Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Identifier

1334

Date

2015

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Major

Ed Psychology and Research

Concentration

Educational Psychology

Committee Chair

Christian Mueller

Committee Member

Vicki Sallis Murrell

Committee Member

Denise Winsor

Committee Member

Yeh Hsueh

Abstract

Underrepresented minority (URM) students' educational persistence to health careers is hindered by numerous demographic, social, and motivational barriers. The current study examines how motivational variables, specifically the satisfaction of autonomy, competence, and relatedness, impact URM students' educational persistence. This study assesses (a) what psychological needs are satisfied when URM students participate in supportive academic and social experiences; (b) how need satisfaction supports URM students' abilities to persist in the face of challenge; and (c) the extent in which previous research and the current study are confirmatory or contradictory. The current qualitative study utilizes storytelling and photo-elicited interviews, memo writing, and previous literature to explore five URM students' experiences as they persisted to health careers. Narrative inquiry, semiotics, and constructivist grounded theory meta-analysis were used to develop five case studies, eight study themes, and one meta-analysis. The results provide a more comprehensive view of URM heath students' educational persistence experiences.

Comments

Data is provided by the student.

Library Comment

Dissertation or thesis originally submitted to the local University of Memphis Electronic Theses & dissertation (ETD) Repository.

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