EXPLORING RESILIENCE AMONG BLACK WOMEN AFTER BEING DIAGNOSED WITH A SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED INFECTION

Historical and contemporary social, political, and cultural dynamics of power, classicism, sexism, and racism exacerbate challenges for Black women to attain optimal sexual health outcomes. As such, Black women in the United States continue to be disproportionately affected by sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Despite this obstacle to their health, many Black women adapt and learn how to successfully manage their sexual health despite experiences of adversity. However, how women succeed in managing their sexual health and how their community is a source of strength in doing so is largely unexplored. Instead, much of the prevention research on Black women’s sexual health and wellness adopts a deficit orientation. Strengths-based scholarship that highlights assets and capabilities of Black women and their communities to support sexual wellness is needed. Guided by Resilience Theory and Black Feminist Thought, this dissertation study fills this gap and describes Black women’s stories of acquiring and rebounding from an STI diagnosis. Among 16 Black women, there was an absence of informative and comprehensive sex education during the participants’ early life. Women learned little about their bodies, sex, and healthy sexual relationships. Consequently, many women entered sexual and romantic relationships susceptible to contracting an STI. When women were diagnosed, they experienced a range of negative emotional and psychosocial ramifications following their diagnosis. The results reveal various pathways through which resilience was fostered. Following a period of reflection, women reclaimed control of their sexual lives through strategies that included sexual and relationship boundary-setting, reframing the experience, knowledge seeking, and implementing preventative sexual health practices. Social support from other women was vital to this process, which is consistent with existing literature on socioecological perspectives of resilience. This study underscores the importance of contextual factors in creating vulnerabilities to STIs. The results also suggest the importance of relationship to other Black women in assisting women to reclaim sexual control. The results of this study offer important implications for future sexual and reproductive research and interventions targeting Black women and sexuality education policy.