The impact of African American male authority figures who transition into role models in adolescents’ lives: an exploratory study

ABSTRACT This qualitative study explores the means by which the authority figures who regulate and structure adolescent lives transcend those functions to serve as role models, and thus perform a more nurturing role as providers of guidance and support. Nine adult African American males were interviewed regarding their retrospective understanding of the positive relationships they experienced with adults during their adolescence. Given the paucity of role model figures for Black youth, this study seeks to explore the attributes which facilitated such positive relationships and understand how those with unique obstacles toward obtaining a sense of achievement in adulthood might be able to access crucial additional sources of guidance. A qualitative analysis of the interview data was employed using a grounded theory approach (Corbin & Strauss, 2008). Participants ranged in age from 18–56 years old and, due to their upbringing in low-income communities, were deemed to have been “at-risk” youth. Results of this study identified seven major themes facilitating an authority figure’s transition into a role model: (a) traits the adolescent relates to or admires, (b) intentions of the connecting adult, (c) adult demonstrations of respect toward adolescents, (d) quality and quantity of interventions, (e) authority figure expectations, (f) role models who supply traits that are missing in parents, and (g) geographic relocations and transitional role models. Subjects offered additional insights into their adolescent and adult perspectives of peripheral, negative authority figures, their conception of themselves as role models, and characteristics they find pertinent to a role model identity. Implications for parents, schools, mental health providers, and adolescents are provided.Psy.D.Includes bibliographical referencesby Candace DeCaires-McCarth