The purpose of this phenomenological study was to improve the understanding of Sexual Objectification (SO) of gay African American males in the bondage, discipline, sadism, masochism (BDSM) community. Although many studies have been conducted on SO of women and other minority populations, there is a lack of research on the lived experience of gay African American males participating in the BDSM community. The theoretical framework for this study was Fredrickson and Roberts's objectification theory, with a conceptual framework focused on SO that gay African American males experienced while participating in the BDSM community. The research questions were designed to elicit the participants' experiences about their participation in the BDSM community. Ten gay African American males, selected through purposive sampling, described their reasons for participating in the BDSM community, what the participants gained from participating in the BDSM community, how they experienced SO, how they handled these experiences, and how these experiences changed them. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, coded, and analyzed by hand. The data were analyzed in 3 stages: open coding, axial coding, and selective coding techniques. Five themes emerged from the interviews: community, gained knowledge and freedom, verbal objectification, avoidance, and mistrust. This study contributes to the existing body of literature and promotes social change by fostering dialog about objectification. Through this dialog, behavioral patterns and cultural norms can be altered over time by increasing awareness about objectification and its effects on people. This study provided gay African American males a voice to discuss a phenomenon that impacts their lives.

Thesis advisor: Janet E. Helms / Due to the intersection of their race and gender categories, with one (race) being marginalized and the other (gender) being privileged, men of color have unique experiences of gendered racism, defined as the ways in which racist incidents are focused specifically on their race-gender categorization. Research has shown that gendered racist experiences are related to worse mental health outcomes in men of color. However, it is not known how men of color’s understanding of themselves, as both people of color and men, interacts with the relationships between their gendered racist experiences and mental health. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to explore men of color’s racial and maleness identities in relation to their mental health and gendered racist experiences.Adult men of color (N = 195) were invited to complete measures that assessed gendered racist experiences (Everyday Discrimination Scale), racial identity (People of color Racial Identity Attitudes Scale), maleness identity (Maleness Identity Attitudes Scale), and psychological distress and wellbeing as mental health outcomes (Mental Health Inventory). Multivariate regression analyses revealed that more experiences of gendered racism were related to higher levels of psychological distress, but were not related to psychological wellbeing. Simple linear moderation analyses indicated that racial identity moderated the relationship between gendered racist experiences and psychological distress, while maleness identity moderated the relationship between gendered racist experiences and psychological wellbeing, in some instances. Moderated moderation analyses indicated that the interaction between racial and maleness identities did not moderate the relationship between experiences with gendered racism and mental health in most instances. Collectively, the results indicate that the ways in which men of color make sense of themselves as people of color and men, independently, have implications for how gendered racist experiences relate to their mental health. However, results did not paint a clear picture of how men of color’s conceptualizations of themselves as both people of color and men relates to their experiences of gendered racism and mental health. Limitations, including the availability of measures for assessing men of color’s identities holistically rather than independently, are addressed. Implications of the results for intersectionality theory and research, practice, and lay men are discussed. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2022. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Counseling, Developmental and Educational Psychology.

Although the recent annual growth rate in the US paramedic field has been 4%, Latino and African American men have been significantly underrepresented in the field compared to their proportion in the US population at large. This problem threatens both the quality and quantity of available emergency health care. The purpose of this study was to describe how men of color (MOC) in community college paramedical programs experienced their awareness, interest, and proactive choice of paramedicine as a course of study. Using a qualitative phenomenological approach and social cognitive career theory as a theoretical framework, I interviewed 23 MOC enrolled during one semester across three community college paramedical programs in the southwestern US: 9 Latino and 14 African American, aged 18-29 with mean age 22 years. The focus of the interviews was the participants' lived experiences at various career points, as well as the enablers and disablers they had encountered. I identified three primary themes for possible use in enhancing recruitment of MOC to the paramedic field: strategic use of new digital media, promotion of the vocation's quasi-familial characteristics, and augmentation of neighborhood-based outreach. Identified areas for further research included recruitment dynamics of female paramedics, MOC persistence issues, and MOC job satisfaction assessments.

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In the 21st Century, many Americans continue to fight battles for men of color who are at the forefront of criminal injustice, unemployment, and low matriculation. With great dominion and urgency, our Nation must ensure all men, regardless of the adversity can succeed and build legacies in their families, communities, and the economy. In this action research study, an ecological system theory was used to analyze the stakeholders who have implemented the following public polices under the Obama Administration: 21st Century Policing, My Brother's Keeper, and Race to the Top. This research answers the question how stakeholders are able to impact positive social change through implementing polices that focus on academia, criminal justice, and employment for African-American and Latino males living in Los Angeles County. Data was retrieved from 16 non-profit organizations; a target population was then sampled resulting in 25 participants that have expertise in working with men of color. Participant's answered 10 interview questions and their short answers were inductively coded, which revealed significant themes. Daily mentorship was identified as the leading tool to garner success in working with men color, while ecological influences, limited funding, policy misalignment, and stereotypical threats have been recurring barriers. Key findings recommended: mixed-method data, stakeholder collaborations, training programs, and creative marketing. Furthermore, this study closes the gap towards aligning with public polices that will create supportive services for men of color and offering stakeholders -'the what, and the how' towards implementing social change.