Date of Award
Summer 2024
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Communication & Theatre Arts
Program/Concentration
Lifespan and Digital Communication
Committee Director
Thomas J. Socha
Committee Member
Myles McNutt
Committee Member
Brendan O’Hallarn
Abstract
The present study investigated the communication Black women ‘firsts’ of Martinsville, Virginia received and how resilience is communicated throughout one’s lives. Seven Black women who once worked or lived in Martinsville, Virginia were interviewed to discover the resilience themes through their professional lives and how resilience was a factor in how these women became ‘firsts’ in their respective fields. The study's findings show that certain personality and communication traits define and equip Black women to succeed and overcome adversities in today’s society. Furthermore, women who exhibited personality qualities such as assertiveness, faith, rebellion, and self-preservation and communication qualities such as assimilation, confronting micro-aggression, countering, pacification, and educating were able to succeed.
Rights
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DOI
10.25777/wyxs-ab32
ISBN
9798384455981
Recommended Citation
Dillard, Dasha L..
"First Through the Black Glass Ceiling: Towards Understanding the Communication of Successful “First” Black Women of Martinsville"
(2024). Master of Arts (MA), Thesis, Communication & Theatre Arts, Old Dominion University, DOI: 10.25777/wyxs-ab32
https://digitalcommons.odu.edu/communication_etds/27
Included in
African American Studies Commons, Communication Commons, Race and Ethnicity Commons, Women's Studies Commons