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“I Have to Be Stronger”: A Constructivist Grounded Theory of the Development of Women During and After Their Time at an American University in Iraq
Abstract
The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the process of cognitive, interpersonal, and intrapersonal development of young women who have graduated from an American University in Iraq. A new, substantive theory that explains this phenomenon was constructed, using constructivist grounded theory (GT) methods. Ten alumnae of an American University in Iraq participated in a series of semi-structured individual interviews. The women in this study moved themselves from a condition in which they were primarily reacting to external events and influences to a condition in which they were primarily acting based on internal initiative. I conceptualize this progression as moving through five phases: receiving a foundation of support, experiencing challenges, turning the tide, churning, and thriving on her own terms. This theory of development is compatible with the other developmental theories ways of knowing, self-efficacy, possible selves, and self-authorship, with significant cultural variations.
Subject Area
Higher Education Administration|Developmental psychology|Educational psychology|Womens studies
Recommended Citation
Gresk, Geoffrey Sheehan, "“I Have to Be Stronger”: A Constructivist Grounded Theory of the Development of Women During and After Their Time at an American University in Iraq" (2021). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI28865689.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI28865689