PLACE IN RETURN BOX to remove this checkout from your record.
TO AVOID FINES return on or before date due.
MAY BE RECALLED with earlier due date if requested.

 

DATE DUE DATE DUE DATE DUE

 

”A

{2" Lb
H ""1 I? z
I v LL 4 H L

 

r F" V (T

k
7.7 ‘ 9 .
Febrgazzoo’t

 

ﬂit 12 £3635}

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6’01 cJCIRC/DateDue.p65-p. 15

THE INTERSECTION OF RELIGION AND PARENTAL INFLUENCES
IN SHAPING FEMALE IDENTITY

By

Linda S. Behrendt

A DISSERTATION
Submitted to Michigan State University
In partial fulﬁllment of the requirements
For the degree of
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
Department of Family and Child Ecology

2001

 

 

THE {I

Tree.
VB!

I
'2'“ .s.
Ut’l'vl
l

”he 6. a
‘ E a
b‘Ul . :

(-1".
(l5
‘
("I
(I)
..' '
i

ABSTRACT

THE INTERSECTION OF RELIGION AND PARENTAL INFLUENCES IN
SHAPING FEMALE IDENTITY

By

Linda S. Behrendt

The purpose of this study was to explore the inﬂuences of church culture and
family of origin on the development of female gender identity. This study posited
that the speciﬁc components of female identity thought to be inﬂuenced by
religion and parental inﬂuences were spiritual strengths and resources, self-
concept, and gender ideology. The focus of data collection came from mainline
Christian denominations—Baptist, Episcopalian, Lutheran, Methodist, and
Presbyterian. lnformants consisted of twenty late adolescent women, mainly
Caucasian, between the ages of eighteen and twenty-two who were currently
enrolled in college.

Two theoretical foundations guided the study: human ecology theory with a
focus on human development as a joint function of the person and the
environment as asserted by Bronfenbrenner, and the feminist theory of Deaux
and Major. In this triangulated qualitative study, the informants participated in a
semi-structured, open-ended interview with the researcher, and also created a
spiritual ecomap.

Five key themes were evinced in the analysis of the data, as factors
contributing to female identity development. Doctrinal stance, church activities,

the relationship of spiritual leaders, relationship to God, and family expression of

633* we

Iﬁf‘f‘r
HUN V

any,
‘5.

ll!
(I)

t,

‘

v»;

faith were consistent themes woven through the interview data. Data analysis
supported that these ﬁve themes played a role in shaping the informants’ spiritual
strengths and resources, their self-concept, and their gender ideology, which,
together, created their gender identity. While this study showed the awareness
of parents regarding their inﬂuence of spiritual beliefs within their families, the
messages conveyed through church culture and practice appeared to go
unnoﬁced.

Analysis of data in this study has suggested several questions worthy of
further research. This study examined only mainline Christian denominations,
and participants were mainly Caucasian; therefore, the inclusion of
denominations beyond the bounds of mainline Christianity would increase the
likelihood of participants from a variety of ethnicities. Secondly, the inclusion of
parents in the interview process would allow for the investigation of the
relationship between church and family, speciﬁcally how the church influences
the family’s day-to-day life. Third, future research needs to be designed sot hat
information regarding the conﬂicting messages from church and society could be
gathered. Finally, a longitudinal study would provide information regarding the
on-going influence of church and family on gender identity through early

adunhood.

Copyright by
LINDA S. BEHRENDT
2001

To my parents, Alexander and Marjorie Behrendt,
whose love and encouragement have

brought me to this point.

5A" “a:
it. .5 ~

m1. pf:

fairer ‘I

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The completion of a Ph.D. has been a life-long goal for me, and without my
family and friends, I would not have accomplished my goal. They have offered
words and gestures of encouragement, listened to me talk endlessly about my
work, proofread my writing, offered feedback, and always challenged me to go
farther. To my parents, Alexander and Marjorie Behrendt, thank you for teaching
me the importance of determination, and for your love. To my friends Gayle,
Ruth, Barbara, Judy, Sharon, Mary Beth, and Brenda, thank you for
understanding the rhythm of the semester, and for your wisdom and support
during the years I have been a graduate student. Your friendship and love Will
always be cherished.

This research project could not have been carried out without the willingness
of twenty college women to participate in the interview process. Their openness
to the questions, their interest in the subject, and the giving of their time was
invaluable to me. I learned a great deal from the short time I spent with each of
them.

I have had a very positive experience as a student at Michigan State
University, and appreciate the interactions I had while a student in the College of
Human Ecology. I grew intellectually and professionally as a result of my student
tenure there, and my experience‘has had a great influence on my professional
life. The faculty of the Department of Family and Child Ecology were especially

inﬂuential. In particular, my committee members, Dr. Barbara Ames, Dr. Joyce

vi

F

w we'

studies

rﬁ09ﬁq
I H UH“

UTI‘E'E

aﬁhﬁ '.'
Wu

Ladenson and Dr. Francisco Villarruel, who guided my academic experience, and
who were each so willing to meet with me. Dr. Ames introduced me to family
studies as well as to key researchers, and encouraged me to be involved in the
National Council on Family Relations. Dr. Ladenson nurtured my interest in
women’s studies and feminist theory; she expanded my perspectives through the
introduction of what have become some of my favorite feminist writers. Dr.
Villarruel consistently challenged my thinking, and encouraged me to step out
beyond the boundaries of my own comfort intellectually and theoretically.

l valued my relationship with my advisor, Dr. Marsha Carolan. We were
introduced in the fall of 1995, when we were both new to Michigan State
University. Dr. Carolan was always available, helpful, understanding, and
encouraging; she was thorough and consistent in offering feedback, through
which I honed my writing skills. I experienced a rich learning environment in the
independent study courses that Dr. Carolan willingly committed her time and
energy to. I appreciated her support for the theoretical as well as the practical

aspects of the Ieaming process.

vii

LBTOF'

LBTOFI

‘ 4
6:“;‘9' -
Ubh"

CfaCZE'
RE‘V'IE‘V'.

‘F.Pf\1n
' “l V ‘

lQ‘A
'vud
PSyo
F951

Fe"?
T55:

—'
5-
(D

-7 _

Y.) (J
(1‘) (D 1'

OO

O

in

m (D
(n
(1)

"TC—70:17

:‘A
u_:
n‘.
., ‘2
"L.
V ,:r*.
EL ‘ar
a- \-
Rb. s
"s p.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES ............................................. ix
LIST OF FIGURES ............................................ x
Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION ............................................. 1
Signiﬁcance of the Study .................................... 1
Need for the Study .......................................... 3
Research Questions ......................................... 8
Conceptual Deﬁnitions ....................................... 8
Overview of Subsequent Chapters .............................. 10
Chapter 2
REVIEW OF LITERATURE ...................................... 11
Introduction ................................................ 1 1
Historical Perspectives on Adolescent Identity Development .......... 11
Psychological Perspectives on Identity Development ............... 15
Feminist Perspectives on Identity Development .................... 19
Feminist Theology ........................................... 26
Theoretical Perspectives ...................................... 35
Ecological Systems Theory ............................... 37
Deaux’s Interactive Model ................................ 4O
Blended Theory ........................................ 44
Conceptual Map ............................................ 47
Theoretical Definitions ....................................... 49
Summation ................................................ 51
Chapter 3
RESEARCH METHODS ........................................ 52
Research Design ........................................... 52
Procedures ................................................ 52
Sample ................................................... 53
Methods .................................................. 57
Operational Map ............................................ 59
Operational Deﬁnitions ....................................... 64
Reseacher as Instrument ..................................... 65
Data Collection ............................................. 67
Data Analysis .............................................. 68
Limitations of the Study ...................................... 70
Chapter 4
RESEARCH FINDINGS ........................................ 71
Overview ................................................. 71

viii

 

Summa'.

Smaq

 

Chaste' S
DISCUSSIC
Otesre'l
T‘EO'E’. :
K8} Fin:
Tr
Tr
Tl

Summary of Results ........................................ 72

Research Question One ................................ 72
Research Question Two ................................ 84
Research Question Three ............................... 97
Research Question Four ................................ 124
Research Question Five ............. . ................... 135
Research Question Six ................................. 146
The Effects of College Experiences on Spiritual Beliefs ........ 150
Summary of Findings ........................................ 153
Chapter 5
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS .............................. 158
Overview ................................................. 158
Theoretical Foundations ...................................... 1 58
Key Findings ............................................... 164

Theme One: The Inﬂuence of the Church’s Doctrinal Stance. . . . 165
Theme Two: The Importance of Involvement in Church Activities.168
Theme Three: The Presence and “Who” of Spiritual Leaders. . . .170
Theme Four: The Relationship With and Perspective of God. . . . 171
Theme Five: The Expression of Spiritual Beliefs Within the

Family .................................... 173
Methodological Issues ....................................... 175
Limitations ................................................. 178
Recommendations for Future Research .......................... 180
Implications ................................................ 182
Summary .................................................. 184
Appendices
APPENDIX A
Interview Questions .......................................... 187
APPENDIX B
Spiritual Ecomap ............................................ 189
APPENDIX C
Contact Summary Form ....................................... 190
APPENDIX D
Informed Consent ............................................ 192
REFERENCES ................................................ 194

Tab-e31

55 a l AI; 79 A4 y 4 :V 6 7 8 1i 2
1e 4 4 4 4 4 4 4. 4 .3 I v
.6. a. e .3. a. a. a» . a. e a. E a.
h by he he as a~ L,» be A» .hw he nu
. .6 .6 AG .3 .G .5 AG 3.- 3 :u a:
v - .I: i 7 T T. TI v; T r . e s l

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3.1 A - Demographic Data .................................... 55
Table 3.18 - Demographic Data .................................... 56

Table 3.2 A - The Relationship Between Research Questions and Interview
Questions ......................................... .60

Table 3.28 - The Relationship Between Research Questions and Interview

Questions .......................................... 61
Table 3.3 - Coding Schemes ....................................... 69
Table 4.1 — Inﬂuence of Church Culture ............................... 85
Table 4.2 — Practices of Church Culture ............................... 96

Table 4.3A — Parental Religious Practices as Inﬂuence on Identity
Development ........................................ 121

Table 4.38 - Parental Religious Practices as Influence on Identity

Development ........................................ 122
Table 4.4 - Family Ecomap Connections ............................. 123
Table 4.5 - Ecomap Spiritual Strengths .............................. 134
Table 4.6 — The Contribution of Self-Concept on Female Adolescent
Gender Identity ........................................ 145
Table 4.7 — Contribution of Gender Ideology to Female Adolescent
Gender Identity ....................................... 151
Table 4.8 — Informants’ College Experiences .......................... 154
Table 5.1 — Linking Research Questions, Codes, and Key Findings ......... 166
Table 5.2 - Difﬁcult Interview Questions .............................. 177

5'8

R

Faxe 2

an a
Cu

an.
pr.

