Perceptions, Attitudes, or Concerns of Ethnic Minority Women with Regard to Their Careers Choices - Coursework Example

Introduction One of the prominent debates that dominated literature centring on minority within the workforce has labelled the minority as caught between two worlds: a white world at work and their personal world at home, or could they be getting the best of both? Ethnic minority women sometimes feel caught between two worlds, never entirely assimilated in one and having been integrated into the other to be entirely apart of it. Ethnic minority women live and work in unique yet interconnected world. This can be analyzed in terms of cultural values contextualized within their working experiences, gender role expectations among ethnic minority women and strategies that ethnic minority women utilize to balance the two worlds. The paper focuses on the perceptions, attitudes, or concerns of ethnic minority women with regard to their careers choices. Ethnic minority women encounter stereotypes grounded in their race and gender, as well as their religion and culture, which can impact negatively on their career opportunities (Andersen 2006, p.69). The theoretical framework adopted in this paper embraces an interaction between the dimensions of structure, agency, and culture in the analysis of career experiences and opportunities of ethnic minority women and their struggle between the white world at work and their personal world at home (Diller 2011, p.43). Background Research has established that racio-ethnic diversity plays a critical role for organizational and management theory and practice (Atewolong 2011, p.1). The issues generated by the diversity bear tangible consequences for the productivity and management of organizations; however, the bulk of organizational and management literature abstains from incorporating these insights by depicting itself as “race-neutral.” Evidently, there are intricate linkages of gender and racio-ethnicity that points out that a majority of working ethnic minority women “live in two worlds” (Diller 2011, p.54). Scholars writing about middle class women and immigrants utilize the term “two worlds” women (who have to bridge the gap between conventional and contemporary roles). Traditional approaches to implications for ethnic minority women’s experiences within mainstream organisations have treated minority women as a homogenous, monolithic group; nevertheless, women minority group also manifest evidence of diversity and stratification (Diller 2011, p.39). The gender-neutral approach (the perceives organizational culture as gender and race free) inherent in most organizations can be considered as biased given that gender and ethnicity issues cannot stand independent of, or neutral of social group’s privileges, differences, and inequities. Organizations that claim to be “equal opportunity employers” and anticipate that women or ethnic minorities would have to “fit in” the organizational culture can be perceived as driven by “taken for granted assumptions (Davidson 1997, p.3). In most cases, ethnic minority brought up to be competitive and assertive shaped by childhood experiences. However, in some instances, the assertive and competitive behaviours expected at the job may contrast with cultural expectations and diverse modes of information transmission (Davidson 1997, p.21). Gender and Racio-ethnicity in the Management Literature The women within management literature over the last two decades have legitimized the inclusion of gender within an organization and management scholarships and established significance (Davidson 1997, p.3). White women, who for a large part established this literature, believed that their findings were applicable to all women and failed to appreciate that that racio-ethnicity make up gendered identities (Steele 1997, p.613). Group distinctiveness remains mirrored within culturally-specific understandings of gender and gender differences, and member of non-white groups may equally be culturally pluralistic given that their lives mediate their own culture (Yeandle 2009, p.78). As a result, the management literature can be considered as gender-conscious, but racio-ethnically blind. Several significant trends have been emerging: first, studies on women in management globally acknowledge of cultural factors in analyzing women’s status and progress toward managerial position (Yeandle 2009, p.79). Second, gender-organizations system approach asserts that culture is a critical factor within the understanding of people and organizations. Emerging perspectives to liberal feminist perspective within social sciences such as “post-colonial” analysis avail relevant and more suitable insights for issues of racio-ethnicity and gender within contemporary organizations. Such approaches question the frozen and standardized categories that perpetuate stereotypes, outline historical and cultural factors as essential research components that impact on gender roles, and deconstruct racio-ethnic identities (Shelley 2001, p.1691). Mainstream and Ethnic Minority Women Cultures In order to establish the analysis of women’s experiences, it is essential to compare the key features of the mainstream cultures and ethnic minority culture. The two categories, mainstream culture and ethnic minority culture represent social constructs that have fluid and permeable boundaries and variations. Cultural differences with relationship to work behaviour have largely been studied mostly in cross-national contexts. Some of key aspects of work behaviour utilized in the majority of the analysis include achievement, competition, motivation, orientation to time, and interpersonal interactions (Heilman 2001, p.657). Furthermore, discriminatory behaviours and prejudicial attitudes impact on women’s work behaviour. Theoretical Framework Different theoretical approaches (functionalism, structuralism, and Marxism) mirror diverse positions in the debate regarding cultural dimension affecting ethnic minority. These approaches remain grounded in the belief that social structures determine the characteristics and actions of individuals. In theorizing race, ethnicity, and gender, it is essential to bear in mind that these remain socially constructed terms; therefore, ethnic minority women can be considered as social actors within social institutions and structures. Ethnic minority women’s career life cannot be examined within a vacuum since it impacts significantly on the ethnic women’s broader life