Nature of Motivation for Educational Achievement among African American Female College Students

The purpose of this article is to explore the nature of motivational factors that have influenced the educational achievement of 11 African American female college students. It also investigates the extent to which these students' educational achievements are related to individual socioeconomic advancement versus collective socioeconomic advancement of African Americans. Sources used were transcripts from semi structured interviews and field notes from participant observations. The findings suggest that these women generally perceive the collective socioeconomic advancement of African Americans as a possible outcome of their individual socioeconomic achievement.