What Does It Mean to Be a Woman? An Exploratory Study of Femininities among Mazandarani, Azeri and Kurdish Female University Students in Iran

Bibliographic Data

ID5933112
AuthorsL Rahbari (0000-0002-3840-708X, Ghent University, corresponding author), Zeinab Mahmudabadi (Independent Sociologist, 15598 Tehran, Iran)
Year2017
Volume6
Issue3
Pages98
Publication date2017-08-25
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSocial Sciences (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2076-0760 • E-ISSN: 2076-0760
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/socsci6030098
OpenAlexW2746590925
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited16

This exploratory study investigated women's perceptions of femininity among Mazandarani, Azeri and Kurdish female university students in Iran. The study was conducted using interviews with sixteen female university students. Analysis of interviews revealed that three main components predicted general understandings of the concept of femininity: personality traits such as emotionality and dependency, engaging in domestic and caregiving activities in private spaces, and beauty and sexual competition as intrinsic feminine attributes. There was also a general tendency among participants to approach femininity from metaphysical and biological essentialist approaches. Based on the extracted components and interviewees' articulation of the concept, four types of femininity were recognized: passive, traditional, independent and active. Passive femininity was observed among Azeri and Kurdish students; traditional and independent types existed among students of all three groups and active femininity was observed in the Mazandarani students group. Findings suggest that despite the persisting traditional perceptions and despite differences between student groups, the traditional perceptions of femininity have undergone great transformations in all groups of university students, and the traditional model has been widely re-conceptualized. Based on results, we discuss that it is more accurate to speak of femininities, rather than femininity as a singular and homogeneous concept

Developmental psychology · Femininity · Perception · Sociology · Gender Diversity and Inequality · Gender Roles and Identity Studies · Gender Studies · Gender, Feminism, and Media · Psychology · Social Psychology

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