The Relationship Between the Strong Black Woman Archetype and Attitudes Towards Seeking

126 Pages·2017·1.75 MB·English

Seton Hall University
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Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses
Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses
(ETDs)
Spring 6-20-2018
The Relationship Between the Strong Black
Woman Archetype and Attitudes Towards Seeking
Professional Psychological Help in Intimate Partner
Violence Relationships Among African American
Women
Monica S. Young
[email protected]
Follow this and additional works at:https://scholarship.shu.edu/dissertations
Part of theCounseling Psychology Commons
Recommended Citation
Young, Monica S., "The Relationship Between the Strong Black Woman Archetype and Attitudes Towards Seeking Professional
Psychological Help in Intimate Partner Violence Relationships Among African American Women" (2018).Seton Hall University
Dissertations and Theses (ETDs). 2557.
https://scholarship.shu.edu/dissertations/2557
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE STRONG BLACK WOMAN ARCHETYPE AND
ATTITUDES TOWARDS SEEKING PROFESSIONAL PSYCHOLOGICAL HELP IN
INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE RELATIONSHIPS AMONG AFRICAN AMERICAN
WOMEN

BY

Monica S. Young, M. S.

Dissertation Committee
Pamela Foley, Ph.D., ABPP, Chair
Christiana Awosan, Ph.D., Committee Member
Corinne Datchi, Ph.D., ABPP, Committee Member
John Smith, EdD., Committee Member

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree
Doctor of Philosophy
Department of Education and Human Services
Seton Hall University
2018
© 2018 Monica S. Young

Abstract
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a serious issue that can affect not only women’s lives, but
also their health (Wong & Mellor, 2014). Research has shown that the psychological effects of IPV
can significantly influence women’s attitudes towards help-seeking, but, for Black women, the
effects of racial discrimination can further complicate this. Research has also highlighted the
underutilization of professional mental health services as an area of great concern in the African
American communities. It is believed that some of the reluctance on the part of African American
women to seek services for themselves is deeply rooted in the historical and culturally-based beliefs
of the Strong Black Woman (SBW). Although researchers have provided preliminary descriptive
information and some empirical research has been published exploring women’s beliefs about The
Strong Black Woman Archetype (SBWA), there is little to no research addressing African American
women’s attitudes towards seeking professional mental health services for IPV, and the relationship
of the SBWA to these attitudes. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between
the SBWA and attitudes towards seeking psychological professional help among African American
women in an IPV relationship. Addressing the psychological effects of the SBWA on Black women
is important, as understanding of this phenomenon can add to the formulation of interventions and
policies that address the multiple barriers and low utilization rates that affect this population.
The participants included African American women who self-identified as having been in an
IPV relationship at some point in their lives and not currently being in the abusive relationship. All of
the participants were residing in domestic violence shelters or using domestic violence resource
centers. A hierarchical multiple regression was used to evaluate the relationship between the SBWA
and attitudes towards seeking professional psychological help among African American women in an
IPV relationship, after controlling for post-traumatic stress symptoms, IPV severity, and length of
abuse. Findings indicated that higher levels of endorsement of the SBWA were associated with more
negative attitudes towards seeking professional psychological help. The findings from this study
II
suggest that professionals working with Black women in IPV relationships should be aware that the
SBWA is a factor that may affect these women’s willingness to seek help.

