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published_or_final_version / Social Work and Social Administration / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Sociology / Master / Master of Philosophy

This study is an exploration of the relationship between spirituality and the career-transition process in middle-aged women's lives. The sample of this study consisted of 20 women who were in or went through a career-transition process. The research data were collected through in-depth interviews. Grounded theory methodology (Strauss & Corbin, 1990) was used to analyse the data and to generate frameworks for the interaction between the career-transition process and spirituality. The results indicated three different frameworks to explain the interaction between the two research variables for three different patterns of career-transition process. These frameworks included five major themes related to spirituality and the career-transition process: (a) reflection, (b) belief in a transcendent dimension of reality, (c) principles and morals to live by, (d) reciprocity, and (e) life outside work.

Based on Super's (1990) developmental model of career development and Spence and Helmreich's (1978) gender identity theory, this study examined the relationship between the gender-related traits of instrumentality and expressiveness and women's preferences for multiple life-career roles. Super (1990) suggested that a career, as represented by the major life roles of student, worker, citizen, homemaker, and leisurite, is influenced by sex role stereotyping and individual differences. It was hypothesized in this project that gender role orientation (levels of instrumentality and expressiveness) would have an effect on women's role preferences.Adult women (N = 100) from three medium-sized midwestern communities were recruited from churches and community sororities. The women ranged in age from 20 to 82, with a mean age of 44.8 years. A response rate of 53%% was obtained. Role preferences, as expressed by women's participation, commitment, and value expectations, were measured by Nevill and Super's (1986) Salience Inventory (SI). Gender role orientation was assessed by Spence and Helmreich's (1974) Personal Attributes Questionnaire (PAQ). Scores on the PAQ were grouped into the categories ofandrogynous, instrumental, expressiveness, and undifferentiated by the median split technique. A demographic questionnaire was also administered.The demographic variables were grouped conceptually into five categories: personal, occupational, role satisfaction, parental influence, and spousal support for the purpose of preliminary analyses. Results of these analyses (Pearson Productmoment correlations, canonical correlations, and discriminant function analyses) revealed that personal and role satisfaction variables may moderate women's gender role orientation and role preferences. The main analyses were then conducted with three separate between-subjects MANOVAs. Although the results of the MANOVAs involving women's participation and commitment to multiple life-career roles were nonsignificant, another MANOVA involving women's value expectations was significant. Post-hoc procedures indicated that androgynous women had greater expectations of achieving their values in their work role than did instrumental women. It was also found that androgynous women had higher value expectations in the community and home roles than did undifferentiated women.A number of theoretical, empirical, and counseling implications were discussed. Limitations of the study were discussed in terms of the sample characteristics and the statistics employed. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

Investigation explored gender role stereotypes and the effect of stereotyping on the career adjustment of women. Occupational gender type ratings obtained from employed women were similar, although less extreme, than those observed in earlier studies (Shinar, 1975; White, Kruczek, Brown, White, 1989). Traditionally employed women provided more extremely stereotyped ratings than did their nontraditionally employed counterparts. All women were administered the Personality Attributes Questionnaire (PAQ) to assess the level of instrumental and expressive characteristics representative of their behavior. All women displayed a higher level of instrumental behaviors at work compared to home. Further, all women reported the level of instrumental behaviors they displayed at work surpassed the level that was characteristic of their overall personality orientation. Differences in gender role behaviors between traditionally and nontraditionally employed women were present across conditions: home, work, overall personality orientation. These two, groups differed with regard to the level of gender role behaviors they perceived as necessary for successful job performance. Job satisfaction (as measured by the Job Descriptive Index and Hoppock Satisfaction Questionnaire) was used as an index of career adjustment. Women employed nontraditionally expressed greater levels of dissastisfaction with their work, supervisors, and coworkers. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between the self-reported sex-role orientation of hale and female undergraduate college students and their perceived attraction to women with differing occupational choices (traditional vs nontraditional) and stated sex-role preferences (gender congruent vs incongruent). It was expected that androgynous and sex-typed subjects would view differently women with differing occupational and behavior styles.The Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI) was utilized to assess the sex-role orientation of 241 subjects. The data are based on 40 sex-typed and 40 androgynous male and female undergraduate students. An Interpersonal Rating Form was used to assess subjects' attraction to the stimulus persons. Seven planned comparisons were made to test the research hypotheses using t-tests. The level of significance was set at p < .01 level.Findings1. Sex-typed males showed no significant difference on their social and work attraction between a woman who expresses a gender congruent sex-role preference and a woman who expresses a gender incongruent sex-role preference (irrespective of the woman's occupational choice, traditional or nontraditional).2. Sex-typed females showed a significantly greater social and work attraction to the gender congruent than to the gender incongruent woman in both the traditional and nontraditional occupation condition.3. Sex-typed males and females did not show a greater social and work attraction to the woman who chooses a traditional occupation than to the woman who chooses a nontraditional occupation (irrespective of the woman's sex-role preference, gender congruent or incongruent).4. Androgynous males and females tended not to discriminate in their social and work attraction between the nontraditional, gender congruent and the nontraditional, gender incongruent woman.5. Androgynous males and females did not show a greater social and work attraction to the women who choose a nontraditional occupation and who are gender incongruent than sex-typed males and females.Conclusions1. Subjects' sex-role orientation might not be a good predictor of their responses to individuals with various sex-role identities.2. The BSRI might not be the appropriate instrument to measure global sex-role attitudes and behaviors.3. The results might be the outcome of the nonseguential relationship between attitudes and behaviors.

