Mothers‟ perceptions of gender roles in a family context: An exploratory study
Mothers’ perceptions of gender roles in a
family context: An exploratory study.
HRPYC 81 Assignment 37
Unique Number: 781294
STUDENT NUMBER
57075034
MR. V.M.L. NONKWELO
03October 2017
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,Mothers‟ perceptions of gender roles in a family context: An exploratory study
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Subject covered in page Page Number
Cover Page for research proposal 0
Plagiarism Declaration 2
Abstract 3
1. INTRODUCTION 4
2. LITERATURE SURVEY 4-6
3. PROBLEM STATEMENT 7-8
3.1. Research Question and Sub-
questions
3.2. Aims and Objectives
4. RESEARCH DESIGN 8-10
-Epistemology
-Guiding Theory
-Research Approach
5. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 10-18
5.1. Population
5.2. Sample
5.3. Sampling Technique
5.4. Research Instruments
5.5. Procedure of data collection
5.6. Data Analysis
5.7. Results
5.8. Discussion
6. Reference List 19-20
7. Appendices 21-34
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,Mothers‟ perceptions of gender roles in a family context: An exploratory study
PLAGIARISM DECLARATION
1. I know that plagiarism is wrong. Plagiarism is using another‟s work
and pretending that it is one‟s own work.
2. I have used the American Psychological Association (APA) as the
convention for citation and referencing. Each significant contribution to,
and quotation in, this assignment from the work, or works of other
people has been attributed and has been cited and referenced.
3. This assignment is my own work.
4. I have not allowed, and will not allow, anyone to copy my work with
the intention of passing it off as his or her own work.
5. I acknowledge that copying someone else's assignment, or parts of it,
is wrong, and declare that this assignment is my own work.
NAME VUSIKHAYA MARTIN LUTHER NONKWELO
: ______________________________________
SIGNATURE : ______________________________________
DATE 03 OCTOBER 2017
: ______________________________________
HRPYC 81
MODULE CODE : __________________________________
37
ASSIGNMENT : ______________________________________
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,Mothers‟ perceptions of gender roles in a family context: An exploratory study
Abstract
In an attempt to establish mothers‟ perceptions of gender roles, an exploratory study
guided by Ecosystemic Theory was conducted in the Libode town of the Eastern
Cape. Using a purposive sampling technique, data was gathered from a sample of
seven research participants through the use of a biographical questionnaire and
open-ended interview schedule. The gathered data was subjected to a thematic
analysis and three phenomena were found; a) Mothers perceived the role of fathers
as that of providing for the family and protecting the family while mothers‟ role was to
nurture and take care of the family, b) Male and female children have different roles,
and these roles are a deliberate attempt by parents to socialize these children into
fulfilling the roles that they themselves already play, and c) A majority of mothers
believed that access to education, availability of job opportunities and the changing
nature of available job opportunities were the primary cause in changing gender
roles. In the main, the study concluded that these findings present a) A s table
perception of gender roles, despite a huge shift in gender roles themselves, b) A
power dynamic between man and wife, which represents dominant and submissive
roles, and c) a traditional and egalitarian view of gender roles, in the face of an ever-
changing society that allows the overlap of these gender roles.
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,Mothers‟ perceptions of gender roles in a family context: An exploratory study
1. Introduction
When it comes to spheres of influence in an individual‟s life, the nuclear family exerts
the most influence. This, according to Cipriani, Guiliano & Jeanne (2013), is evident
in the fact that social scientists generally view the family as the primary determinant
of an individual‟s personality, beliefs, and values. The family plays an active role in
an individual‟s life by consciously socialising the individual to particular cultural traits;
something which (in the African family context) is mostly done by female guardians
(Cipriani et al, 2013). In society, men and women are allocated different roles
(Mudiare, 2013). According to Steele & Barling (1996, p. 639), gender roles can be
defined as “prescriptive beliefs about appropriate gender behaviour, and can be
viewed along a continuum ranging from traditional to feminist”. These beliefs about
appropriate gender behaviour have a pervasive influence in multiple spheres of an
individual‟s life. This ranges from beliefs about one‟s academic abilities (Steele &
Barling, 1996), acceptance of adultery and spousal violence (Mudiare, 2013), to
even many working women being required to do a “second shift” when they get
home after work (Scott & Clery, 2013). All of the above are influenced by perceptions
of gender roles. In this study, the researcher will put into focus mothers‟ perceptions
of gender roles within a family context through an exploratory, qualitative study which
will be done from a Social Constructionist perspective, guided by Ecosystemic
theory.
2. Literature Survey
In this section, the researcher looks into theory and research findings pertaining to
the research topic (HRPYC 81, Tutorial Letter 103, 2017).
First, a study by Steele & Barling (1996) found that mothers‟ perception of gender
roles had an important impact on children. In the study, daughters‟ vocational
interests were examined in relation to mothers‟ perceptions of gender roles. In the
end, the study found that the career choices of daughters were largely influenced by
their mothers‟ perception of gender roles (Steele & Barling, 1996). This study attests
to the importance and far-reaching influence of mothers‟ perception of gender roles.
Interestingly, an earlier study also found the same. In the said study, it was found
that parents viewed their children‟s competence in different activity domains in terms
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,Mothers‟ perceptions of gender roles in a family context: An exploratory study
of their own stereotypical gender role ideology, and not in terms of how well the
children actually performed in those domains (Eccles et al, 1990). As a result of this,
children‟s perception of their own competence in those domains became similar to
that of their parents, something which resulted in children following careers that were
in line with their parents‟ gender role stereotypes and perceptions (Eccles et al,
1990). Again, this study attests to the importance of both mothers‟ and fathers‟
perception of gender roles.
