The Adultification Of African American Girls: Perceptions, Experiences, And Impact On Behavior

Author

Sherie Sara Sam, Prairie View A&M University

Date of Award

5-2024

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Degree Discipline

Juvenile Justice

Abstract

Adultification occurs when adults treat children like they are more mature than they are. This is particularly likely to happen to African American children (Pope, 2022). Adultification in homes is the result of deficits in the adult figures; however, adultification outside of the family, cemented with implicit biases, has negative consequences for young African American children (Cooke & Halberstadt, 2021). These biases can negatively impact their self-concept. Furthermore, it may jeopardize their health, education, experiences with discipline, and likelihood of contact with the justice system (Koch & Kozhumam, 2022).

This qualitative descriptive study utilized focus groups of primarily young adults between 18 and 26 to understand their perceptions, experiences, attitudes, values, and opinions regarding young African American girls and their possible adultification. The data were collected from 13 focus groups. There were five groups of young African American girls, three groups of young African American boys, two groups of Non-African American girls, two groups of Non-African American boys, and one group of older African American women.

Data were analyzed with manual coding and with the aid of Atlas-ti qualitative data management program to identify emic codes, patterns, and themes in the responses. The preliminary code list, called etic codes, included concepts such as victimization, coping behaviors, use of physical violence in self-defense, and the likelihood of adultifying others. The findings indicated that adultification was a source of underlying trauma, which in turn triggered a resistance response as a form of resilience specific to African American girls. Several themes were identified: Familial Expectations, Differential Treatment, Independence, Proximity and Contrast to White Femininity, Perceived as “Loud” and “Rowdy,” Dichotomous Image – Mature Early yet Seen as Slow, A Need for Defensiveness, Coping and Resilience, and Intersection of Gender and Race. The results offer insights for re-educating parents, school, and justice system personnel toward improved trajectories and life outcomes for African American girls. The study adds to the literature on how to dismantle common misperceptions of African American girls because adultifying them has the potential of putting them into the “school-to-prison pipeline.”

Keywords: African American girls, experiences, expectations, schools, white femininity, qualitative

Committee Chair/Advisor

Camille Gibson

Committee Member

Myrna Cintron

Committee Member

Nabil Ouassini

Committee Member

Tamika Baldwin-Clark

Publisher

Prairie View A&M University

Rights

Date of Digitization

6/11/2024

Contributing Institution

John B Coleman Library

City of Publication

Prairie View

MIME Type

Application/PDF

Recommended Citation

Sam, S. S. (2024). The Adultification Of African American Girls: Perceptions, Experiences, And Impact On Behavior. Retrieved from https://digitalcommons.pvamu.edu/pvamu-dissertations/38