The Lived Experience with Christianity and Teenage African-American Females' Perceptions of their Self-Esteem. Issue 1 (May 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: King, Daphne L.
• Is Part Of: Christian education journal. Volume 12:Issue 1(2015)
• Page Start: 45
• Page End: 57
• Publication Date: 2015-05
• Subjects: self-esteem -- Christianity -- spirituality -- African-American teenagers -- phenomenology; Christian education -- Periodicals
• DOI: 10.1177/073989131501200104
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0739-8913

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to discover the connection between the lived experiences with Christianity of teenage African-American females ages 16 to 18 and their self-esteem by exploring their lived experiences with this form of faith. The participants in the study were African-American females who all attended church at a large, predominantly African-American congregation in Prince George's County Maryland, identified by the initials MEBC. All of the participants had a belief in God and used prayer to exercise that belief. The average age of the participants was 17.25. Their level of education ranged from completion of 11th grade to completion of the first year of college with an average of 11.65 years of education. All of the participants live in Prince George's County, Maryland, in the cities of Clinton, Waldorf, and Capital Heights. Three of the participants were raised in two-parent families and the other five were raised in single-parent homes. This qualitative inquiry used a phenomenological design. A total of five main themes emerged from the data: (a) prayer to God, (b) believe in God, (c) high self-esteem based on Christian values, (d) Christian walk impacts self-esteem, and (e) seeking help from God.