Gender and the Education-Employment Paradox in Ethnic and Religious Contexts: The Case of Arab Americans

Read, Jen’nan Ghazal and Sharon Oselin. 2008. American Sociological Review 73:296-313.

In most population groups, higher levels of education among women are usually linked with increased employment rates. However, Arab American women have higher educational attainments but lower employment rates than most other groups of U.S. women. In this study, Read and her colleague use ethnographic field notes and in-depth interviews to explore the cultural frameworks underlying this paradox. They engage with members of a church and of a mosque, interviewing Arab men and women of various ages and birthplaces. The researchers find that their interviewees universally support women’s education, but they see it not as an investment in their future careers, but rather a resource to strengthen their families and community.

Both men and women expressed the belief that women are responsible for passing down moral, cultural, and religious values to the next generation, preventing the breakdown of family that they see as characteristic of the West. Younger, U.S.-born women were more likely to say that it was acceptable for a woman to be employed as long as it did not interfere with family responsibilities; however, they themselves did not or did not plan to work outside the home once they had children. This study demonstrates the importance of cultural frameworks, not just resources (such as education), in the development and maintenance of gender roles.