experiences (Konrad 2006, p.333). Personal world in this case encompasses aspects such as family life, family responsibility, and community expectations. Placing Ethnic Minority within Feminist Literature Feminist thought has been central in discussing inequality between the sexes, sexuality, and violence against women. Feminism (categorized into radical, Marxist, liberal, and dual-systems approach) had a consensus over fundamental issues such as a commitment to emancipation of women and women’s oppression (Madsen 2000, p.65). White western feminist literature has largely neglected the fact that gender and class processes can impact on women from diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds. The concept of patriarchy is prominent within feminist literature and delineates a system of social structures and practices where men dominate, exploit, and oppress women. Overall, the theories of patriarchy have presumed a universality of women while at the same time overlooking race, ethnicity, and class and the potential that ethnic minority women may possess diverse experiences of subordination and disadvantage owing to their “race” and ethnicity (Madsen 2000, p.66). Culture, structure, and agency are interconnected dimensions that, although they can be defined and analysed individually, the three are difficult to disentangle in practice (Rubinstein 2001, p.1)). This make it essential to analyze the careers of ethnic minority women within an interactionist framework that embraces the structure of organization, inclusive of families; the organizational structure and ethnic minority women’s cultural background, as well as the agency and determination of ethnic minority women to attain career advancement. Stereotypes Stereotyping entails the process of placing an individual within a certain group and linking a set of characteristics to the individual on the grounds of the group membership. In relation to ethnic minority women, the perseverance of stereotypes within the society that view ethnic minorities as being inferior to the mainstream white culture appears to be perpetuated forward to the workplace (Karsten 2006, p.143). Stereotyping and the identities that are ascribed to individuals emanate from the interplay between an individual’s views on diverse cultures and gender roles. These stereotypes are “alive and well” in contemporary society. Ethnic minority women remain frequently stereotyped as being either aggressive or timid. The racial and sexual stereotypes mainly posses a direct impact in the manner in which ethnic minority groups are perceived, plus the roles expected to adopt and subsequently the opportunities given to them. For instance, Asian women’s cultural and religious background is sometimes employed in stereotyping the women as submissive and lacking career ambitions, which, consequently, has negative repercussions on the women’s career opportunities (Karsten 2006, p.142).. A parliamentary report released in 2010 established that ethnic minority women face job crisis, and in some instances remove hijab or make their names sound more English to beat discrimination. Stereotypes based on religion have also registered as central for Muslim people in the West. Islamophobia has sometimes yielded to the exclusion of Muslims being excluded from the economic, public life, and social life as victims of discrimination and harassment due to inter-lined facets (cultural, racial, religious, national origin, and national origin). For instance, the wearing of the hijab by Muslim working women at the workplace has sometimes made the subjects be perceived as passive or as fundamentalist (Hicks 2003, p.176). Stereotyping can impact negatively on ethnic women’s confidence since ethnic minorities may internalize the negative evaluations and stereotypes to the extent that they limit themselves, and refuse future opportunities due to the anxiety that they will not succeed. The internalizing of racial and sexual stereotypes may be connected to the “fear-of-success” imagery that bear a detrimental impact on ethnic minority women confidence, and subsequently, their career aspirations and ambitions (Wilson 2003, p.65). Ethnic minority women feel that they have to downplay their own cultural identity and embrace a white value system, as a means of getting ahead (Wilson 2003, p.66). Some of successful strategies employed by ethnic minority women within the workplace include risk taking so as to gain attention of the upper management; campaigning, in instances in which self-promotion is central; networking, and mentoring. Ethnic minority women sometimes face challenges in their pursuit of finding a mentor. This is indicative of an organization’s structural and cultural constraints (Clewell and Campbell 2002, p.255). In most cases, ethnic minority women are less likely to possess powerful and influential network connections, which may hamper investment and sponsoring of women by network members. The exclusion of ethnic minority women from crucial social networks may yield lower levels of access to organization information and in barriers to the development of strategic alliances (Collinson, Knights, and Collinson 1990, p.59). Family and Community Responsibilities The experiences of working ethnic minority women should not approached in isolation devoid of acknowledging ethnic minority women’s personal experiences with regard to their religion, culture, and family. Based on aspects such as domestic labour, gender relations, and household structure, there are diverse experiences across racial and ethnic groups, which extend to ethnic minority women’s experiences (Connor 1972, p.319). Households may be a source of support for ethnic minority women, especially for those women who are powerless and oppressed. In some instances such as within South Asian communities, the primacy of the family over the individual with a strong emphasis being laid in childrearing and family interaction patterns. Furthermore, some ethnic minority women are expected to carry the responsibility of sustaining the family honour by behaving in a suitable and responsible manner. Nevertheless, it is critical to note that all families, including Afro-Caribbean, African, white and South Asian can either be a source of oppression or resistance for women (Schiek and Lawson 2011, p.30). Living in two Worlds Research has reinforced the contention that a significant factor of stress for ethnic minority women emanate from the perception of living within the two