Generational and Cultural Changes in Family Life in the United Arab Emirates: A Comparison of Mothers and Daughters

Abstract

An exploratory study of daughters and their mothers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), guided by modernity theory is reported. The UAE has come from a desert nomadic culture to a high tech oil rich nation in just the past 40 years and is a key place to assess the impact of rapid development and fast paced transformations on family life. Differences and trends in gender and family role attitudes, child care practices, cultural values, perceptions about religion, and beliefs toward fertility practices were compared between matched pairs of daughters and mothers. Many traditional beliefs and customs still exist in the UAE, but major shifts in attitudes toward marriage and family life were observed. Some of the major changes include: daughters plan to choose their husbands and to marry much later in life than their mothers did, daughters will have a formal higher education, whereas most mothers did not have access to higher education, daughters were born in modern medical facilities while mothers were born in a home or a desert tent, and most of the daughters plan to have a professional career while nearly all mothers were full time home makers. There is agreement, however, between mothers and daughters regarding the belief that faith in Islam will protect their children from future problems.

Muslim Women's Physician Preference: Beyond Obstetrics and Gynecology

“…The present study suggests that while education and literacy may contribute to increasing flexibility in terms of some practices in health care, for example, a physician not needing to be being Muslim, the cultural context of the UAE (i.e., gender segregation) might continue to reinforce the reported "requirement" for a female doctor for medical problems involving areas of the body Islam requires to be covered. Education and increasing female employment may, however, contribute to relaxation of patriarchal attitudes toward traditional gender roles (Damji & Lee, 1995;Schvaneveldt et al, 2005). Although two generations of women in Schvaneveldt and colleagues' (2005) study (college students and their mothers) perceived Islam and family as foundations that would guide their nation with its rich desert history through the current social revolution, in view of the value attached to education (Ridge, 2009) and the large numbers of Emirati women entering the labor market (Nelson, 2004), the traditional Emirati family and its patriarchal values will soon find themselves at a crossroad.…”

“…Despite 40 years of modernization and development in the UAE, a country in which only ±15% of the population is comprised of indigenous inhabitants, a deep devotion to the theology of Islam has largely ensured the preservation of traditional Emirati culture and values (Schvaneveldt et al, 2005). The present study suggests that while education and literacy may contribute to increasing flexibility in terms of some practices in health care, for example, a physician not needing to be being Muslim, the cultural context of the UAE (i.e., gender segregation) might continue to reinforce the reported "requirement" for a female doctor for medical problems involving areas of the body Islam requires to be covered.…”

“…While UAE leaders strove to ensure a healthy, modern, and educated society, they have also tried to preserve its cultural traditionalism and religious conservatism, placing considerable emphasis on religion to protect the country's tribal inheritance. Despite considerable social and political changes over the past 4 decades, which have culminated in, for example, Emirati women accounting for 70% of university enrolment (Ridge, 2009) and competing successfully in the labor market (Nelson, 2004), the country's patriarchal ideology persists (Al Seyegh, 2004;Schvaneveldt et al, 2005;Winslow & Honein, 2007). In line with the traditional religious, social, and cultural norms of most Islamic societies (Badawi, 1971), girls have been socialized into the nurturing roles of wife and mother, while males are regarded as breadwinners and may head extended polygamous families (Schvaneveldt et al, 2005;Winslow & Honein, 2007).…”

“…Despite considerable social and political changes over the past 4 decades, which have culminated in, for example, Emirati women accounting for 70% of university enrolment (Ridge, 2009) and competing successfully in the labor market (Nelson, 2004), the country's patriarchal ideology persists (Al Seyegh, 2004;Schvaneveldt et al, 2005;Winslow & Honein, 2007). In line with the traditional religious, social, and cultural norms of most Islamic societies (Badawi, 1971), girls have been socialized into the nurturing roles of wife and mother, while males are regarded as breadwinners and may head extended polygamous families (Schvaneveldt et al, 2005;Winslow & Honein, 2007). In the gendersegregated UAE society, as in other patriarchal societies, men are perceived as the protectors of women who, until recently, had little opportunity to interact outside the family.…”

“…Following the discovery of oil in 1958, the United Arab Emirates, a federation of seven emirates formed in 1971, has undergone dramatic modernization, impacting on the country's political and economic systems and its social Downloaded by [New York University] at 00:55 06 October 2014 fabric (Al Seyegh, 2004;Schvaneveldt, Kerpelman, & Schvaneveldt, 2005). In a mere 40 years, the Emirati population, a nation of Bedouins, pearl-divers, and traders, has been catapulted into a world of mechanization, technology, and development.…”