding the specific dynamics of Black female cultural safe spaces and the role they play in supporting Black women pursuing doctoral degrees at PWIs. Using the Rodgers 3-R Framework, three major themes unfold from this narrative, beginning with participants’ initial experiences in their doctoral programs (recognition phase), their journey towards finding a cultural safe space after recognizing that there was a deficit in their doctoral experience (reconciliation phase), and their recounts of how they interpreted their experience after becoming a part of a cultural safe space of their own (reflection phase). Implications for future research are discussed.

Extent

203 p.

Comments

Includes bibliography.|Dissertation (PhD)--Florida Atlantic University, 2023.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Includes bibliography.

Identifier

FA00014195

Format

pdf

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