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2.1 — Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Theory of Development ......... 38

Figure 2.2 — A Model of Social Interaction for Gender-Related Behavior ..... 43

Figure 2.3 - Theoretical Map—Bronfenbrenner and Deaux ............... 46
Figure 2.4 — Conceptual Map ...................................... 48
Figure 3.1 - Operational Map ...................................... 62
Figure 5.1 - Conceptual Map ...................................... 162
Figure 5.2 — Revised Conceptual Map ............................... 163

xi

For an acid

CE'ECCXBS a.“

 

53’81'7385 5‘3“
KEG". 83C ‘3

"“ ~"‘r~ a '
45.91:: 3!? a

\- "IF
U“ ‘
..
gee“? A'
“ v.2”
.‘ a
"q
n11.
0“

Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION

Signiﬁcance of the Study

For an adult, ﬁnding one’s place in a world entangled with contradictions,
paradoxes, and misunderstandings is an arduous task; for adolescents, it
sometimes seems impossible. Brown and Gilligan (1992) assert that for young
women, adolescence is a crossroads in women’s development, “a meeting
between girl and woman, an intersection between psychological health and
cultural regeneration, a watershed in women’s psychology” (p.1). Brown and
Gilligan (1992) further declare that women’s voices can be different than men’s;
men speak autonomously, as if they are completely self-govemed, while women
often speak of themselves in relation to others. The implication of a woman’s
different voice is a sense of abandonment of self for the sake of becoming the
good woman in a male-centered world. Most critical studies of adolescence
over-emphasize the male experience, and position gender as secondary to other
issues (Adams, 1994).

Undeniably, gender is the most notable feature of identity, and unconsciously,
it is the ﬁrst category used to deﬁne a person's identity. Labeling someone male
or female serves a fundamental psychological need, and once a person has
been deﬁned as such, some assumptions are automatically made about how he
or she should look and behave (Johnson, 1997). However, how one acquires
gender characteristics is a highly contested theoretical issue. Deﬁning identity as

"a dynamic ﬁtting together of parts of the personality with the realities of the

 

cQaI I

S»

mews

AW

Kim

.1‘

VJ“

TE

O ~
v Hun-n

5333,25:

tier-3::

social world so that a person has a sense of both internal coherence and
meaningful relatedness to the real world" (Grotevant, 1992, p. 73), how does one
know she is female? How does one deﬁne herself as female? What criteria are
engaged to deﬁne what is female? The ramiﬁcations of such decisions
determine to a large degree the substance of women's everyday lives, such as
who will be the breadwinner, who will handle the ﬁnances, who will take off from
work when a child is ill, who will mow the yard, and who will cook dinner.

Almost all children grow up in a family, and undoubtedly family inﬂuences self-
identity. While all families share universal features (eg. to relate with the
external environment), many features of family life are specific to the culture in
which the family lives, such as relationships with extended family, the power
structure within the family, and behavioral expectations for members. Culture
speciﬁc features of families effect the children, who live their daily lives and
develop within numerous social settings, including family, peers, and school,
(Rey, 1997). Cultural inﬂuences from the family of origin also include
involvement in organized religion. Rey (1997) asserts that a family’s participation
in a religious community “often serves to emphasize the family-related values of
the religion, helping to teach values to the children" (p.160). The importance of
socialization experiences (e.g. church attendance) has been documented in its
effect on child-perceived parental encouragement for gender behaviors (Eccles,
Jacobs, & Harold, 1990). Morgan and Scanzoni (1987) found that conservative
religious beliefs were related to traditional gender attitudes. Rey (1997) asserts

that understanding the inﬂuence of religion on the family includes “awareness of

~
vi

V
r-n‘

'A'
Susi.“ u

-IU1\-\I
UGA— :-

AAA. Inn-Au

. 7"
(”side vs
NA." f" ""
UUW-
PU“? A

mien-cs
.4 v-

 

Anv Ci
3. R

5»

different religious afﬁliations within the family, differential participation in ritual,
and degrees of secularization of belief’ (p. 161 ). In addition, Rey (1997)
contends that families who actively participate in organized religion are often
inﬂuenced by the religion’s ideals of family life, including social control via
prohibitions of behaviors thought to undermine the family.

Need for the Study

The role of churches in maintaining traditional gender perspectives has been
documented in several studies (Daly, 1985; DiSalvo, 1984). Religions with a
patriarchal outlook contribute to the distinguishing of rigid male and female
behaviors, which in turn affects the characteristics associated with being a male
or a female (Jenkins, 1991 ). Keysar and Kosmin (1995) found that conservative
religious bodies’ assertion of the inerrancy (literal truth) of the Bible includes the
subordinate status of women and their roles as helpmate and mother (book of
Genesis, Ephesians 5:22-24, 1 Timothy 2:12). Assuming that parents are in
agreement with, and perhaps living according to, the doctrinal position and
teachings on women’s role in the church to which they belong, the potential effect
on gender-identity development becomes apparent.

Research has shown that gender attitudes contribute to women's
interpersonal development. Attitudes based on traditional gender characteristics
have been linked to self-concept, self-esteem, and self-efﬁcacy (Betz, Fitzgerald,
& Farmer, 1988). The same study showed that women who embrace traditional
gender characteristics often circumscribe their vocational opportunities, despite

their potential for success in a wide range of careers. Ossana, Helms, and

lesnard l

have 068

A- ﬁhﬁf‘r

Al!“ as!
U‘U-v \

69'

"P
5...”;

Leonard (1992) found that feelings of competence, self-esteem, and agency
have been related to nontraditional gender roles among women. Many feminist
psychologists and sociologists (e.g. Brown 8 Gilligan, 1992; Pipher, 1994) assert
that at early adolescence girls ﬁnd themselves at a junction in development
because of their gender. The culture they enter does not encourage their
autonomy nor value their abilities, and these messages affect female
adolescents' views of who they are, as well as who and what they can become.

Gender as an issue is intertwined with the nature of authority within the
church. Christian denominations have, historically, been rooted in patriarchy.
Men have directed and formulated the doctrines and rituals of these faiths, and
have governed the structures and practices in local congregations. In addition,
within the Christian church, women have been relegated to a status that is
inferior and subordinate to men. Doctrines of the Christian church have
supported the dominance of men and the subordinate status of women, based on
the biblical presentations of the androcentric symbolism for humanity and God
(Graham, 1996).

As patriarchal institutions, the focus of attention within these church bodies is
primarily on men. This patriarchal church culture uses the male experience to
represent the human experience and its enduring life themes (Johnson, 1997).
Thus, young women grow up in church culture where women’s life experiences
go unrecognized and invalidated. In the past twenty-ﬁve years, the advent of
feminist theology has proven to be a signiﬁcant movement within the Christian

church (Young, 1990). Graham (1996) describes the development of feminist

 

theology 35
373W)?! UDC
inspired by l
mittens

A ‘ f
.‘aae o are.

emenerice
the human I
378009): as
‘Tne :ztlce'
warren. w-

iiIe'EiJ'e a

cert) lJer
38795:

~ 3! inf

I
I

)

(Cg.

b.: P
Q 3” Tar
V\

33%»
L59 . a '
.) OAS:

i553,

theology as “fuelled by the second wave of the modern women’s movement,
drawing upon the theoretical and critical stances of academic feminism, and
inspired by Latin American Liberation Theology,” (p. 2). One of the essential
convictions of feminist theology is its validation of “women's experience” in the
face of androcentric doctrines and traditions (Ruether, 1992).

Historically, theology has claimed to represent all human experience; feminist
theology has countered that claim by identifying and articulating women’s
experience, thus presenting a more inclusive and truly universal representation of
the human experience (Graham, 1996). In asserting the importance of feminist
theology as a primary resource in theological studies, Ruether (1992) asserts,
“The critical principle of feminist theology is the promotion of the full humanity of
women. Whatever denies, diminishes, or distorts the full humanity of women is,
therefore, appraised as not redemptive" (p. 18). The practice of feminist
theology, as opposed to more androcentric dogmas, is fundamental when
examining the inﬂuence of the Christian church on the formation of gender
characteristics in adolescent females.

Studies exist that have examined the role of religion in the shaping of female
identity (Jenkins, 1991; Brown, 1993; Keysar 8 Kosmin, 1995), as well as
parental inﬂuence on identity formation (Grotevant, 1992; Bosma, 1992;
Moshman, 1999; Cross & Madson, 1997). However, there is a paucity of
research regarding the signiﬁcance of both church culture and the family system
as they affect young women’s perception of their spiritual strengths and

resources, and, in turn, their gender identity.

 

It is b
WISE. CO
to the :nf'.
$55197? I."
385.78: a
nneteeh
l‘les:erm
ice-"iffy as
Gifts-EM

The res
”33126 :r‘

WQV‘OH h-
Ulj JG

5" ‘IA
‘H.k ﬁn
“9C, E
iOIE ‘ “PI

It is beyond the scope and purpose of this study to look at all of the factors
which contribute to identity formation in women; therefore the focus was limited
to the inﬂuence of the culture of mainline Christian denominations and the family
system in the development of female gender identity. Adolescence is typically
deﬁned as comprising the second decade of life, that is, ages ten through
nineteen (Moshman, 1999). However, Moshman (1999) notes that “in modern
Western cultures in which a prolonged adolescence is the norm, the beginning of
adolescence is much more clear-cut than the end" (p5). This study examined
identity as it is manifested in late adolescence/early adulthood, deﬁned as ages
eighteen to twenty-two (Arnett, 2000).

The research focus on late adolescence/early adulthood provides great insight
into the inﬂuence of parents and the church on gender identity. Late adolescent
women have ﬁnished secondary school, frequently have left their parents’ home,
and have reached the legal age of adult status in several respects. In addition,
over the past half century, young people in industrialized societies have
increasingly put off marriage and parenthood until their mid-to-Iate twenties (U. S.
Bureau of the Census, 1997). This delay in taking on adult roles has created the
opportunity to explore potential life directions for both college and working
adolescents. Amett (2000) has labeled this time period “emerging adulthood,"
asserting, “Having left the dependency of childhood and adolescence, and
having not yet entered the enduring responsibilities that are normative in
adulthood, emerging adults often explore a variety of possible life directions in

love, work, and worldviews” (p. 469). Kroger (2000) supports Arnett’s belief that

.e 3'
ang
its"

.5.
:9
K:

‘A

.'J

b ..
a\v

P
\

I ah y
*V'Wa
5"" ’5
Vhb'v

n\\
e

haul
"-b

|

~\»

a,»

0|.»

