Date of Award
1-9-2026
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Education
First Advisor
Chelsea Bradley
Abstract
The purpose of this content analysis is to show how African Americans are represented in the novels selected for the Louisiana Young Readers’ Choice and Louisiana Teen Readers’ Choice programs. Twenty-one graphic novels and one graphic story were used in this study. The primary source of data collection was analyzing the texts using the African American text features list. Findings indicated that when included, the representation of African Americans in the graphic novels was accurate and authentic. However, there was not a large number of graphic novels that have been selected for the lists. It is suggested that future research replicate this study in different states, use all novels instead of only graphic novels, examine the representation of other marginalized groups, or include a human element to the study either by interviewing the book selection committee, educators, or students who are encouraged to read or use the books from the lists.
Recommended Citation
Green, Samantha J., "What Representation Looks Like: A Content Analysis of African American Characters in Louisiana’s Young Readers’ Choice and Teen Readers’ Choice Graphic Novels" (2026). Theses and Dissertations. 1347.
https://research.ualr.edu/etd/1347
