Returning the Cape: Deepening Our Understanding of the Relationship Between Superwoman Schema and Mental Health Among Young Black Women Attending An HBCU

Abstract

This dissertation examines the impact of Superwoman Schema (SWS) on the mental health of young Black women attending an Historically Black College (HBCU). Grounded by the Biopsychosocial Model of Gendered Racism, Black Feminist Thought, and Critical Race Theory, this research emphasizes the importance of SWS as a framework for understanding how young Black women navigate gendered racism. This work sheds light on the complexities of Black women’s identities and the overlapping systems of oppression that perpetuate inequities, to examine the mental health implications of SWS. This work also seeks to contribute to Black women's healing and liberation. By examining how young Black sexual minority women have resisted SWS, this work celebrates their agency in cultivating freedom and liberation despite enduring oppression. In the first study, multiple linear regressions and mediation analyses examined whether SWS (total and its five dimensions) or John Henryism (JH) mediate the relationship between gendered racial microaggressions (GRM) and depressive symptoms among young Black women at an HBCU. Findings revealed that total SWS and two dimensions (obligation to suppress emotions and obligation to help others) were significant in partially mediating the relationship between GRM while JH did not. The findings suggest that internalizing the SWS role overall and especially suppressing emotions and prioritizing others’ needs above self-care may lead to an increase in depressive symptoms. Findings suggest that SWS maps better onto Black women’s lived experiences navigating gendered racism than JH. Additionally, findings provide insight into which aspects of SWS may be most important to leverage when crafting mental health interventions for young Black women at HBCUs. In the second study, hierarchical regressions and moderation analyses explored whether sexual orientation moderates associations between SWS dimensions and depressive symptoms among young Black women attending an HBCU. Findings demonstrate significant positive associations between depressive symptoms and total SWS along with four SWS characteristics: obligation to suppress emotions, resistance to being vulnerable, obligation to help others, and obligation to present an image of strength. Additionally, although no significant interaction effects were found, sexual minority women reported greater depressive symptoms and greater endorsement of resistance to being vulnerable than their heterosexual counterparts. Findings demonstrate the impact of SWS on mental health and the heightened vulnerability for young Black sexual minority women. Results suggest there is a need for intersectional approaches to mental health interventions at HBCUs and that in interventions addressing SWS among young Black sexual minority women, it may be helpful to highlight resistance to being vulnerable. In the third study, I use reflexive thematic analysis to examine how young Black sexual minority women conceptualize and navigate the SWS within the context of an HBCU, while also highlighting narratives that challenge SWS. Seven themes were developed: the burden of excellence, navigating vulnerability, the weight of nurturing, naming White supremacy, rest as resistance, resisting respectability, and liberatory counterspaces. The first three themes explain how participants’ sexual orientation and the HBCU environment shape their experiences and approaches to navigating SWS. The latter four themes highlight how young Black sexual minority women actively resist White supremacy and challenge the demands of SWS. Findings demonstrate a need for HBCUs to shift toward inclusivity and for the campus climate to shift as not to reinforce SWS. Additionally, findings share strategies of liberation and resistance employed by young Black sexual minority women attending an HBCU.