 

late adolescence is a time of continued searching and questioning in the identity
formation process. In discussing inﬂuences in late adolescent development,
Kroger (2000) states, “The majority of late adolescents have begun to search for
comfortable expressions of their sexuality and gender roles" (p.89). For the ﬁrst
time in their young lives, late adolescents have choices before them—whether to
go on to school or take a full-time job, where and what type of college/university
to attend, what to major in, and how to structure their time. The focus of this
study on late adolescence/early adulthood allows for responses from young
women that includes the inﬂuence of their family system as well as the
opportunities they have had to question and seek their own answers in the
process of identity formation.

This research employed the interpretive science mode of inquiry, as it sought
to understand the role of family of origin as well as church culture and practice on
female adolescent gender identity. Using case studies, qualitative methodology
was engaged in the exploration of the inﬂuence of church culture and the family
ecosystem in shaping female identity formation. lnforrnants were chosen from
young women enrolled in a college or university. Pursuing a bachelor’s degree
implies, at least theoretically, preparation for a career in the workforce. Career
falls outside of what some Christian churches propose as the “proper” role for
women (Morgan & Scanzoni, 1987, Daly, 1985, Keysar 8. Kosmin, 1995).
Therefore, female informants considering a career outside of the home informed
the research regarding the inﬂuence of religious convictions on gender identity

formation through recurrent themes, patterns, and behaviors.

 

Tl‘is Qua
presented r
gender era
Lest OTIS \
1 How d:

2 How 6‘

‘A’

How 3

(J)
0
I:

Research Questions

This qualitative research focuses on the inﬂuence of gender expectations as
presented in Christian church culture and the family of origin in affecting the
gender characteristics of the individual adolescent. Therefore, the following
questions were used to guide the research:
1. How does the culture of the church inﬂuence female identity development?
2. How do the practices of the church inﬂuence female identity development?
3. How do parents’ religious practices and beliefs inﬂuence female identity

development?
4. How do spiritual strengths and resources contribute to female identity?
5. How does self-concept contribute to female identity?
6. How does gender ideology contribute to female identity?

Conceptual Deﬁnitions

The following defined concepts are found in the conceptual map:
Church doctrine: The position of a particular denomination that justifies their
system of beliefs regarding Scripture and the practices of faith (Mead/Hill, 1995).
Church culture and practice: Inﬂuenced by church doctrine, culture and practice
are the result of what is believed and valued, and is evinced in the day-to-day life
of worship, education, and recreation of church members.
Mainline Christian churches: Churches which have a “historic consciousness” at
least back to the Reformation (Mead/Hill, 1995).
Women’s ordination: Ofﬁcial recognition by a denomination of the suitability of

women to public pastoral ministry (Graham, 1995).

 

PIP I"‘
v V '

’—

t‘re 33*

U

A
:99»

v No.
5,:

~A

. A

.. “No-
t-HC

Chucph lay leadership: Church members who volunteer by serving as ofﬁcers of
the congregation, on boards and committees, and/or special committees/events
(e.g. building committee).
5mm “Mutally sustaining transactions that link people and
environments, and the decisions that families make to creatively adapt and foster
human development” (Paolucci, in Bubolz and Sontag, 1993, p. 423).
Female Adolescence: Period of development between puberty and maturity
(Moshman, 1999).
Spiritual strengths and resources: The adolescent female’s perceptions of the
rituals that nurture spiritual life, relationship to God, involvement in faith
community, relationship with pastor, and parents’ religious beliefs (Hodge, 2000).
Self-concept: An individual’s self-views, emotions, and motivations, as
inﬂuenced by cultural values, ideals, structures, and practices. (Cross & Madson,
1997)
Gender norms: Multiply determined, highly ﬂexible, and context dependent sex-
differences evinced in social interactions (Deaux & Major, 1987).
Female identity: The fundamental, existential sense of one’s femaleness, an
acceptance of one’s gender as a social-psychological construction that parallels
acceptance of one’s biological sex (Deaux & Major, 1990).
Overview of Subsequent Chapters
In this chapter, the signiﬁcance and need for the study have been brieﬂy

explored, and the research questions were introduced. Chapter Two will explore

DOT- 5'"
Cnanoa

.IG
'3'

tie;
q
CV‘U

both scholarly and theoretical literature that is related to the research questions.
Chapter Three links the research questions and the supporting theories to the
methods that were employed to conduct the qualitative research, explaining the
rationale for each step of the research process. Using charts, graphs, and
narrative, Chapter Four will display and discuss the research ﬁndings. Chapter
Five will summarize the research endeavor, and make recommendations for
further research regarding the inﬂuence of religion and parents in shaping female

gender identity.

10

r

C
UV-

80'

q
‘1”. 0.
UI It-u

gen
l3

TEES!

,ch

n».

as.
.5

Inn:

Chapter 2
REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Introduction

This qualitative research focuses on the inﬂuences of gender expectations as
presented in the Christian church culture and the family of origin in affecting the
gender characteristics of the individual. Sociological and psychological theorists,
as well as theologians have informed cultural and religious attitudes regarding
gender. In understanding the inﬂuences of the family of origin and religion on
identity development, we must ﬁrst examine the history of identity development
theory, as well as the major theorists, whose ideas shaped the beliefs and
expectations regarding gender identity. Secondly, the inﬂuence of the church as
it is expressed in the doctrines of the Christian faith and feminist theology’s
response will be explored as it relates to identity development. The latter part of
the chapter will present the theoretical and conceptual foundations of the
research.

Historical Perspectives on Adolescent Identig Development

In most psychological, historical, and sociological accounts of adolescence,
the stories of adolescent females have not occupied a preeminent place in the
description of the adolescence experience. In the introduction of his book
Coming of Age, John Springhall (1986) asserts that a possible criticism of his
historical account of adolescents in England is in his "referring to the 'adolescent'
purely as a male phenomenon" (10). This tendency in both psychology and

history to posit the male experience as the adolescent experience is problematic

11

z the re

9'
v

:35

' ‘

A175!

3

no, '

358.-

a:

.3

no

A
‘90.. , .
Htkwgv‘

.:

nu

m.

AA
V‘U'.

2..

SC";

2

to the reading of adolescent female tales, as they are interpreted against a
master narrative that has established the male experience as the standard or
norm.

Although today adolescence is viewed as a culturally universal "fact" of
human development, according to Steinberg (1999), adolescence initially began
as a middle class phenomenon. Family demographics were such that, by the
mid-1800's, the middle class began experiencing a drop in child mortality rates.
Since children were no longer considered an economic asset, many middle class
families began to limit family size to two children. Because there were fewer
children, and these children were living for longer periods of time, parental
attitudes began to change, and a new kind of parental care and concern for older
children emerged. Since children in middle class homes no longer served an
economic function within the family, their familial responsibility was to attend
school, for schooling promised a way for middle class children to ascend
ﬁnancially and socially. For the middle class, adolescence was "invented" to
justify this prolonged period of dependence both on parents and teachers
(Steinberg, 1999).

G. Stanley Hall (1904) is attributed with the taking of this middle class notion of
adolescence and extending it to all classes. Hall posited a theory of adolescence
that was culturally universal and, so, an inescapable stage of human
development—a stage of life that was unavoidably a time of "storm and stress”
(xiii). Many years later, Erik Erikson (1950) upheld Hall's view of ”storm and

stress" as a part of his eight stage theory of psychosocial development across

12

if:
meme'

' ,« iar
391' wt-

person

tVae 6'-

K s

( L)

L.)
(D
(I)
v

the life cycle. In adolescence, the ﬁfth of Erikson's stages, the task was to
develop a sense of personal identity. Erikson (1982) saw the formation of a
personal sense of identity as one of the cornerstones of ego development.
Deﬁned by Erikson (1950) as "the accrued conﬁdence [in] the inner sameness
and continuity of one's meaning for others," identity was considered to be of
central concern during adolescence (p. 235). However, since the emergence of
adolescence as a development stage, and throughout much of the twentieth
century, the creation of identity was based on a male experience (Adams, 1994).

Reading historical accounts of adolescents' experiences, one soon realizes
that there are signiﬁcant limitations in these accounts. First, notable differences
existed between what constituted mature behavior for boys and girls at the
beginning of the twentieth century (Dyhouse, 1981 ). Since adolescence is
viewed as the stage of life in which one acquires a mature self, then boys and
girls experienced adolescence very differently. Dyhouse (1981) argues that
males were judged to be mature if they were developing in appropriate ways
towards the creation of an independent selfuone who had economic as well as
emotional independence. Conversely, maturity for girls was equated with
economic dependence upon a husband. A "mature" girl, in preparation for her
role as wife and mother, was taught to sacriﬁce her personal desires for the
desires of others.

Secondly, while middle class adolescent males in the late nineteenth century
were allowed considerable amounts of freedom and leisure time as well as the

opportunities for a prolonged period of education, middle class adolescent

13

Fgl‘hav

ell»

females did not enjoy the luxury of leisure time away from the watchful eyes of
adults. Middle class girls were less likely to attend school for a prolonged period,
and when they were schooled, the emphasis was on developing skills that would
make them better wives and mothers (Modell 8 Goodman, 1990).

Third, the psychological views of adolescent development popular at the turn
of the century, especially G. Stanley Hall’s, sought to naturalize the already
existing laws of patriarchy. According to Dyhouse (1981), Hall argued that girls
were emotionally unstable during adolescence, thus needing male protection
from the harsh realities of the world, and, in fact, females never outgrew
adolescence, which "constituted their charm, their eternal womanliness" (p. 12).
Furthermore, Hall's theory suggested that girls were subject to special problems
during puberty; thus they should be protected from undue stress, worry, exercise,
or intellectual stimulation as these could seriously damage their reproductive
organs.

Barbara Hudson (1984), like Dyhouse, argues that adolescence as typically
constructed does not adequately reflect the experience of females. Since
adolescence is a masculine construct built upon theories and images that
maintain the male experience as the normative reality, Hudson asserts that
"adolescence is subversive of femininity; young girls' attempts to be accepted as
'young women' are always liable to be undermined (subverted) by perceptions of
them as childish, immature, or any other of the terms by which we deﬁne the

status 'adolescent'" (pp. 31-32). Because society has separated femininity from

14

the adolesc

expectation

The tree
aetefopre
exudate
maies and

First as
psyoncam
35.131053:
asset age

”‘5.” r A
~-=8., d

the adolescent experience, teenage girls are confronted with conﬂicting
expectations in trying to establish a sense of self.
MW

The theories of Sigmund Freud and Erik Erikson drove the study of identity
development for much of the twentieth century. These theories provided the
expectations for what was considered “normal” development of identity for both
males and females.

