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Exploring the work identity of working mothers

  • Authors: Gossayn, Christina
  • Date: 2018
  • Subjects: Working mothers , Identity (Psychology)
  • Language: English
  • Type: Masters (Thesis)
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10210/282418 , uj:30420
  • Description: M.Com. (Industrial Psychology) , Abstract: Work is an eminent part of an adult’s existence and for many it becomes part of who they are. A large portion of an adult’s life will be spent in the workplace with identity negotiation as the focal point of this relationship. Work plays a significant role in shaping an individual’s sense of self, and ultimately influences their identity and, in doing so, their work identity too. Identity and work identity are constantly changing and transforming as new stimuli are experienced. In this study the work identity research will be specific to working mothers. This qualitative research in work identity negotiation will enhance the understanding of the challenges that working mothers face, as well as how they manage their work identity. In order to do this a multiple case study approach was used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with each working mother and analysed using thematic analysis. Participant observation was utilised in the discussion to enhance the data. The theoretically based conceptual model of work identity developed by Saayman and Crafford (2011) was utilised as a basis for the research study. The model consists of five facets of work identity, namely personal identity, social identity, social practice, job/role and individual agency. The results were analysed in relation to the various facets of this model and the similarities and differences between the working mothers’ results were discussed. The tensions, demands and multiple identities that these mothers deal with in constructing a work identity were also explored in the discussion. The presence of females in the work place is not only valuable to organisations but also to these women’s sense of identity, despite the pressures of their motherly duties. Many mothers thrive off work; it provides them with a sense of accomplishment and meaning and becomes part of who they are. Therefore, this research intends to be valuable in assisting...
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Personality, sense of coherence and the coping of working mothers.

  • Authors: Herbst, L. , Coetzee, S. , Visser, D.
  • Date: 2007
  • Subjects: Sense of coherence , Coping , Personality , Working mothers
  • Type: Article
  • Identifier: uj:6432 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/1299
  • Description: The purpose of the study was to examine the relationships between personality dimensions, sense of coherence and coping styles among working mothers. The OPQ, OLQ and COPE questionnaires were administered to 120 married, working mothers. In view of contrasting results obtained by other researchers regarding the dimensionality of the COPE, its factorial validity and internal consistency were assessed. Exploratory factor analysis indicated that the COPE measured five factors with high degrees of internal consistency. Several personality dimensions and sense of coherence variables correlated significantly with the dependent variables (coping styles). It appeared that these independent variables predicted substantial percentages of the variability in the coping styles.
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Work-life benefits that affect the productivity of working mothers

  • Authors: Jones, Loretta
  • Date: 2014-07-23
  • Subjects: Working mothers , Mothers - Employment
  • Type: Thesis
  • Identifier: uj:11735 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/11462
  • Description: M.B.A. , As a result of globalisation, today's organisations have to deal with increased competition in all sectors. Organisations need to focus on increasing their output and at the same time decreasing the inherent costs in producing the output. It has become essential for organisations to be viewed as employers of choice amongst the labour market and its competitors. This reduces a company's cost base substantially by attracting top talent and retaining essential employees. It has been estimated that an organisation spends up to two times an employee's annual salary when they first employ an individual, due to the recruitment, initiation and training costs. The retention of highly skilled employees has become a global issue as organisations identify that their competitive advantage lies in the minds of these talented individuals. Within the market place, there is a common misperception that women will be in the job market for a few years, and then leave to start a family. Because of this, many organisations often overlook women in the recruiting phase as well as when promotional opportunities arise. However, the workplace of the future will be characterised by increasing numbers of women and single parents, as women will join the workforce at twice the rate of men. These heads of non-traditional households will require benefits that allow them to balance their work and family life. Women may choose to work for different reasons, but many may need to work. Whether she chooses to work or needs to work, the work that she does and the hours that she completes it in is based on a decision the woman makes. This decision is influenced by the organisations that are committed to overall employee well being and adequate work-life benefits ...
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Die beleweniswêreld van die professionele ma

  • Authors: Kirchner, Louise Antoinette
  • Date: 2012-08-15
  • Subjects: Working mothers , Women in the professions - South Africa - Family relationships , Children - Effect of working mothers on , Role expectations , Job stress
  • Type: Thesis
  • Identifier: uj:9303 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/5745
  • Description: M.Ed. , This study researches the working mother's experience of her world in order to explore and describe it. The aim of the study is to make recommendations to the educational psychologist (who is involved in the development and education of the child) resulting from the experiences of the different mothers. The research report starts with the contextualization of the study in Chapter 1, by creating a social- and theoretical framework. The theoretical framework places the woman in a system of interdependent relations, placing her internal experience and her external participation in society, in context. In Chapter 2 the exploratory, descriptive, contextual and qualitative study that was done, is described. To collect the data, phenomenological interviewing was done. The interviews were taped and then transcribed. The test sample consists of five women with professional careers or who used to have professional careers. The collected data was processed with a combination of Tesch's method, Kerlinger's method and categorisation.
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A narrative analysis of educators’ lived experiences of motherhood and teaching

