Date of Award

5-14-2021

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Communication

First Advisor

Dr. Marian Meyers

Second Advisor

Dr. Carrie Freeman

Third Advisor

Dr. Stephanie Evans

Abstract

Black women are one of the most progressive minority groups in the U.S. in terms of business and economics. While they may excel in the area of career, Black women hold the lowest rates of marriage in the country. The goal of this study was to uncover what role, if any, do media stereotypes of Black women play in the marriage gap. Findings suggest that Black men and Black women are, perhaps dismissing one another in terms of romantic relationships because of the images they see on television. 11 self-identified single, heterosexual, Black women were interviewed for the study and my focus was to learn if they perceived that media representations have impacted their belief in their viability to marry. Employing constant-comparative open coding process to analyze the responses of the participants for emerging trends, this analysis will help further understand Black women’s perceptions of the media’s portrayal of them and if they believe these representations impact their marriage rates.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.57709/20951652

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