Poonam Barhoi1, Manan Pathak2 and Ranjeet Nambudiri3
1Institute of Management Technology Ghaziabad, 2 UPES Dehradun, 3 Indian Institute of Management Indore
Within rural development nonprofits in India, women professionals find themselves navigating the complex intersection of professional identity and traditional caregiving roles. While the unique socioeconomic conditions of the Global South have created opportunities for women to work in rural development nonprofits in India, obstacles exist in the form of gendered social expectations. Our recent study in NVSQ examines the experiences of such women professionals, who live in the liminality between ‘ideal professional identity’ and ‘traditional caregiving identity’. The study, which involved in-depth interviews with 21 women professionals working in rural development nonprofits across seven states in India, revealed that this liminal state is a source of significant identity conflicts. Our findings suggest that women professionals experience constant guilt due to the conflicting obligations of caregiving and professional worker identities and their inability to justify both roles to themselves.
In this blog feature, we explore how they use various identity works and performative practices to resolve the struggles arising from conflicting obligations. By ‘identity work’ we refer to the ongoing process individuals engage in to construct, negotiate, and maintain their sense of self, especially in relation to social roles. Identity works are also performative actions as individuals undertake these practices to create and maintain identity, which demands a continuous performance of routine (such as gendered clothing), discursive (such as shifting identifying as a working mother vs ideal professional), and verbal and nonverbal (such as gendered body language). Performative identity works can sometimes be unintentional or unreflexive on the part of the actors as well.
Why the Rural Development Nonprofit Sector in India?
India’s rural areas are often characterized by poverty, gender discrimination, and caste-based inequalities. Nonprofit organizations play a crucial role in addressing these issues through grassroots interventions. Over the years, the rural development sector has witnessed increased participation from women, driven by a desire to promote social change and gender equality. These women professionals often engage directly with rural communities, conducting workshops, facilitating discussions, and working to empower marginalized groups.
However, the sector is not without its challenges. As such, nonprofits in India are characterized by higher rates of attrition among women and a lack of women in leadership roles. Gendered social expectations continue to shape women’s experiences in the workplace, particularly in a society where caregiving is traditionally viewed as women’s responsibility. This creates a unique context for understanding the liminal experiences of women professionals in this sector.
Struggles in Liminality
Liminality refers to a state of being “in-between” or in transition between different roles or identities. For the women in our study, liminality manifests as a constant negotiation between their professional and caregiving identities. On one hand, they are expected to embody the “ideal professional” – dedicated, driven, and fully committed to their work. On the other hand, societal norms dictate that they fulfil the “traditional caregiver” role for the well-being of families. We found that the state of liminality arises from the conflicting obligations that they have to manage, and this duality often leads to feelings of guilt on account of their inability to justify the conflicting obligations. While at work, when engaged in the professional worker identity, they experienced guilt for not devoting enough time to their families and children. In the caregiving role, they felt guilty for not extending themselves at work. One of the respondents shared:
“After my marriage, there were expectations from my in-law’s family to spend more time at their house. I did not get any rest due to the work schedule and household chores. I had many responsibilities at work, I was the most senior in my team.”
Women often find themselves overburdened with caregiving responsibilities, even when household duties are shared. Despite advancements in gender equality, caregiving is still primarily seen as women’s responsibility, adding to the pressure women face in balancing work and family life. In the rural development nonprofit sector, these challenges are compounded by the demanding nature of the work. Long hours, frequent travel to fields (remote rural cites), and the need to engage with stakeholders frequently (stakeholders also prefer male professionals at times) all contribute to the difficulties women face. Moreover, for many women professionals, the sector has more significance than a mere livelihood as it enables them to derive meaning and satisfaction from contributing to the community. While the process of becoming a caregiver mostly after marriage is a transition for women, the liminality state among women professionals in nonprofits depicts perpetual liminality, where women undertake multiple switches between roles every day, which involves responding to conflicting loyalties and obligations constantly. However, the constant switch between identities results in a state of guilt among many. As shared by a participant:
“When I was going home every two hours for breastfeeding after childbirth, I felt guilty that I was taking out so much time for my baby. I had a fear of what people would think if I went home so frequently. Will I be seen as unprofessional? Then sometimes I used to get calls from community women about their local engagements in meetings and livelihood work, I felt bad when I could not visit them on their important days.”
Identity Work and Performative Practices
To come out of this in-between state of conflicting loyalties, women engage in various performative and identity work practices. This identity work often involves performative practices, where women adopt certain behaviours or strategies to align with societal expectations or to assert their professional identities. For example, in our study, we found that some women may adopt a more masculine style of leadership to gain recognition in a male-dominated work environment. Others form support groups with fellow women professionals to share experiences and strategies for coping with the demands of their dual roles. In some cases, women also engage in “patriarchal bargaining” – where women within their socio-cultural constraints apply agency to bargain with a few social roles and norms to maximize their choices. The patriarchal bargaining choices are influenced by gender and intersectional subjectivities of class, caste, ethnicity, etc.
For example, a participant shared that she used to face resistance from her family and lack of acceptance when choosing a career in rural development nonprofits. She initially tried to convince her family that she was doing noble work. The parents were concerned that she would not get married if she continued working in the sector. After three years of work, she got married to a colleague who was also working in the same location. After her marriage, resistance from her family was reduced.
In such negotiations, women may not challenge the patriarchal norms often, but they co-opt the existing socio-cultural expectations.
On the other hand, the concept of performativity (as discussed by Butler), suggests that identity is not fixed but is constantly being created and reinforced through actions and behaviours. In the context of this study, performative practices help women navigate the liminal space between their professional and caregiving identities. These practices may involve “doing gender” – performing actions that align with traditional gender roles – or “undoing gender” – challenging and subverting these roles. For instance, a woman may perform her caregiving identity by identifying as a working mother and emphasizing her family responsibilities. At the same time, she may “undo” traditional gender norms by taking on leadership roles or challenging sexist behaviours in the workplace. These performative practices allow women to assert their identities in ways that are both socially acceptable and personally meaningful.
Implications
The findings of this study have important implications for nonprofit organizations, particularly those working in rural development. To support women professionals in navigating the challenges of liminality, organizations need to prioritize gender-sensitive policies and practices such as having crèche rooms at the workplace, post pregnancy support for women, transparent policies for equitable treatment, formalizing support groups (caucus), flexible work arrangements, sensitization of male colleagues about women’s liminal state and societal responsibilities. Moreover, there is a need for greater awareness and dialogue among professionals in nonprofits around the unique struggles faced by women in the nonprofit sector. By acknowledging the dual identities of women professionals and creating spaces for them to share their experiences, organizations can foster a more inclusive and supportive work environment.
Click here to read the free full-text article: Barhoi, P., Pathak, M., & Nambudiri, R. (2024). Liminality of Professional Identity and Caregiving Identity Among Women Professionals Working in Rural Development Nonprofits in India. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/08997640241278617
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