First developed by Sigmund Freud in the early 1900's, the basic argument of
psychoanalytic theory is that gender identity can be traced back to the
psychosocial development of children prior to age six or seven (Hyde, 1996). At
about age four or ﬁve, the little boy begins to notice that he is different from his
mother, and he develops sexual feelings for her, known as the Oedipal conflict.
He views the father as a rival while simultaneously identifying with him because
he has the same genitalia. Ultimately, the boy gives up his ﬁght for his mother,
and the Oedipal conﬂict is resolved by the boy developing strong identiﬁcation
with the father, imitating him in action, beliefs, and values. The resolution of the
Oedipal conflict leads to the development of normal masculinity.

Unlike boys, girls have no incentive to shift identification from their mothers,
for girls and mothers are the same. However, according to psychoanalytic
theory, when a girl discovers that she lacks the same genitals as her father and
brother, she is envious of the very visible penis. The girl then breaks with the

mother to identify with the father who does have a penis. According to Freud,

15

 

 

Th:sg

penis envy is central to the development of normative femininity as eventually the
girl child abandons her desire for the penis and desires a child instead.

Erik Erikson saw the formation of a personal sense of identity (versus identity
diffusion) as one of the cornerstones of ego development (Erikson, 1982).
Deﬁned as "the accrued conﬁdence [in] the inner sameness and continuity of
one's meaning for others” (Erikson, 1950, p. 235), identity is considered to be of
central concern during late adolescence. ln Erikson's deﬁnition, three elements
emerge as necessary for a sense of identity. First, the person must experience
inner sameness, or integrity, so that actions and decisions are not random.
Deﬁned values, principles, and expectations order one's behavior, and a
deviation is perceived as "not me." Second, the sense of inner sameness is
continuous over time. Actions in the past and hopes for the future are
experienced as related to the self of today. Third, identity is experienced within a
community of important others. Relationships and roles serve, ideally, to support
and validate an integrated, continuous identity.

This sense of inner continuity and purpose is grounded on the resolution of
the previous developmental stages, each dominated by a central, organizing
theme. In infancy, the central issue is trust versus mistrust, with its
corresponding ego strength of hope. Between basic trust and identity, the child
passes through stages of development in which the ego strengths of will,
purpose, and competence emerge from the struggles of autonomy versus shame
and doubt, initiative versus guilt, and industry versus inferiority (Erikson, 1982).

According to Erikson, the stages progress in a deﬁnite order that is linked to

16

 

117:". t

.s.

Aﬂi
d

“as

H
~ I

“A!!-
w..

A:

«G
~...

-\.~

f.
:5

social expectations and bodily maturation. The psychosocial crisis, or central
issue of each stage, rests upon and may modify the outcome of all preceding
stages. At the same time, each crisis incorporates the forerunners of issues and
stages to come. Erikson (1968) places the task of intimacy versus isolation after
that of identity, indicating that the sense of continuity and ﬁdelity to one's values
at a personal level is a prerequisite to true intimacy.

According to Erikson, the life stage of adolescence provides young people
with the optimal situation for deﬁning a sense of identity. Not yet ﬁrmly tied by
adult commitments, the adolescent may try out a variety of possible
commitments in occupation and ideology, eventually adopting a more or less
permanent sense of who he or she is.

From its inception, Erikson's construct of identity was arguably descriptive of
male development. Its generalization to women has never been straightforward.
Erikson ﬁrst addressed women’s identity in his controversial article "Women and
the Inner Space" (1968). In an apparent response to feminist criticism, Erikson
returned to the topic in the early 1970's with a rebuttal and an attempt to state
more clearly his original principles regarding the development of girls and women
(Erikson, 1975).

Although Erikson saw identity as developing within the context of anatomy,
history, and personality, he appeared ambivalent about whether to distance
himself from Freud's concept of anatomy and destiny. Rather than deny penis
envy as an anatomical fact (as opposed to a social experience), Erikson referred

to the "inner space," or womb, as the basis for a positive (anatomically based)

17

potential for the girl's identity. Erikson's insistence on deﬁning women's identity
in anatomical terms remained troubling to feminists. Erikson's argument seemed
to imply that women were anatomically destined to be nurturant and
accommodating, and thus uniquely suited to service roles. In addition, Erikson
believed that interpersonal issues formed the core of women’s identity, and
vocational and ideological issues were of peripheral importance (Erikson, 1968).
Erikson assumed that a woman's resolution of identity was left partially open and
ﬂexible in adolescence, in order to accommodate the man she would marry and
the children she would nurture. The girl's ﬁrst, temporary resolution of identity in
adolescence consisted of a sense of her own attractiveness, an image of the
mate she would seek, and a decision about the use she would make (or not
make) of her body and its reproductive capacity (Erikson, 1968). Her identity
was to be completed in marriage and motherhood. Unlike males, whose issues
of identity, intimacy, and generativity were postulated by Erikson to be resolved
in a clearly sequential manner, women's development appears (according to this
theory) to be less stage speciﬁc. Issues of identity, intimacy, and generativity
can be resolved almost concurrently for women.

Interestingly, Erikson conceptualized women's identity as the individual's
construction of the experience of womanhood, of living in a woman's body and of
living with the gender-based role prescriptions and proscriptions of her culture
(Patterson, Sochting, 8 Marcia, 1992). This conceptualization was sympathetic
to women’s struggles to deﬁne and control their reproductive power within a

patriarchal culture. Patterson, Sochting, and Marcia (1992) suggest that Erikson

18

C3

an. I-
v. ls!\

l-I-v
L

r—O-
1.
D

(I

O

appears far-seeing in his insistence that if feminists ignore the reproductive
power of women's bodies, they are in danger of contributing to the further
devaluation of women and of the values of care and nurturance in Western
culture.

Feminist Perspectives on Identity Development

During the latter half of the twentieth century feminist researchers increasingly
criticized the theories of Freud and Erikson. These theories, feminists argued,
were not providing the full picture of identity development, because they were
premised on male development (Hyde, 1996). One criticism of Freud’s theory
points to the similarities between his theory and some age-old myths and images
of women as sinful and the source of evil (Hyde, 1996). The work of Nancy
Chodorow, Jean Baker Miller, Carol Gilligan, and Judith Lorber provide needed
insight into the development of identity for females.

Certainly Freud's phalogcentrism is an excellent example of the male-as-
normative (androcentric) model of development. Nancy Chodorow (1974) seeks
to rewrite the master narrative of psychoanalytic theory by reconceptualizing
traditional understandings of the Oedipal complex by emphasizing the role of the
mother, not the penis, in the construction of a gendered identity.

Chodorow (1978) asserts that it is not the possession of or the lack of a penis
that is signiﬁcant in the development of a feminine or masculine identity, but the
preoedipal relationship between mother and child that is largely responsible for
the creation of distinctly different gendered identities. Infants start life in a state

of total dependency, and women are usually their primary caretakers; hence the

19

 

ESEHTE

secara:

dependency needs of young children are met almost exclusively by the mother.
Chodorow believes that this relationship between mother and son/daughter is the
signiﬁcant factor in determining the differences in personality between boys and
girls (Chodorow, 1993). Because mothers are more likely to view their daughters
as an extension of themselves, they do not encourage their daughters to
separate from them to form a distinct identity. Conversely, mothers relate to their
sons as being separate and distinct from themselves. Therefore, boys develop "a
self that denies relatedness" and girls develop "a self in relation" (Chodorow,
1978, p. 15). Hence, adolescent and adult males have a strong need to deny
their attachment and dependence on women in general, to devalue femininity,
and to use a variety of means to position women as the powerless other.

Chodorow offers a prescription for social change, which, she asserts, would
eliminate confusion for women. In order for change to occur, Chodorow believes
that men must begin to participate equally in child care; until men do this, women
will continue to be devalued (Hyde, 1996). Chodorow (1978) concludes, "Any
strategy for change whose goal includes liberation from the constraints of an
unequal social organization of gender must take account of the need for a
fundamental reorganization of parenting, so that primary parenting is shared
between men and women" (p. 215). Reorganization of parenting would help to
ensure that children of both sexes (e.g. adolescent girls) would develop a
sufﬁciently individuated and strong sense of self.

Jean Baker Miller (1991), in response to Erikson's theory of identity

development, asks "Do only men, and not women, have a self. " (p. 11).

20

 

Aco’

5H
VI!

SC

F
I

According to Erikson's theory, development of the self is attained through a
series of painful crises by which the individual accomplishes a sequence of
ostensibly essential separations from others, thereby achieving an inner sense of
separated individuation. Miller (Unger 8 Crawford, 1996) asserts that few men
ever attain such self-sufﬁciency without the support of mistresses, mothers,
daughter, secretaries, and other women (who just happen to be lower then men
in social hierarchy). So, Miller wonders, does Erikson's model accurately reﬂect
even men's lives?

Miller (1991) further critiques Erikson's theory of development in the seven
stages which follow "basic trust versus mistrust" (stage one), because the stages
each reﬂect some form of increased separation or self-development. However,
when the individual reaches the sixth stage (intimacy versus isolation), helshe is
supposed to be able to be intimate with another person, having spent all of
his/her prior development striving for separation. Miller (Unger 8 Crawford,
1996) contends that psychological theories of personality (Erikson and others,
including Freud), in their androcentric perspective of viewing autonomy as the
end point of development, have failed women by devaluing their strengths. The
ideal adult is seen as one whose sense of self is entirely separate from others,
and who is independent and self-reliant. Close relationships are perceived
negatively, the individual involved in such a relationship is seen as dependent
and lacking a differentiated self. Conversely, Miller (1991) and other feminists

(e.g. Gilligan, 1982, Jordan, Kaplan, Miller, Stiver, 8 Surrey, 1991) predicate

21

it

(I

C.-

CT
(I)

M»-

personality development within relationships, the self deﬁned in terms of caring
and responsibility.

