Scholarship &
research
Core Research Interests
Africentric Paradigms • Black Perspectives • Womanism • Women • Black Feminist Thought • Intersectionality • Social Justice • Race • Class • Gender • Education • Motherhood • Social Welfare • Theory • Qualitative Research
Research Initiaitves
Principal Investigator, Rasheem, S.M. (2023-2024). Minding Her Business: The Entrepreneurial Journey of Black Women in Baltimore
The many challenges and barriers facing small, minority owned businesses are well documented. What is less abundant in the literature are the voices of those business owners. Adding their input can highlight the best practices for increasing the odds of success for Black owned small businesses. I’m currently conducting research that aims to study ecosystem building for Black women owned small businesses while centralizing the epistemology of the business owners themselves and providing evidence about effective strategies and approaches to overcoming the many barriers that these businesses face. The primary objective of this study is to shed light on the unique challenges faced by Black women small business owners and the innovative strategies they have employed to overcome them. I aim to create a comprehensive and authentic account of their journey, showcasing the pivotal role they play in shaping Baltimore’s economic landscape. Black women entrepreneurs are an integral part of Baltimore’s vibrant and diverse community.
Principal Investigator, Rasheem, S.M. (2016-2018). A Phenomenological Study of Black Motherhood. A Hermeneutic Phenomenological study.
The many challenges and barriers facing small, minority owned businesses are well documented. What is less abundant in the literature are the voices of those business owner. The purpose of this study was to capture the essence of what it means to be” an African American mother of an adolescent daughter. More specifically, it answers the following research questions (a) what meaning do African American mothers assign motherhood, (b) what are the lived experiences of African American mothers of adolescent daughters, and (c) what is the essence of African American motherhood as enacted in the mother-daughter dyad? This study explored the experiential insights of 16 African American mothers of adolescent daughters residing in the Mid-Atlantic U.S. through the lens of Black feminist thought (Collins, 2000) and the ecological systems model (Bronfenbrenner, 1977).
An interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was used to gain an insider’s perspective about what it means to be an African American mother at the intersection of race and gender. In keeping with IPA’s aim of capturing how participants “make sense of” their social conditions in relation to their “experiential claims” the findings reflect five themes that illustrate how African American mothers “makes sense of” motherhood and family. These are a) motherhood as a divine appointment, b) mother’s role as nurturer-provider and c) the perception of Black motherhood as harder. The themes that were derived from making sense of family were: d) family is not tied to blood and e) family as communal. Two categories reflecting five themes emerged from the participants’ articulated “experiential claims” about mothering adolescent daughters: The first thematic category was intersectional socialization Intersectional socialization themes included: f) Socialization based in fear vs. freedom, g) preparation for Black womanhood, and h) cultural transmission. The second thematic category, intersectional identity development included,
Principal Investigator, Rasheem, S.M. (2015-2016). Beyond the Threshold: Exploring the Intersections of Race, Gender, Welfare & Resilience. A Qualitative Study.
While there have been studies about African American mothers, less attention has been paid to the impact of systemic racism and the experiences of African American mothers on welfare. In addition, although Black women who work, make up an important segment of the Black working class, research on Black women’s unpaid labor within extended families is underdeveloped in Black feminist thought in comparison to research on Black women’s paid work (Collins, 2000). The data in this article was derived from the transcribed interviews of 9 participants who identified as Black women and recipients of public assistance.
- Principal Investigator, Rasheem, S.M. (2015-2016). Beyond the Threshold: Exploring the Intersections of Race, Gender, Welfare & Resilience. A Qualitative Study.
- Co-Investigator, Toney, D.; Mushonga, D.; Rasheem, S.M. (2015- 2016). Resilience factors of African-American women who have experienced Trauma. A Qualitative Study
- Vital voices. A Qualitative study that explored the intersections of Race, Gender and Substance Abuse.
Academic Publications
Mushonga DR, Rasheem S, Anderson D. (2020, December)
And Still I Rise: Resilience Factors Contributing to Posttraumatic Growth in African American Women
Understanding the impact of trauma and resilience has long been of interest to mental health professionals everywhere. However, what is missing in the literature is the unique standpoint of African American women who are often trapped in a traumatic cycle of poverty and intimate partner violence (IPV). Therefore, the purpose of this qualitative study was to understand the lived experiences of African American women surviving IPV and to examine resilience factors that may contribute to the development of posttraumatic growth (PTG). Semi Structured interviews were conducted with eight African American women survivors of IPV. Thematic analysis revealed six themes that were relative to the development of PTG: spirituality, motherhood, gratitude, prudence, solitude, and selective attention. The emergent themes in this study present the counter narrative of African American women who see both adaptive and maladaptive mechanisms as viable contributors of PTG.
Rasheem, S.M. (2021)
How Black mothers prevent, protect, and heal their daughters from racialized Mental gender trauma.
In Wells-Wilbon, R., & Estreet, A. (Eds.). (2021). Trauma and
Health Social Work with Urban Populations: African-Centered Clinical Interventions (1st ed.).
Rasheem, S. (2018).
An Interpretative Phenomenological Study of African American mothers with Adolescent Daughters (PhD Dissertation).
Morgan State University, School of Social Work.
Rasheem, S.M., Alleman, A. Mushonga, D. & Toney, D. Vakalahi, H.F.O. (2018, March)
Mentor-shape: exploring the mentoring relationships of Black women in doctoral programs
Mentoring and Tutoring:
Partnership in Learning
Rasheem, S.M. Brunson, Jordan( 2017, November)
The pursuit, persistence, & power of African American women in social work graduate programs at Historically Black Institutions (HBI),
Journal of Social Work Education: The International Journal.
Community Engagement
STEP into the Garden: Sacred Spaces and Step
Art @ Work: Garden Box Project
