Being Young, Muslim, and Female: Youth Perspectives on the Intersection of Religious and Gender Identities

Abstract

Grounded in cultural developmental and critical gender perspectives, this study focuses on the narratives of early adolescent Muslim females. The mixed‐methods study sample included 26 individuals who identify as Muslim and female and was designed to understand the strengths and challenges they face from a youth‐centered and ecologically valid perspective as they negotiate normative developmental experiences (e.g., participating in sports, developing a personal style in terms of dress) given the religious meaning of the onset of puberty. Youth described a wide range of personal, peer, family, and faith based support that they draw on, but also outlined societal and family related challenges. The manuscript concludes with future directions for developmental science scholarship and implications for practitioners and families.

Religious development across adolescence and early adulthood.

“…Some dimensions of religiosity, such as negative religious coping (e.g., feeling abandoned or punished by God) and doubt, tend to be more maladaptive (e.g., Kézdy et al, 2011). Further, ethnic, cultural, religious, and sexual minorities sometimes experience difficulties from religiosity (e.g., Abo-Zena, 2019;Dahl & Galliher, 2012). These difficulties for minorities can stem from lack of support from the religious community and family, internal tension between seemingly incompatible identities, and pragmatic challenges of living in a world more tailored to the majority group.…”

Time-varying and gender differences in religious socialization and associations with Muslim American adolescents’ religious identity.

“…One explanation for the opposite patterns in our study, with girls reporting higher religious socialization levels during early adolescence, could be that mothers begin to transmit religious socialization messages to their daughters during the preadolescence or even childhood years. The onset of puberty, which is slightly earlier—and with menarche, more discrete—for girls (Brix et al, 2019), marks an important transition point from being considered a child to holding adult-like religious accountability among Muslims (Abo-Zena, 2019). Mothers may engage in greater socialization messages, particularly toward their daughters, during the early or prepubertal period to prepare and ensure that their daughters are aware of their religious responsibilities.…”

“…Muslim American mothers may also increase religious socialization messages during adolescence for religious reasons. Puberty marks a time when youth transition toward adult-like accountability in the Islamic faith (Abo-Zena, 2019). During this period, Muslim American mothers may talk more about religion with their children to prepare them for their religious responsibilities.…”

Restrictions on Pakistani Female Students’ Participation in Sports: A Statistical Model of Constraints

“…Despite these benefits of sports participation, many people fail to participate in such activities, especially women. It was observed in the literature that the restrictions faced by women in sports participation are similar around the world and include inadequate facilities, gender inequality, low government/ sports federation funding for women, religious limitations, insufficient expert coaches for women athletes, insufficient females in main administrative positions, and a lack of permission from one's parents (especially in Muslim countries) (Abo-Zena, 2019;Ahmad, 2015; 1 Hubei Normal University, Huangshi, China 2 Beijing Normal University, China 3 Beijing University of Technology, China 4 Nanjing Normal University, China Walseth & Strandbu, 2014). Muslim women make up one-fifth of the world's female population but often do not participate in physical activities, including national events and international games such as the Olympics, Commonwealth, and Asian Games (see Laar, Shi, et al, 2021;Lenneis & Pfister, 2017;Limoochi & Le Clair, 2011).…”