Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Commons^™

Overcoming Adversity With Resilience: A Phenomenological Examination Of African American Women Leaders Facing Microaggressions In Corporate Spaces, Dionne Trenise Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

African American women leaders in Fortune 500 companies experience persistent challenges of subtle yet pervasive systems of discrimination in the form of microaggressions that cause negative impacts to their psychological well-being, workplace performance, and career advancement. These women exhibit incredible resilience that enable them to thrive at work, mitigate mental health challenges, and navigate their careers successfully. However, unlike people who fall into either a racial minority group or a gender minority group, African American women experience compounded effects of microaggressions due to the intersection of their race and gender. As a result of microaggressions, these women experience impacts to …