separate worlds: the white world at work and the personal world at home. This experience has sometimes been labelled as “bicultural stress” denoting the “set of emotional and physical upheavals generated by a bicultural existence.” Ethnic minority women are expected to manage two distinct lives so as to survive within the dominant white corporate world, while simultaneously remaining loyal to their own community (Muller 1998, p.4). In most instances, the circumstances dictate that, for ethnic minority women to be successful managers, they ought to adopt a fresh identity and abandon commitment to their old culture (Demos and Segal 1994, p.115). The tensions may be exacerbated by the fact that the ethnic minority women’s own communities may view them as traitors, when they attempt to fit within the white dominant culture of their organizations. This embodies the challenges generated by the dual role encountered by most working women, especially those that have their own family (Essed 2000, p.888). Nevertheless, in the context of ethnic minority women, the challenges generated within that dimension worsened by the inclusion of the inter-linked issues of race and ethnicity, and frequently more fundamental aspects of religion and social culture advanced to bear on the career-oriented ethnic minority women (Leon 1995, p.253). Ethnic minority women expected to work within white male dominated organizations and expected to adhere to own-community expectations and respond to the additional pressures as women and mothers, which can be a significant source of stress. Empirical work undertaken in this area has demonstrated that the majority of working ethnic women occupy lower levels of the organizational hierarchy, and frequently face racial and gender stereotypes that remain habitually aggravated by stereotypical perceptions regarding their culture (Kamenou 2008, p.99). Working ethnic minority women encounter problems identifying mentors and frequently excluded from influential networks. Discussions on gender within the labour market have frequently ignored ethnic minority women’s experiences, and arrived at naive assumptions regarding homogeneity among all women (Giele and Stebbins 2003, p.259). The discussions have paid much less attention to issues linked to race, ethnicity, and culture. In most cases, the experiences of ethnic minority women within the labour market are diverse from those of their white counterparts owing to the racist structures embedded within the institutions. Ethnic women’s experience within the workplace can be regarded as distinct and differentiated essentially because of ethnicity and the national origin of the diverse groups of ethnic minority women (Giele and Stebbins 2003, p.260). This emanates from the interplay of factors such as class, age, gender, and race that generate a multiplicity of discriminations, especially the manner in which patriarchal ideologies intervene at the economic level (Perone, Sedlackr and Alexander 2001, p.168). Organizational cultures and the processes that shape gender identities manifest diverse implications for the ethnic minority women formed with specific cultural and historical setting (Konrad 2006, p.33). Ethnic minority women have diverse experiences within the labour market and face diverse constraints and draw from diverse resources so as to deal with discrimination and disadvantage. Careers of Ethnic Minority Women Labour market research on women has characteristically disregarded ethnic minority women’s experiences within the workplace (Kamenou and Fearfull 2006, p.154). Ethnic minority women managers are under-represented within a majority of organizations, especially at the middle and higher managerial levels, characteristically occupying lower non-managerial positions (Davidson and Burke 2000, p.229). Ethnic minority women frequently face a stronger barrier that the glass-ceiling compared to their white counterparts (Patton and McMahon 2006, p.136; Nunez-Smith et al. 2012, p.852). Ethnic minority can be regarded as confronted by a concrete ceiling based on the fact that, their progression opportunities remain blocked to such a level that senior positions are invisible to them (Ward and Bingham 1993, p.246). Furthermore, the concrete ceiling can be slow to the degree that ethnic minority women located on a “sticky floor” in which any form of advancement is absent (Kamenou and Fearfull 2006, p.154). It is essential to acknowledge the interaction between culture, agency, and structure. Empirical evidence has indicated that both white and ethnic minority women struggle with keeping their work and personal life demands at equilibrium (Ward and Bingham 1993, p.247). This makes is critical to understand the diversity within groups to avert essentializing experiences and needs (Archer 1996, p.288). By embracing diverse forms of life, a more practical analysis can feature, which inform organizational policy and practice. Conclusion Ethnic minority women have come to understand their roles within the workplace by the concisely defined positions that they inhabit both at home and work. In the workplace, ethnic minority women may be thrown into an environment in which they are not only unsure of how to play the game, but also feel that they do not belong in a place frequently perceived as reserved for the whites. This is true of working ethnic minority women who expected to balance the workplace demands and their personal world at home. Minority ethnic women pursue to locate their own experience within the workplace setting. Since ethnic minority women have long been left out of the white world at work, being capable of making connections between their personal worlds at home, and to make sense of a world where working ethnic minority women feel like strangers. There is a need for a broader, more diverse approach to the life component of the work life equation. This is explored within the context of ethnic minority women’s experiences in balancing the two worlds, based on the understanding of lives that may be fall beyond the standard western model. Hence, it is essential to question the present understandings of work life balance debates that dwell almost exclusively on gender and childcare while at the same time disregarding issues centring on ethnicity, culture, and religion. Employers should communicate positive messages to their potential employees and set the right standard that embraces ethnicity and race. 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