At adolescence, the girl searching for her identity is seeking fulﬁllment of two
very important needs, Miller (1991) posits: to use all of her capacities (including
sexual capacity), but to do so within a context that will fulﬁll her great desire to be
a "being-in-relationship" (p. 21). Unlike other theories (e.g. Freud, Erikson) which
suppose independence and self-reliance through the stages of development,
Miller (Unger 8 Crawford, 1996) holds that the female adolescent has had the
wish to be in relationship throughout her development. Miller (1991) believes
that boys have the same relationship needs as well; however, culture has sent
the message that in order to be "himself" he must have a sense of independent
identity. So girls are not seeking the same kind of identity that has been
prescribed for boys, but a different kind, in which one is a "being-in-relation.”
Miller (Unger 8 Crawford, 1996) analyzes that this "being-in-relation" identity has
developed for girls and women because of societal power differences. Because
women are a subordinate group in society, they have developed personality
characteristics that reﬂect their subordination, and enable them to cope with it.

Carol Gilligan (1982) asserts that the theories of psychological development
upon which most associations about normative adolescent development are
based are, in fact, theories of male adolescence. Gilligan (1982), quoting David

McClelland, states:

22

 

me
frc
res
of

the
the

In Stu:
Gligan it
thus. they
and main:
“5796's:
7’7 'Eify de
Paradoxic

Sex role turns out to be one of the most important determinants
of human behavior; psychologists have found sex differences in
their studies from the moment they started doing empirical research.
But since it is difﬁcult to say "different" without saying "better" or
"worse," since there is a tendency to construct a single scale
measurement, and since that scale has generally been derived
from and standardized on the basis of men’s interpretations of
research data drawn predominantly or exclusively from studies
of males, psychologists have tended to regard male behavior as
the "norm" and female behavior as some kind of deviation from
the norm (p. 14).

In studying how individuals think about moral conﬂicts and moral decisions,
Gilligan found that women's identities are often constructed in relational terms;
thus, they make moral decisions which give primacy to issues of responsibility
and maintaining connections to others. However, this ability to view morality in
interpersonal terms and to equate goodness with helping others marks women
morally deﬁcient according to Kohlberg's six stage theory of moral development.
Paradoxically, the same characteristics that make a woman a "good" woman or a
girl a “good” girl—nurturance, sensitivity, and attunement to the needs of others-
marks them as morally deﬁcient. What Gilligan argues for is a theory of moral
development which validates women's relational ways of identifying themselves
and others.

Brown and Gilligan (1992) focus specifically on younger females in Meeting at
1112 Crossroads, which was a ﬁve year study of one hundred girls. In describing
the effect of early adolescence on the construction of a feminine identity, the
phrase "crossroads" emerges to summarize the time in which girl-self and

women-self meet. It is a critical time in the lives of girls, who prior to

adolescence viewed themselves as living in connection with themselves and with

23

 

if“

..C

a.

8
AA—

..h b

a.

:u
p

Aide

.3.

other girls. However, adolescence signals disjuncture for many girls, a time
when they must separate from themselves and from other girls. Perhaps most
ironically, many girls view adolescence as a time when they must take up male
expectations in order to become the "good" woman who puts her interests and
needs as secondary to the needs of others, especially males. In fact, Brown and
Gilligan (1992) note, adolescent girls’ relationships with males often come at the
expense of silencing their own voices and severing their connections to other
females.

By studying a cohort of girls over a ﬁve-year period, Brown and Gilligan
(1992) identify a developmental narrative in the struggle of moving from
childhood to adolescence, a struggle which they assert is "most visible and
audible at the edge of adolescence" (p. 16). By making explicit the androcentric
bias in theories of adolescence, Brown and Gilligan (1992) seek to validate the
female experience:

By listening to women and to girls and bringing their voices
into the center of psychological theory and research, we are
changing the voice, the body, and also the story about
relationships (including the point of view on the canonical
story), shifting the societal location, and, by the work itself,
attempting to change the cultural framework (p. 22).

Although the dominant discourse of adolescence has largely ignored the
experiences of girls, what clearly emerges from the study of Brown and Gilligan
is the importance of contextualizing discussions of normative adolescence. The
reality is that girls experience adolescence differently than boys. Furthermore,

girls are forced to read their lives against both the cultural scripts for normative

adolescence and normative femininity. For some girls, the scripts do not fit, in

24

WE

are
U

SC:

’6'

which case they feel as though they never quite "get it right" (female adolescence
and adulthood), and/or never really ﬁt in.

Judith Lorber (1994) posits gender as a social institution that creates
distinguishable social statuses for the assignment of rights and responsibilities.
As a part of a stratiﬁcation system in which statuses are ranked unequally, Lorber
views gender as a major building block in the social structures built on the
unequal statuses. Lorber (1991) asserts that boys and girls, men and women
are more alike then they are different, and "Together with race, ethnicity, and
social class, gender categories are institutionalized cultural and social statuses"
(p. 8). Gender identity and genderized behavior is, she contends, socially
constructed. Children team through example, direct teaching, the rewards and
admonishments of parents and other signiﬁcant adults that there are two
genders, which gender they belong to, and the expected behavior of their
genden

Gender becomes a structure that divides work in the home, in the public
sector, legitimates those in authority, and organizes sexuality and emotional life.
Lorber (1994) asserts that the pervasiveness of gender as a way of structuring
life demands that gender statuses be clearly differentiated, for "In the social
construction of gender, it does not matter what men and women actually do; it
does not even matter if they do exactly the same thing. The social institution of

gender insists only that what they do is perceived as different" (p. 26).

25

9
C

lml
(Iv:

A:

.hU

A:

3:?

P.‘

Kn

’

A
i N
U

35.n-

Feminist Theology

As the study of identity development has, historically, been premised on male
development, so too the culture of the church and theology. Feminist
theologians, drawing on the broader research of feminist theory, have sought to
recover the lost roles and images of women in the history of Christian tradition.
Documentation of women’s histories has, in turn, been employed by feminist
theologians to revise doctrines to prevent the continued oppression of women
(Young, 1990).

The certainty of the inﬂuence of culture on gender identity development has
been established (Coltrane, 1998; Johnson, 1997; Kroger, 2000). The ecological
underpinnings of the present research require an understanding of the inﬂuence
of church culture, in particular, in the quest to understand how identity is formed.
Included in the deﬁnition of culture are perspectives on life, the structure of
behavior, and the beliefs regarding the “essential nature of the human condition”
(Rey, 1997, p. 159). Gender and religious culture are interrelated, as
“perceptions of ourselves are shaped by and deeply rooted in our culturally
shared religious and philosophical heritage” (King, 1995, p. 2). Feminist
theologians assert that a circular pattern exits in which religious beliefs,
practices, and traditions are inﬂuenced by gender perspectives, and in turn,
beliefs, practices, and traditions inﬂuence gender expectations for the believer
(King, 1995, Graham, 1996). Briggs (1997) opines that in patriarchal
denominations where women are most absent from leadership, the effects of

gender are most intense.

26

Classical theology, rooted in patriarchy, presumes maleness as the “norm of
full humanity" (Graham, 1996, p. 52). In patriarchal denominations, sex
(physiological-malelfemale) is often confused with gender (social/cultural
conditioning) (Bergant, 1991). Using the order of creation (Genesis 2—Adam was
created before Eve), as well as the “suitable partner“ (Eve for Adam) account in
the same chapter, patriarchal theology justiﬁes a view of women as the “weaker
sex," and embraces their subordination to men (Rosenblatt, 1991). Historically,
patriarchy gave power and position in the world via property ownership, which
was passed to male relatives via inheritance. Women, who were not allowed to
own property, were left powerless. In the post-modem world of the twenty-ﬁrst
century, it is not patriarchy but paternalism that has become the obstacle to
women taking responsibility for their own well-being (Barta, 1991). Barta (1991)
deﬁnes paternalism as “the claim or attempt to supply the needs or to regulate
the life of a nation or community in the same way as a father does those of his
children” (p. 28). No where is this more prominent than in conservative mainline
Christian denominations, where the pastor, who can only be male, is viewed as
the “shepherd” of the flock (congregation), the caregiver and ultimate authority for
members of the congregation. The enticing promise of paternalism is that one
need not care for oneself, because someone else will do that for you. A
paternalistic perspective presumes to know what is best for those who are being
cared for (girls/women), particularly when decisions are made for those under its
care. Patemalism offers a false sense of security, but at length it “robs people of

their personhood by limiting or foreclosing their experiences of life, or by

27

'T‘l

interpreting for them what their experiences mean..." (Barta, 1991, p. 29).
Patemalistic denominations socialize men to supply leadership within the church,
while women are socialized to be dependent helpers who are male-identiﬁed
rather than self-identiﬁed (Barta, 1991). Conversely, feminist theology has grown
from the belief that women claim a right to full humanity for themselves (Graham,
1996). Feminist theology emanated from sensitivity to and criticism of the
androcentric manner in which many religions have developed, as well as the fact
that religion has typically been studied from an androcentric perspective
(O’Connor, 1995). Feminist theologian Rosemary Ruether (1992) asserts that
“the critical principle of feminist theology is the promotion of the full humanity of
women“ (p.18).

Feminist theology has drawn on feminist research and theory, raising
questions regarding the way religious traditions and assumptions about the
spiritual-seIf-in-relation-to-God has historically been viewed. Traditionally,
theology has been done by, developed for, and focused on men; women are
usually caricatured, or ignored (Young, 1995). Feminist theology has taken
exception to traditional androcentric doctrinal models, by challenging metaphors
and concepts that had been embraced for centuries (Young, 1990). In so doing,
feminist theology has created new metaphors and concepts that reﬂected
women’s “voice” (O’Connor, 1995). One of the major questions addressed by
Christian feminist theologians is how to bring together the past, which includes a
patriarchal history, and patriarchal biblical documents, and connect them to the

present (Young, 1995).

28

Feml
article. '
traitor

women

Cnr;sfie

iDaly. ‘

Feminist theological scholarship has been traced to Valerie Saiving’s 1960
article, “The Human Situation: A Feminine View,” in which she asserts that
traditional theological deﬁnitions do not apply to women as they do to men, since
women experience the world in a different way (Young, 1995). While the ﬁrst
generation of feminist scholars were self-taught, today’s feminist theologians are
products of feminist teachers and mentors. Much like traditional theology, there
are a variety of schools of thought within feminist theology. Some feminists, such
as Mary Daly and Daphne Hampson have, in their search for women’s place in
Christian doctrine, pronounced that place impossible, and rejected Christianity
(Daly, 1973; Hampson, 1990). Schussler Fiorenza (1985) argues for using
Scripture as a prototype—an unﬁnished, changing document; thus, Scripture is
not just a revelation to the past, but a guide for present revelation as well.