With the above being said, a study conducted in the Netherlands highlights an
equally important, but different facet of parents‟ and children‟s perception of gender
roles. In the said study, it was found that there are implicit as well as explicit gender
stereotypes (Endendijk et al, 2013). In other words, there are both internal and
external perceptions of gender roles. The study found that fathers explicitly
expressed their perceptions about gender roles, while mothers had more implicit
expressions of their perceptions of gender roles. Possibly, the study found, this could
be due to social desirability or due to the fact that it was seen as less acceptable for
women to explicitly express their perceptions of gender roles (Endendijk et al, 2013).
Moreover, the study found that a higher level of education was associated with more
explicit expression of the perception of gender roles in both men and women
(Endendijk et al, 2013).
To answer a totally different question, a study by Scott & Clery (2013) found that
there has been a shift in how both men and women perceive gender roles. The study
found that the British public‟s support of a traditional division of labour in the home
and at work has decreased substantially over the past 30 years. The principal factor
contributing to this, it was found, is women‟s increased access to and participation i n
the labour force of the mainstream economy of that particular nation (Scott & Clery,
2013). However, the study also found that women still spend a lot more time on
unpaid domestic labour than men, a phenomenon which has been called a “double
shift” for women. This highlights that although perceptions of gender roles have
changed drastically in Britain, the reality is changing very slowly, because even
though women work, they still have to do more work when they get home in order to
fulfil the responsibility associated with being a mother, wife and generally a woman
(Scott & Clery, 2013).
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,Mothers‟ perceptions of gender roles in a family context: An exploratory study
On the other hand, a study conducted in Nigeria found that there has been little
change in the perception of gender roles (Mudiare, 2013). In this study, it was found
that both men and women believed that the woman must cook for the children, take
care of the home, satisfy the husband‟s sexual and other needs, support the
husband, and be submissive to her husband; while the man was supposed to
provide (financially and otherwise) for the family, be the head of the home and be the
disciplinarian of the home (Mudiare, 2013): all of which represent the traditional view
of how labour should be divided within the home. With that being said, a significant
percentage of the male and female respondents in this study believed that women
should work, but most importantly play a complementary rather than a submissive
role in relation to the husband (Mudiare, 2013). Of importance to note is that this was
a view held most strongly by those who had acquired higher education. Possibly, this
points to the influence of education in shaping and informing gender role
perceptions. Though this was a view held by a fraction of the total sample, it
represents a change in how men and women perceive gender roles.
Similarly, a study conducted in Qatar by Shafaie, Mayers, Al-Maadadi, Coughlin &
Wooldridge (2014), found that gender role perception has not changed much. This
study found that mothers believed that children under the age of five suffer if their
mothers had part- or full-time employment outside the home, something which
shows that the belief that mothers must take care of the children and the home still
persists amongst these women (Shafaie et al, 2014). The above state of affairs is
consistent with numerous other studies conducted in the Afghan region; all of which
point to the fact that both mothers‟ and fathers‟ perception of gender roles has
remained very stereotypical and traditional, despite a number of economic and social
changes having taken place (Shafaie, 2014). Furthermore, the study found that
direct and indirect exposure to western cultures had not changed respondents‟
commitment to their own culture and perception of gender roles. With that being
said, the study noted that respondents whose educational qualifications were in the
human sciences (Education, Social Sciences, Child Development) had a more
contemporary and egalitarian view when it came to gender roles (Shafaie, 2014).
Possibly, this means that exposure to empirical evidence to the importance of
egalitarian gender roles may facilitate a change in how both men and women
perceive gender roles (Shafaie, 2014).
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, Mothers‟ perceptions of gender roles in a family context: An exploratory study
3. Problem Statement
A perusal of relevant literature reveals that little research has been done on the
research subject. Most interestingly, few studies have focused on mothers‟
perceptions of gender roles, something which implies that there is an assumption
that perceptions of gender roles were once, or are, universal. Some studies have
tried to show how mothers‟ perception of gender roles impact their daughters‟
vocational choices (Steele & Barling, 1996), others have shown how the expression
of gender stereotypes differs in the family context (Endendijk, Greoneveld, Berkel,
Hallers-Haalboom, Mesman, & Bakermans-Kranenberg, 2013), others have studied
how the perception of gender roles has changed (Scott & Clery, 2013) and some
have even studied how gender roles influence the hesitant acceptance of spousal
violence (Mudiare, 2013); all of which seem to assume that ge nder role perceptions
are universal, stable and objective. From a Social Constructionism standpoint,
meanings are socially created and individual identity is seen as not stable; but rather
fragmented and dynamic (Dallos & Urry, 1999). Additionally, Second Order
Cybernetics views reality as a social construct. In other words, Second Order
Cybernetics views reality as dependent on the observer, subjective and a
“multiverse” (Dallos & Urry, 1999). This “multiverse” of a reality simply mea ns that
each person perceives reality in their own unique way, and each person‟s reality is
different from that of the next person (Becvar & Becvar, 2006). By implication, the
above simply means that perceptions of gender roles cannot be objective and
universal, because individuals create their own reality and reality is subjective.
Therefore, this research study investigated mother‟s perception of gender roles
within a family context; while using Ecosystemic Theory as the guiding theory.
3.1. Research Question
How do mothers perceive gender roles within a family context?
Sub Questions
a) What are the factors that influence mothers‟ perceptions of gender roles within
a family context?
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