“No crystal stair”: rural women's collegiate enrollment and persistence

Abstract

This ethnography focuses on rural women's motivation for careers and a higher education. As in other areas of study such as science and medicine, the psychology of motivation has been shaped by pioneering studies that used males as subjects. Data derived from interviews and participant observation of 16 women in higher education established additional motivational factors for females, namely that achievement can be oriented toward nurturance as well as independence. The factors that motivated these students were also barriers to their success in higher education. Participants were mostly older‐than‐average students, members of the working class, and the first generation in their families to enroll in college. Most of the informants were considered “at risk” during their K‐12 school years. They were motivated to achieve despite overwhelming odds such as low SAT scores, dropping out of school, and/or having been teenage mothers.