Award Date

May 2024

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Communication

First Committee Member

Laura Martinez

Second Committee Member

Rebecca Rice

Third Committee Member

Emma Bloomfield

Fourth Committee Member

Linda Dam

Number of Pages

101

Abstract

This study employed a turning point analysis to document milestones that influence the development of activist identities in young girls. All participants (N = 19), between the ages of 16–23 years old, self-identified as an activist and participated in activist spaces. Through an analysis of semi-structured interviews and arts-based elicitation research, data revealed several turning point events that influenced participants’ activist identity development, as well as their personal definition of activism. These turning points, paired with the communication theory of identity (CTI) framework, highlighted how girl activists negotiate gaps in their activist identities by communicatively co-constructing an evolving definition of activism. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed regarding turning points in relation to identity development and gendered disparities in activist spaces.

Disciplines

Communication

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

Rights

IN COPYRIGHT. For more information about this rights statement, please visit http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

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