  • Authors: Knowles, Mariska , Nieuwenhuis, Jan , Smit, Brigitte
  • Date: 2009
  • Subjects: Multiple role expectations , Working mothers , Mother educators
  • Type: Article
  • Identifier: uj:5744 , ISSN 0256-0100 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/7746
  • Description: In this article we argue that mothers often construct images of what they perceive as society’s expectations of them. These images become the parameters in the eyes of society to which they aspire. This is reminiscent of the adage: “I am not who you think I am. I am not who I think I am. I am who I think you think I am”. This study is based on analysis of the life-stories of four professional female educators. These mother-educators shared their assumptions, cultural values and beliefs and showed how these shaped the subjective construction and harmonisation of the multiple roles of mother and educator. It was found that they often find themselves faced with the conflicting and complementary dimensions of the multiple roles of mother and professional. We contend that these mothers set high standards and expectations for themselves as mother-educator and they worry about failing, not only themselves, but also ‘others’. They see the world of work, including parents, educators and school principal, as being against them — which is possibly a manifestation of a faltering self-image and linked to feelings of inadequacy. It is argued that mother educators need to negotiate new meaning in terms of their own perceived multiple role expectations so as to enable them to experience success as both homemakers and professionals. The challenge for the mother then is to engage in a constant search for her own identity.
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Balancing work and the family : the case of subcontracted female cleaners at a South African university

  • Authors: Moagi, Bonisiwe Mirrenda
  • Date: 2016
  • Subjects: Subcontracting - South Africa , Work and family - South Africa , Women - Employment - South Africa , Working mothers , Dual-career families - South Africa , Social security - South Africa
  • Language: English
  • Type: Masters (Thesis)
  • Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10210/226930 , uj:22957
  • Description: M.A. (Sociology) , Abstract: In October-November 2015, South African universities experienced widespread protests as students demanded that there should be no fee increases in 2016. An additional demand raised in this period was that university subcontracted workers should be insourced rather than outsourced. Outsourced workers, it was argued, earned starvation wages, and were subjected to poor working conditions and job insecurity. The research for this minor dissertation, conducted prior to the protests, captured the deep frustration and unhappiness of university-based cleaning staff about their poor earnings, working circumstances and their struggles to manage the multiple demands associated with work and family life. This study offers a qualitative understanding specifically of the experiences of subcontracted women workers employed at a South African university in terms of how they balanced their work and family responsibilities, attended to their children’s needs and the strategies that they prioritise in addressing the various challenges they face. The literature review shows that family sociologists tend to focus on middle-class women, rather than on working class women, when probing issues around work-family balance. Hence, the study makes a contribution by adding insight into the family contexts of working class women. In-depth interviews were conducted with twelve women workers of various ages. It was found that the women workers were keen to be directly employed by the university. They believed that this would lead to better earnings and conditions of employment. Higher earnings would allow them to improve the lives of their families and enable them to cater adequately for their children. Currently, they travel long hours to work, leave others to assist with child care, engage in physical labour once they get home late, and suffer guilt and emotional distress about their failure to fulfil all the tasks at hand. Viewed through a gendered lens, the research highlights the lived experiences of working-class women and their contention with gender, racial and class oppression in post-apartheid South Africa.
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Selfaktualisering en moederlikheid in die werkende en nie-werkende moeder

Managing work-life balance of working mothers

  • Authors: Van Zyl, H.F.
  • Date: 2014-01-14
  • Subjects: Working mothers , Work and family , Work-life balance
  • Type: Thesis
  • Identifier: uj:7901 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/8792
  • Description: M.Comm. (Business Management) , Changes in the corporate landscape and an increase in female participation rates in corporate workforces necessitate a better understanding of female career paths and how organisations can accommodate them better. The purpose of this study is to identify the most appropriate work-life balance benefits organisations can offer to female employees to assist them in achieving greater work-life balance. The study further aims to identify learning and development opportunities that females who have exited from their professions can follow to remain relevant and up to date in their fields. Through the literature review the study examines the need for women in corporate workforces, and inspects reasons for the underrepresentation of women in workforces. It further investigates alternative career models female professionals often embark on in an attempt to gain more balance between family responsibilities and career demands and subsequently discusses the costs associated with losing female talent. It then explores how organisations can assist female employees by offering work-life balance benefits. The study was conducted by using an online questionnaire and respondents were selected by employing a snowball sampling method. In this study research found that the most appropriate work-life balance benefits are flexible working hours, on-site childcare facilities, parental leave, part-time work, mobile working and virtual or cyber working. Conversely, the most inappropriate work-life balance benefits are weekend work, shift work, overtime, temporary or casual work, term-only working and fixed term contracts. It further found that employees who have exited from their professions can follow certain learning and development opportunities to assist them to remain relevant and up-to-date in their fields and assist them to return to full-time employment. The following learning and development opportunities were listed as being most appropriate: Attending continuous professional development courses and workshops, reading and further studies, keeping in touch with colleagues to stay updated with new developments at the office and the organisation, attending seminars and doing ad hoc, private, part-time or consulting work.
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