How Muslim women living in Britain construct their identities in relation to the dominant (British) culture

Naveed, Alena (2014) How Muslim women living in Britain construct their identities in relation to the dominant (British) culture. Manchester Metropolitan University. (Unpublished)

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Abstract

Building upon past research this study aimed to identify the different cultural factors that play a part in the everyday lives of British Muslim women in Britain, in order to gain an insight into how they maintain their own cultural identity, whilst integrating into the Western society. In order to collect the data, six semi structured interviews were carried out with British Muslim women living in Britain between the ages of 18-26. Thematic analysis was utilized in order to analyse the data. Three themes emerged from the data set: 1. Cultural expectations (with the subthemes: A. Family honour B. Stereotypes C. Dress D. Mate selection). 2. Gender inequality. 3. Balancing cultures. From this research and literature review, it can be suggested that Muslim communities embedded in Western societies are entangled in complex multifaceted debates concerning their self construal and culture. Limitations and implications of the research are discussed.