F iorenza does not advocate disregarding Biblical texts, since they can be used to
reject oppression. Conversely, Fiorenza urges feminists not to use Scripture as
the norm, since the Bible has also been used against women to foster
oppression (F iorenza, 1983).

Rosemary Radford Ruether (1983) bases her feminist theology on multiple
sources, including Scripture, Christian traditions, non-Christian philosophies and
religions, and post-Christian world views (e.g. liberalism, romanticism). For
Ruether (1983),

The Church is where the good news of liberation from sexism
is preached, where the Spirit is present to empower us to

renounce patriarchy, where community committed to the new
life of mutuality is gathered together and nurtured, and where

the community is spreading this vision and struggle to others
(p.213).

29

 

RJI

an:

n!

51-

Ruether advocates a women-church, where patriarchy is rejected as “God’s will,”
and women are able to realize their rightful claim to equal status.

Letty Russell (1974) articulates a feminist Christian theology that uses one’s
mind, “in the perspective of God, as God is known in and through the Word in the
world” (p. 52). Russell (1985) argues that women’s experience has a direct
bearing on Christian theology. True Christian theology must be informed by a
diversity of experiences, including the biological and cultural experiences of
being a woman (Russell, 1987).

Marie-Eloise Rosenblatt (1991) asserts four prominent issues which are
present in historical biblical documents, and in so doing succinctly summarizes
the foundation of Christian feminist theology. First, ecclesial documents tend to
select scriptural images of women which reinforce her as passive (Rosenblatt,
1991). Adjectives such as meek, mild, and gentle are far more prominent
descriptors of women than words such as excited, heroic, or forceful. Jesus, the
Holy Spirit, and the male disciples are attributed with ability to initiate ministry,
and to be powerful. Women are portrayed as responders to Jesus’ ministry,
grateful to be included. This representation of women fails to recognize women’s
capacity to be initiators in the same manner that men are, for women to be
subjects of their own lives, authors of their own destiny.

Centuries of interpretation of the biblical narrative of the creation and fall into
sin of Adam and Eve, as well as several passages from the Pauline epistles in
the New Testament comprise Rosenblatt’s (1991) second issue for review by

feminist theologians. An androcentric reading of the ﬁrst three chapters of

30

 

001

Die

W3"

bib?

H
H

8"

‘i

U

HrH

Genesis strengthens the lesser nature of women, their greater culpability for sin,
and the superiority of the nature of men (Bergant, 1991; Rosenblatt, 1991).
Select writings from Paul, as recorded in the New Testament, have been used to
uphold women’s status as lesser than men’s. 1 Timothy 2:12, perhaps the most
oft quoted verse in support of patriarchal theological perspectives, reads “l permit
no woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she is to keep silent."
Offered as additional support is the preceding verse, 1 Timothy 2:11, “Let a
woman learn in silence with full submission.” Overlooked are other passages
biblical scholars have attributed to Paul, which can be read in context as
endorsement of women’s equality with men, and acknowledgement of their
dignity and God-given gifts. Galatians 3:28 states, “There is no longer Jew or
Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all
of you are one in Christ Jesus.” 1 Corinthians 12:4-7 reads, “Now there are
varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the
same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who
activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit
for the common good.”

The third problem of ecclesial documents from the feminist perspective is the
way in which Scripture has been used to create a very narrow theological
depiction of who women are (Rosenblatt, 1991). Eve as the mother of all
humanity, Mary as the mother of faith, and the personiﬁcation of the church as
the bride of Christ place severe limitations on women’s spiritual nature, their

destiny, and their options for vocation, asserts Rosenblatt (1991). These three

31

models are too restrictive in their deﬁnition of women’s being and nature, limiting
women to spousal and maternal roles. This theological domestication of women
places them in a world in which men “choose them, wed them, and father their
children” (Rosenblatt, 1991, p. 44). These three models of women’s roles focus
on the sexual appeal and generativity of younger women, as well as placing an
age-bias on womanhood itself, limiting it to the marrying/child-bearing years.
Also excluded from the models are women who are single, divorced, or widowed.
Ultimately, these models leave fully half of women’s lives unaccounted.
Rosenblatt’s (1991) last point is perhaps the most thought provoking, as she

points out that the Bible has very little to say about the actual roles of either
women or men. Rosenblatt (1991) points out that,

With some exceptions, women who follow Jesus, or who come

to him for healing, appear in the gospels unaccompanied by

husbands. Men, too, appear without wives in view. It is rare

that there is a forgiveness or a healing story, a parable, or a

saying of Jesus that features a conventional family unit of

husband, wife, and children (pp. 47-48).
Overall, throughout the gospels Jesus does not make frequent use of marital
imagery. Jesus praises women not for their passive spiritual stance, but for their
action as believers. Rosenblatt (1991) provides an exciting alternative to the
passive models of women which she outlined in her third point, describing New
Testament women as people who,

acted on their faith, verbalized it, and expressed it in concrete

situations that had visible after-effects. They were agents in

the reversal of suffering. Their identity as believers was
legitimated in various proofs of their vitality and power (p. 49).

32

 

no

The lack of women’s voice in Scripture, doctrine, and worship liturgy is a key
area of research for feminist theologians, and provides a foundation for each of
Rosenblatt’s four aforementioned points. Women have been made invisible,
supposedly represented in male terms that have been labeled generic for “all
people.“ Beginning in Genesis, with the revelation of God as a male, “the
metaphors we use are powerful God-talk, for they determine the way we think
about God and about ourselves as men and women, created in God’s image”
(Russell, 1987, p. 53). Young (1990) asserts that despite the generic “man,“
women were never the intended audience for theological writings. Women
throughout time have been left to infer themselves into a variety of religious
settings, for the language of worship, Scripture readings, Bible studies, and even
Godly images have been distinctly male (McMillan, 1991). Language is not just a
tool, it wields a great deal of power, and when women are excluded from the
language, a not-so-subtle message is sent regarding worth and importance
(Russell, 1987; Graham, 1995). Russell (1987) argues that in recognizing
women’s spirituality, there is need for a “usable language” that will reﬂect women
more prominently in the human experience. The fear of some, however, is that
inclusive language will send the wrong message regarding “appropriate activities
and ambitions” for men and women (Graham, 1996, p. 39).

The argument regarding the language of Scripture and the gender of God
goes deeper, embracing the male gender of Jesus as the most fundamental
aspect of the incarnation (Graham, 1996). The conclusion reached by those who

hold this view of God's incarnation as a male, is that women’s gender identity is

33

then subsumed by the male human. The image of God as “Father” is seen not
simply as an expression for time, but as something real and unchanging
regarding the nature of God (Graham, 1996). The practical application of this
assumption is the withholding of ordination as pastor/priest from women. Brian
Wren (in Graham, 1996) posits that,

resistance to inclusive language is a refusal to see language

as part of a system of difference and power; to identify

collusion with patterns of sexism and exclusion; to silence

unfamiliar experiences or imagery, because they might

challenge ﬁxed identity and the certainty of the status quo

(p. 40).
A feminist view of the Christian church would ﬁnd the practice of a hierarchy that
is exclusionary not credible. Young (1990) contends that no church is credible if
it “limits women, calls them inferior, and keeps them as a group from assuming
certain roles by speaking of women’s roles as ‘different but equal’” (p. 106). If
hierarchy is employed, it must be based on the exercise of particular gifts and
skills in service to the church, not in the creation of two (or more) classes of
believers. Graham (1996) asserts the importance of conducting ethnographic
and anthropological studies in faith communities, in an effort to measure the
gendered nature of the elements of believers’ faith traditions. The identiﬁcation
of fundamental values, attitudes, and visions of faith communities would assist in
creating a cultural environment that is truly inclusive of all people.

Whether rooted in psychology or theology, gender theories are ultimately

representations of human culture. What it means to become a gendered person

depends on the culture and the time in which one lives. Bronfenbrenner’s (1989)

ecological perspective supports this idea, as he asserts, “The characteristics of

34

the person at a given time in his or her life are a joint function of the
characteristics of the person and of the environment over the course of that
person's life up to that time“ (p. 190). The proposed research will focus on just
two aspects of an individual’s environment, religion and parents, in one period of
time, late adolescence. The following section will provide the theoretical basis for
the intersection of religion and family in the development of female gender
identity.
Theoretical Perspectives

The discipline of human ecology, where the inﬂuence of environment plays an
important role in human development, has much to offer in the study of gender
identity. The human organism is a system that is in continuous interaction with
its total environment. The environment of the church affects parents’ attitudes
and perspectives on gender and ideology (speciﬁcally the church’s stance on
women); children (especially girls) are inﬂuenced as well. Human ecology theory
converges at three distinct points, “family ecosystem, the mutually sustaining
transactions that link people and environments, and on decisions that families
make to creatively adapt and foster human development” (Bublolz 8 Sontag, in
Boss, Doherty, et. al., 1993, p. 423). The interdependence of the family with its
environment is particularly helpful in understanding identity formation. The
environment of the family provides the necessary resources to provide life-
support to its members. The sociological, psychological, and behavioral

environments of the family shape the development of attitudes, values,

35

9X9

8C3

tra'

expectations, and patterns of decision-making for its members (Andrews, Bubolz,
8 Paolucci, 1980).

An integral part of the family ecosystem is the organization that evolves from
patterns of transactions between the family and its environment. Societal
attitudes and expectations for women and girls, implicitly and explicitly part of the
culture in which we live, shape family ecosystem organization. Central to family
ecosystem socialization is decision-making and implementation, as families
transform information from the environment. The transactions between family
and environment are guided by two sets of rules: the laws of nature and human-
derived rules (Andrews, Bubolz, 8 Paolucci, 1980). The human derived rules are
at the center of identity development, and in particular, rules about gender
expectations.

lnsel and Moos (1974) suggest three broad dimensions of family ecosystems
that inform family interactions, which are important to the understanding of
identity development. First, lnsel and Moos (1974) assert that relationship
dimensions are useful to assess the degree to which individuals are involved in
the environment, and the extent to which they support each other. A particular
church denomination’s beliefs regarding appropriate male and female roles, and
a family’s degree of involvement in their church are posited in the present
research to inﬂuence attitudes and expectations about gender identity.

Secondly, lnsel and Moos (1974) state that the dimension of personal
development and self-esteem must take environmental factors into consideration.

The church and the family’s attitudes regarding self-concept and gender identity

36

h;

have the potential to enhance or limit that development in its members. Lastly,
systems maintenance and system change dimensions assess the extent that the
environment is orderly and clear in its expectations, maintains control, and is
responsive to change. Expectations regarding identity for adolescent females
are not always clear from systems like church and family; in some
denominations, expectations are used to maintain control (e.g. male order).
Systems such as mainline Christian churches have not always been responsive
to changing gender expectations and behaviors.

