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Exploring the Communicative Identity Construction of Descendants of Roberts Settlement

Peters, Charnell
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9576-8458
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1522966410747939

Abstract Details

2018, Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, Media and Communication.
This study used communication theory of identity (CTI) and critical race theory (CRT) to investigate the identities of descendants of Roberts Settlement, an early mixed-race settlement in Indiana. Twenty-four descendants of Roberts Settlement were interviewed to understand how Roberts descendants communicate their identities and how race in the US context has shaped their identities. In-depth interviews were conducted in one-on-one settings; interview transcripts were coded using open and axial coding, as described in grounded theory, and were analyzed according to the four frames and identity gaps of CTI, with consideration to the tenants of CRT. The findings show that Roberts descendants communicate their identities in diverse ways, notably: their personal racial identities develop over time and are sometimes fluid; their conceptions of family are diverse and tie them to a larger, imagined community, with histories of racial passing affecting degrees of relational closeness; many enact their identities as descendants through attending annual homecomings at the settlement and/or learning about the settlement’s history; and many find significance in their identities as people who belong to the Black community and to the Roberts Settlement community. Participants experienced identity gaps and displayed various negotiation strategies for those gaps. The findings of this study exemplify the social, cultural, and political forces that create and maintain race in the US, as well as their influence on individual and communal racial identity. As the first research to specifically investigate Roberts descendants, this study provides practical implications for Roberts Settlement as an organization and suggests future research on communication’s role in racial and communal identity development.
Lisa Hanasono, PhD (Advisor)
Sandra Faulkner, PhD (Committee Member)
Radhika Gajjala, PhD (Committee Member)
116 p.
African American Studies; African Americans; American History; Black History; Black Studies; Communication; Ethnic Studies; Families and Family Life; Regional Studies
Roberts Settlement; Communication theory of identity; Critical race theory; poetic transcription; African American; multiracial; biracial; family identity; identity gaps

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Peters, C. (2018). Exploring the Communicative Identity Construction of Descendants of Roberts Settlement [Master's thesis, Bowling Green State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1522966410747939

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Peters, Charnell. Exploring the Communicative Identity Construction of Descendants of Roberts Settlement. 2018. Bowling Green State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1522966410747939.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Peters, Charnell. "Exploring the Communicative Identity Construction of Descendants of Roberts Settlement." Master's thesis, Bowling Green State University, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1522966410747939

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

bgsu1522966410747939
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© 2018, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Bowling Green State University and OhioLINK.