Since women's entry into the workforce has constituted such a tremendous social change, its political consequences deserve further study. This investigation uses the 1977 Quality of Life Survey to assess the political impact of both objective and subjective features of women's work on political involvement. / Results demonstrate that mere employment fails to politicize women, but either higher salaries or professional positions can act as political catalysts. In addition, jobs that are perceived to be "good", or that possess a number of positive qualities, may also be politically beneficial. Manual labor, on the other hand, actually discourages political involvement, and unions are not politically helpful. / More research should be conducted into the family context which contributes to the "double burden" of working women (the dual set of responsibilities shouldered by women--at home and on the job). Furthermore, the still limited political and employment opportunities realistically available to women merit greater scholarly attention.

This study examines reasons why successful and dedicated women classroom teachers become disillusioned with teaching. The four women teachers who participated in this study embody the "good and ideal" woman teacher. Yet, over a three year period of time during which we engaged in a written correspondence, they disclosed personal stories about teaching that showed their anger, pain and disillusionment. The purpose of drawing on the narratives of these women was two-fold. First, I wanted their stories to better inform my practice as a teacher educator. I reasoned that if it is successful and dedicated women teachers who become disillusioned with teaching, then it follows that their stories are worth listening to. For pre-service teachers who enter teaching for any number of reasons, these stories help us to better understand the entirety of what it means "to be a teacher". Second, I wanted to situate their stories throughout the body of literature on women teachers that challenges age-old stereotypes and the notion of teaching as "women's work". Of particular interest to the study was their silence, their unwillingness to give voice to these feelings. As such, I named this essence I was seeking to better understand, "teacher shadows": those stories that dedicated and successful women teachers are reluctant to tell, but highlight their feelings of being devalued by a society that doubts their abilities, and a structure of schooling that has little room for shared authority.

D.Comm. / The aim of this study is to develop an in-depth understanding of the phenomenon of life balance in the lives of South African professional women, and to develop a Life Balance Questionnaire to measure this phenomenon. The study was approached qualitatively, applying the Grounded Theory method, with a systematic set of procedures to develop and derive at a theory inductively. The purposeful sampling method was used in combination with the chain reference sampling technique. In-depth interviews were conducted with twenty four selected participants, then a group session was held to confirm identified themes and concepts and to form a theoretical framework. The literature review reveals that professional women in the 21 st century face an exceptional challenge in balancing the multiple tasks associated with their homemaker and work roles. The phenomenon of life balance therefore seems to become an important consideration in the lives of professional women. The main findings in this study indicate that South African professional women of different cultural backgrounds experience similar pressures and challenges. The findings also indicate that, to define the phenomenon of life balance, all roles performed by an individual throughout her life need to be considered, as what constitutes life balance for one person might not apply to another. Selfawareness is identified as the main point of departure for achieving life balance. This implies that it is important to accept "who you are" and "what is important to you", and to take responsibility for the choices you make. It is concluded that life balance is cyclical, so it is important to be aware of it as a process, rather than an end, and as a tool for achieving personal growth. Life balance is, therefore, not defined as "one, single ultimate experience", but as individual experiences over time, or, rather, as "life balance moments". The final conclusion is that two main types of factors influence and support life balance, namely internal or influential factors and external or supporting factors. Internal factors include self-awareness, the ability to know and understand oneself, to take responsibility for decisions and life choices, to understand and deal with personal fears, the application of proactive coping strategies, a positive attitude towards life and chosen demands, and trust in others for assistance and support. External variables include situational conditions, societal views and attitudes, support structures, organisational values and support, and literature and training programmes. To illustrate and confirm the conclusions of this study, two Life Balance Models are developed to represent a definitional and process approach to the theme. The study concludes with a proposed "Life Balance Questionnaire" aimed at measuring life balance in the lives of professional women. The testing and validation of the "Life Balance Questionnaire" do not form part of the study.