Human ecology theorist Urie Bronfenbrenner's model provides a framework
for examining how individual family processes are inﬂuenced by cultural ideations
and expectations. Bronfenbrenner views the “systematic understanding of the
processes and outcomes of human development as a joint function of the person
and the environment” (Bronfenbrenner, 1989, p. 188). The joint function of
person in environment is particularly clear within Bronfenbrenner’s concept of the
macrosystem, which consists of the attitudes and ideologies of the culture in

which the family ecosystem lives.

Theoretical Model-Ecological Systems Theorv.

 

The principle aim of ecological systems theory is the “systematic
understanding of the processes and outcomes of human development as a joint
function of the person and the environment” (Bronfenbrenner, 1989, p. 188). The
effects of environment play an important role in human development, as the
human organism interacts with its total surroundings (Figure 2.1). In asserting

the inﬂuence of extrafamilial conditions on the intrafamilial processes,

37

 

 

.{mEcocmm

 

 

as: 20228 8m 82m M

3:65 we. coca .momoumfeoom H_>> 686m: .
me: new 5.2960 .8500 Q: 89230
523332009 @586 coEmcmzucm . .Cmm: >> m
8:90 ﬁEmEcEEco m ._. 202.com m

a 352.8 m .22 :93 M

m~m>wocogzo r. ....... i. .......... ._

    

'1.

 

   

.590

8582902 555

 

 

 

.Sw Fame:
694 .xow

.8228. 9t

 

     
    
   

93.30 85 Co mu . . . . u ._ can 3635
2.2958me

 

2.2:an30 ho boost. _ao_mo_00m mLoccocncoucoem " RN 959“.

38

Bronfenbrenner acknowledges that developmental process occurs in many
settings, including the church that a family chooses to attend, as well as the
family environment. The cornerstone of Bronfenbrenner’s theory is stated within
what he has labeled “Deﬁnition 1”:

“The ecology of human development is the scientiﬁc

study of the progressive, mutual accommodation,

throughout the life course, between an active, growing

human being, and the changing properties of the

immediate settings in which the developing person lives,

as this process is affected by the relations between

these settings, and by the larger contexts in which the

settings are embedded." (Bronfenbrenner, 1989, p. 188)
The concept of the exosystem speciﬁcally addresses the effect of different
environmental systems (e.g. church culture) on the family. It encompasses the
links and processes that take place between two or more settings, at least one of
which does not ordinarily contain the focal persons in the microsystem.
However, the events that occur in the exosystem inﬂuence the processes that
occur in the microsystem, the activities, roles, and relationships that a person
directly experiences. Therefore, as the church (a microsystem) interfaces with
the family (another microsystem), it creates an exosystemic relationship.

Although the family is the principle context in which

human development takes place, it is but one of

several settings in which developmental process can

and does occur. Moreover, the processes operating

in different settings are not independent of each other

(Bronfenbrenner, 1986, p. 723).

Through the concept of the chronosystem, Bronfenbrenner acknowledges that

over time the various systems may change and the effects vary. From

Bronfenbrenner’s perspective, this proposed study seeks to discover the effect of

39

the exosystem on the the microsystem, in which female children/adolescents
develop gender identity. The overall outcome will be noted in the characteristics
of gender identity.

The inﬂuence of the society in which we live is acknowledged in the
macrosystem, which is deﬁned by the “structure and content of constituent
systems, with particular reference to the developmentally instigative belief
systems,... .pattems of social exchange opportunity structures, and life course
options..." (Bronfenbrenner, 1989, p. 237).

Ma’s Interactive Mod_el._

The process of establishing an identity has been the focus of many prominent
researchers, including Sigmund Freud and Erik Erikson. Their studies, however,
were based on the development of male identity. The proposed research
focuses on adolescent females; therefore, while acknowledging the foundational
work of Freud, and Erikson, the research will employ the work of feminist theorist
Kay Deaux as the primary theory. Deaux’s work has included collaboration with
several colleagues, including Brenda Major (1987), M. Kite (1989), and Laurie
Lewis (1984).

Deaux’s interaction-based model meshes with Bronfenbrenner’s theory on the
influence of social systems. Deaux takes into account the context of the social
situation (Deaux 8 Major, 1987), just as Bronfenbrenner accounts for the
inﬂuences of the social situation on many levels (e.g. microsystem,
mesosystem). Deaux’s model focuses on the outward display of gender-linked

behavior, and theorizes that a number of inﬂuences such as expectancies

40

conveyed by others, gender-related self-schemes, and the power of the situation,
inﬂuence the gender behavior displayed by the individual (Deaux 8 Lewis, 1984,
Deaux and Major, 1987). Deaux and Major (1987) assert that the presentation
of gender-related behaviors take place primarily within the context of social
interaction, either explicitly or implicitly. Social interaction is deﬁned as, “a
process of identity negotiation whereby perceivers and selves (targets) attempt to
attain their interaction goals" (Deaux 8 Major, 1987, p. 370). Deaux has built her
theory based on two human social behavioral perspectives, cognitive and
behavioral conﬁrmation. Cognitive conﬁrmation depicts the processes by which
perceivers’ cognitive dispositions operate to maintain their original expectancies
for a target. Behavioral conﬁrmation, perhaps more recognizable by the term
“self-fulﬁlling prophecy,” refers to the processes by which a perceiver’s
expectancy for a target, communicated through his/her action, actually changes
the target’s behavior in such a way that the resulting behavior objectively
conﬁrms the perceiver’s initial expectancy. With regard to identity formation, a
number of researchers (Myers, 1998; Steinberg, 1999; Hart, Fegley, 8
Brengelman, 1993; Caspi 8 Mofﬁtt, 1991) support that a person’s self-
conceptions have a signiﬁcant effect on their cognitive processing of and
emotional responses to information gained through social interaction.
Investigation of adolescent identity (Markstrom-Adams, 1989; Gjerde, 1995;
Kroger 8 Green, 1996) upholds that individuals actively seek to shape and

construct others’ perceptions of them through their behavior in social encounters.

41

Deaux’s gender-related behavior theory, therefore, accounts for variability in
behavior, so that it (the behavior) meets the demands of the particular situation.
While this theory posits that people assume different identities depending on the
circumstance, Deaux and Major (1987) note that people do need to display
stability in their behavior. Therefore, as they encounter a social situation,
individuals may feel tension between the need to routinize their behavior and
cognition in accord with preestablished conceptualizations and behavior patterns,
and the need to contextualize their behvavior and cognition to ﬁt with the
immediate situational demands and interaction goals.

A visualization of Deaux and Major’s (1987) model (Figure 2.2) illustrates that
the perceiver approaches a situation with a set of beliefs about the target. These
beliefs are based on either categorical assumptions, or from past experience with
the particular individual (box A). The beliefs, which compose only one of a
number of possible beliefs that would be appropriate for that situation, are
activated by a number of factors (box 8). Affected by their beliefs as well as the
hoped for outcome of the interaction, the perceiver acts toward the target (box
C). The target (box D) enters the situation with a set of beliefs about themself
(e.g. self-concepts, self-schemata), some of which will be activated by factors
similar to those that affect the perceiver (box E). After interpreting the actions of
the perceiver (box F), the target then ponders the possible alternatives and acts
in accordance with his/her interaction goals—action that may either conﬁrm or
disconﬁrrn the beliefs of the perceiver (box G). The sequence of interaction

varies as it is inﬂuenced by modifying conditions (box H). Completing

42

 

 

ion 6 52258553 55, mEmocoo

beaten.

Socﬂomaxm 9.: Co «85:208ch
mzoEozoo Oz_>n=oo_2 .I

cosmocto>

«xmucoo .mcozmazm-
$5958 .88-

 

 

 

 

at” a
.52 .aas. w 3389

 

 

 

 

 

 

ZO_._.O< Z>>O
whmmmmwkz
“.._mw ._.

 

 

 

mko<
“3mm .0

 

 

1

 

 

ZO_._.O<
wrrwmvmﬂr
whmmamwkg
mw>_momwm
._

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

  
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

e <sm_._om
-uumm
wzo_5< 853mm
333%... e .59sz do Emmi
33832. All zo:<>:o< i- ”.0 .555
5% ..._ m ham .0
. 2
83 8595.2
220.236 5085
$015 <2mzom .2586
2359 824mm ”mama
m5< i- -mmozmo do ri- mmozmo
mmzmomma zo:<>:o< mmmzmomma
.o .m .<
L.

 

32. cows. can xacoo

¢O_><Imm thSmm-mmn—zm0 m0". 295.04%th. ._<_UOm ".0 ..mDOE < "Nd mung".

43

 

the cycle, Deaux and Major’s (1987) model takes into account the perceiver’s
interpretation of the target’s action (box I), and the target’s interpretations of
his/her own actions (box J).

Blended Theogy.

This research investigated the inﬂuence of the social context of the Christian
church on parents and on adolescent females with regard to the construction of
gender identity. The research also explored the indirect inﬂuence of the church
on young adult females through the church’s inﬂuence on their parents. The
research process was guided by the human ecological theory of Bronfenbrenner
and the feminist theory of Deaux. Both theorists emphasize the signiﬁcance of
context in shaping behavior and perspective.

Deaux acknowledges that individuals have a set of beliefs about men and
women which she terms the “gender belief system” (Deaux 8 Kite, 1989). The
gender belief system consists of both descriptive and prescriptive elements
believed to be true about men and women, and it is from this belief system that
gender stereotypes become apparent. The gender belief, as described by Deaux
and Kite (1989) ﬁts Bronfenbrenner’s microsystem, “a pattern of activities, roles,
and interpersonal relations” encountered by the individual in a particular setting
(Bronfenbrenner, 1989).

The inﬂuence of the social situation is fundamental to Deuax’s model, along
with the assumption that women and men make choices in their actions; gender-
related behaviors are a process of internal self-identity and social construction

(Deaux 8 Major, 1987). The outcome of the interaction is molded by the context

(mesosystem) in which the interaction takes place, along with the character
(microsystem) of the individual. Deaux’s consideration of the context at many
levels, from cultural norms to societal structures, corresponds to
Bronfenbrenner’s deﬁnition of the macrosystem (culture, broader social context),
as well as to the immediate circumstances of the interaction, composed of
Bronfenbrenner’s exo- and mesa-systems (Bronfenbrenner, 1989).