III
Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ______________________________________________________ 1
BACKGROUND OF THE PROBLEM _______________________________________________________ 1
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM _________________________________________________________ 4
RATIONALE ________________________________________________________________________ 8
RESEARCH QUESTIONS ______________________________________________________________ 12
DEFINITION OF TERMS ______________________________________________________________ 13
CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE _______________________________________ 17
INTRODUCTION ____________________________________________________________________ 17
INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS ___________________________ 17
PREVALENCE OF POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER ___________________________________ 18
PTSD IN AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN _________________________________________________ 20
HELP-SEEKING BEHAVIOR IN IPV _____________________________________________________ 23
COMMON HELP-SEEKING BARRIERS FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN _____________________ 27
AFRICAN AMERICAN INFORMAL HELP-SEEKING _________________________________________ 38
AFRICAN AMERICAN FORMAL HELP-SEEKING ___________________________________________ 39
STRONG BLACK WOMAN ARCHETYPE _________________________________________________ 41
INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE AND THE STRONG BLACK WOMAN ARCHETYPE _______________ 46
CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY ___________________________________________________ 49
STUDY DESIGN _____________________________________________________________________ 49
POPULATION AND PARTICIPANT SELECTION ____________________________________________ 49
DATA COLLECTION AND PROCEDURE __________________________________________________ 50
INSTRUMENTS _____________________________________________________________________ 51
DEMOGRAPHIC QUESTIONNAIRE ______________________________________________________ 52
THE STRONG BLACK WOMAN ARCHETYPE SCALE _______________________________________ 52
THE IMPACT OF EVENT SCALE- REVISED _______________________________________________ 53
THE SEVERITY OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN SCALE ___________________________________ 54
THE ATTITUDES TOWARD SEEKING PROFESSIONAL PSYCHOLOGICAL HELP __________________ 55
ANALYSIS _________________________________________________________________________ 56
CHAPTER IV: RESULTS ___________________________________________________________ 58
DATA CLEANING AND SCREENING _____________________________________________________ 58
DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS ____________________________________________________________ 58
TABLE 1 __________________________________________________________________________ 59
PRIMARY STUDY VARIABLES _________________________________________________________ 59
TABLE 2 __________________________________________________________________________ 60
TABLE 3 __________________________________________________________________________ 61
HIERARCHICAL REGRESSION ANALYSES _______________________________________________ 61
TABLE 4 __________________________________________________________________________ 62
TABLE 5 __________________________________________________________________________ 63
IV
Table
6________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________65
SUMMARY _________________________________________________________________________ 65
CHAPTER V: DISCUSSION ________________________________________________________ 67
INTERPRETATION OF FINDINGS _______________________________________________________ 67
LIMITATIONS ______________________________________________________________________ 71
CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS ____________________________________________________________ 72
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH ___________________________________________ 75
CONCLUSION ______________________________________________________________________ 77
REFERENCES ____________________________________________________________________ 78
APPENDIX A: LETTER TO SHELTER _______________________________________________ 98
APPENDIX B: LETTER OF SOLICITATION _________________________________________ 99
APPENDIX C: SHELTER FLYER __________________________________________________ 101
APPENDIX C: SHELTER FLYER __________________________________________________ 102
APPENDIX D: DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION ____________________________________ 103
APPENDIX E: STRONG BLACK WOMAN ARCHETYPE SCALE ______________________ 105
APPENDIX F: IMPACT OF EVENT SCALE-REVISED ________________________________ 109
APPENDIX G: SEVERITY OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN SCALE (SVAWS) ________ 110
APPENDIX H: ATTITUDES TOWARD SEEKING PROFESSIONAL PSYCHOLOGICAL HELP
SHORT SCALE __________________________________________________________________ 112
APPENDIX I: PERMISSION TO USE THE ATTITUDES TOWARD SEEKING
PROFESSIONAL PSYCHOLOGICAL HELP SHORT SCALE __________________________ 114
APPENDIX J: PERMISSION TO USE THE STRONG BLACK WOMAN ARCHETYPE SCALE
________________________________________________________________________________ 115
APPENDIX K: PERMISSION TO USE THE IMPACT OF EVENT SCALE-REVISED ______ 116
APPENDIX L: IRB APPROVAL LETTER____________________________________________ 117

V
LIST OF TABLES
Table
1. Demographic Characteristics of the Sample ............................................................................ 62
2. Descriptive Statistics for Primary Variables ............................................................................ 60
3. Correlation Matrix of the Study Variables ............................................................................... 61
4. Summary of Hierarachical Multiple Regression Analyses Prediciting Attitudes Toward
Seeking Professional Psychological Help .................................................................................... 62
5. Summary of Hierachahial Multiple Regression Analyses Prediciting Length of Abuse .......... 63
6. Sumarry of Hierarachaical Logistic Regression Analyses prediciting Likelihood of Seeking
Help ............................................................................................................................................... 65

VI
Chapter 1: Introduction
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a serious issue that can affect not only women’s lives,
but also their health (Wong & Mellor, 2014). Research has shown that the psychological effects
of IPV can significantly influence women’s attitudes towards seeking professional psychological
help, but for Black women, the effects of racial discrimination can further complicate this. The
purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the Strong Black Woman Archetype
(SBWA) and attitudes towards seeking professional psychological among African American
women in an IPV relationship.
Background of the Problem
Intimate Partner Violence. Over the past several years, IPV and battered women as a
population have received increasing attention. Dealing with intimate partner abuse is a complex
problem that has moved up the government's policy agenda in recent years because it is now
known that it affects one in four women, and accounts for a quarter of all violent crime (Sarkar,
2009). According to The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (2010), one in
three women in the United States has experienced some form of IPV within her lifetime (Black
& Peacock, 2011). An estimated 4,000 women die annually in the United States as a result of
IPV (Brown, 2008). In 2010, the United Stated Department of Justice study reported 907,000
incidents of IPV. Of these incidents reported, 4 out of 5 were reported by women (Catalano,
2012). Notably, one study suggested that, overwhelmingly, 92% of women who are victims of
IPV are women who are in heterosexual relationships (Finigan, 2010). Tjaden and Thoennes
(2000) completed a survey in the early 2000’s and found that violence against women is
primarily IPV or violence perpetrated by someone intimately familiar with the victim (Tjaden &
Thoennes, 2000). Sixty-four percent of women reported that a current or former spouse,
cohabitating partner, boyfriend, or date in their lifetimes had physically assaulted them. Most
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