The theoretical map (Figure 2.3) illustrates the blending of these two theories
as they depict the proposed research. Bronfenbrenner and Deaux assert that the
context in which the situation occurs affects the behavior that is elicited. All
denominations of the Christian church share a distinct culture (e.g. Sunday
worship, Bible studies, pastoral staff), with variations within each denomination
(e.g. who participates in worship, who may function as congregational lay
leaders, who may take communion). The culture of the church is a microsystem,
and as it interacts with the microsystem of the adolescent female and her family,
it creates a mesosystem. The effects of these two microsystems, and the
mesosystem that they create are further mitigated by the individual traits and
personality dispositions of the adolescent female.

The theoretical map includes both the individual and the context as a part of
the microsystem. The arrows show the causal concepts of individual traits and
personality dispositions as they “meet up with” the context, which, for the
purposes of this research, are church culture and parents in the family of origin.
The context rests on the foundational assumptions that social interactions foster

variabilty and change (behavior is effected by context), and the assertion that

45

 

32:62 30:62: «83:00 Go 8:255

 

:oucom 29:8 98:0 .0 .mcozwsgmn mcﬁoqasm mcozaEamm<n
omcwm .ScmEmucau E935 >=mo=mcmm
.mozmtﬂomﬁco .mEoE."
moamﬂ 6060.85 :_ :95; Co :o_m:_o:_n dzmwml.

 

 

came
.82 goes.

8 Emma ”82
:mccmbcﬂcocm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

b b

 

 

5E _ n 0333

 

 

 

 

 

Em...w>w0mo<_2

 

 

cxn<mo new mmzzmmmzmmzomm- -n_<s_ ._<O_.rmm0m_.:. "QN mmDGE

46

gender-related behaviors are a process of both individual and social construction
(Deaux 8 Major, 1990). Gender identity emerges from the interaction of
individual traits and personality dispositions as they have been shaped by the
context.

Conceptual Map

Traditionally, it has been men who have controlled and formulated church
doctrines, texts, and rituals of faith; and women have been relegated to a
subordinate status (Graham, 1996). Though some church bodies have accepted
women in leadership positions (e.g. clergy, theologians), the prominence of the
male as the norm in Christianity remains prominent in many denominations
today. In denominations in which there are female leaders and pastors, it is
posited that women have been accepted as equals to men, and that the
churches have acknowledged the validity of the female experience. Conversely,
in churches where women are kept from certain roles, it is thought that women
are not seen as equal in the eyes of the church leadership.

The conceptual map (Figure 2.4) outlines the flow of causes that contribute to
the outcome, which is the adolescent female’s gender identity. The flow of
causes begins on the left side of the page, where the practice and culture of a
particular church, dictated in large part by denominational doctrine, provides
insight into their belief regarding women’s roles in areas such as ordination and
leadership (left side of map). Church culture and practice have a direct effect on

the individual female. With the potential to have a decisive role in shaping overall

47

 

 

8053898 :oucmm w 5303.28
6:. 55 .3083 Go w:o_m:oE_uu

3:82 58:65"

moocmazg 5.2.30

 

30:08: 55:3 mﬁmtomnon

      

55:0 .80. Co moocoacEn

5:95:05: 532th he mmocmazgu

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6:0 .82. >05 20:? .mcmnEmE
>=E£ 96205 .598 v6 2E3" Hn_zm_mvm.._
t 858202 5:95 55 i
i m s. _ p r
“|Ill'/
Euro
3282 Go >=Emn=mE9mm

 

38:00 A

Coucmo

/.

       

  

maoummu
>3
mm :mEo>>

8:09: ucm
93.30 583:0

  

 

 

 

38:83.

8685
63:3

 

A

   

 

 

 

EoE o_m>mo 5:82
mﬁEmu

éow Li

          

    

8:265
95525

  

:oszEocmu
cmzmtco 95:65.
Go 3:68

n22 4<Dhmwozoo "1N muse—n.

48

gender characteristics the adolescent deems valuable, an arrow leads from the
church to those characteristics.

Church culture and practice also inﬂuences the family system in which the
young woman lives, and is noted on the conceptual map by the arrow from
church culture to the family system. The family system also includes parents,
siblings, school, neighborhood, and the over-arching attitudes and ideologies of
the culture in which the family lives. The family system directly affects the young
woman’s perceived spiritual strengths and resources, and is noted on the
conceptual map by the arrows from family system to the adolescent female.
Church culture and practice and the family system together inﬂuence the
adolescent female’s perceived spiritual strengths and resources, her self-
concept, and her gender ideology. Insights into the adolescent female’s gender
identity were gained from each of the self-reports of these three concepts, and a
direct arrow illustrates this on the conceptual map.

Lastly, it must be noted that the inﬂuence of each of the aforementioned
concepts (e.g. church culture, family system) occur over time, beginning at birth
and continuing through adolescence, where identity formation coalesces. Thus
identity is based not only on the individual’s experiences of adolescence, but
encompasses all of life’s encounters up to that point.

Theoretical Definitions
The following concepts are found in the operational map and the theoretical

framework.

49

 

sys

0p

sy:

sul

W: The traditions and beliefs that parents ascribe to, and
how it was expressed in the family ecosystem (Hodge, 2000).

W “Consists of the overarching pattern of micro-meso-, and
exosystems characteristic of a given culture, subculture, or other broader social
context, with particular reference to the developmentally-instigative belief
systems, resources, hazards, life styles, opportunity structures, life course
options, and patterns of social interchange that are embedded in each of these
systems. May be thought of as a societal blueprint for a particular culture,
subculture, or other broader social context" (Bronfenbrenner, 1989).

Exoszstem: “Encompasses the linkage and processes taking place between two
or more settings, at least one of which does not ordinarily contain the developing
person, but in which events occur that inﬂuence processes within the immediate
setting that does contain that person” (Bronfenbrenner, 1989)

Mesoszstem: “Comprises the linkages and processes taking place between two
or more settings containing the developing person” (Bronfenbrenner, 1989). A
mesosystem is a system of microsystems.

Microszstem: “A pattern of activities, roles, and interpersonal relations
experienced by the developing person in a given face-to-face setting with
particular physical and material features” (Bronfenbrenner, 1989)

Eye; “Changes and continuities over time that inﬂuence a person’s
development” (Bronfenbrenner, 1986)

Individual traits: A range of possibilities from which an individual can self-choose

different responses, depending on context. (Deaux 8 Major, 1990).

50

W Concerns with self-veriﬁcation or self-presentation,
affected by the context in which a behavioral response occurs (Deaux 8 Major,
1 987).
Context: The transitory factors (e.g. other people involved, societal norms) which
inﬂuence the choices made regarding gender identity (Deaux 8 Major, 1990).
Summation

Chapter Two has investigated the pertinent literature regarding identity
development, from both a psychological and a theological perspective. Both
psychology and theology have premised identity development on the male
experience. Feminist theories in both disciplines have ampliﬁed our knowledge
of female identity development. The focus of the research is to understand the
influences of both religion and family of origin on female gender identity;
therefore, the theoretical and conceptual theories that were presented
acknowledge the influence of both the androcentric and the feminist positions,
which are evident in many church and family cultures. Chapter Three will
describe the speciﬁc methodologies that will be used to study these inﬂuences on

female gender identity.

51

Chapter 3
RESEARCH METHODS

Research Design

The purpose of this qualitative research was to explore the inﬂuences of
church culture and the family of origin on the development of female gender
identity. Sally Archer (1992) offers support for using qualitative methods when
researching gender identity. Archer (1992) suggests listening to life stories to get
an array of “senses" of identity, as people share not only their own ways of
constructing their self-deﬁnitions but also their struggles, or ease in explaining,
what identity is to them.

Therefore, qualitative methodology was employed in the causal research.
Data collection was conducted via case studies; the sample consisted of twenty
late adolescent women between the ages of 18 and 22, currently enrolled in
college. The typology of sampling was stratiﬁed purposeful, in order to illustrate
possible subgroups in the population for influence of denominations and family of
origin differences. Stratified purposeful typology also facilitated comparisons
among subgroups. Each case study included a semi-structured, open-ended
interview between the informant and the researcher as well as the creation of a
spiritual ecomap by the informant.

Procedures

Case study participants were drawn from among campus ministry participants

at public and private colleges and universities around the state of Michigan.

College women participating in campus ministry demonstrate an ongoing

52

commitment to spiritual growth and involvement in organized religion, which was
a key component in the research. In addition, case study participants had to be
living apart from their family of origin, either in campus housing, or in an
apartment. Living apart from one’s family removes some of the parental
expectation for church attendance and involvement, as well as an opportunity to
explore church and family teachings away from the individuals (i.e. spiritual
leaders and parents) who were part of the microsystem of earlier development.

College women were key to the study, since enrollment in an undergraduate
institution and working toward a bachelor’s degree gives the implication of
preparation for a career outside of the home. Some of the church denominations
from which informants were drawn promote home and family as the “proper"
career for a Christian woman. Age also was a factor in the study, and young
women between 18 and 22, have, according to Amett (2000) had the opportunity
to reﬂect on their upbringing, as well as acquire experiences away from their
family of origin. Arnett (2000) asserts that between the ages of 18 and 22
identity is not fully formed, and that a period of identity exploration exists for
young people. Case studies of women from this age group evinced inﬂuences
from family of origin and church culture and practice in the formation of identity.

Sample

lnformants were solicited through a variety of means, including contacting
campus pastors of mainline Christian church campus ministries, posting
announcements through campus organizations, and word of mouth from

informants themselves. The informants who participated in the case studies

53

were Caucasian with the exception of two informants, one of whom was African
American, and the other was Asian. There were several reasons why there was
a predominance of Caucasian women. First, in an effort to ﬁnd a rationale to
support which church denominations to include in the study, an objective source
was sought. Mead and Hill’s (1995) Handbook of Denominations provided
information that ultimately constricted the denominations to those identiﬁed as
“mainline Christian." These denominations trace their origins back to the
Reformation, which occurred in Germany in 1517. The denominations, then,
have westem-European roots, and this is evident in the predominance of
Caucasian members. Secondly, having afﬁrmed the inﬂuence of culture
(mesosystem) in the review of literature in Chapter 2, it must be noted that the
expectations for women vary from culture to culture. Due to the small number of
women who were studied (twenty), informants with similar cultural backgrounds
enhanced the variables that exist between denominations as well as in the family
of origin. The researcher acknowledges the importance of studying females
from all cultures. However, the predominance of Caucasian informants in the
present research helped to clarify the inﬂuences of denominational and family
factors, and will enhance the opportunities to include other ethnicities as
research on identity continues beyond the present study. A demographic

summary of informants is provided in Tables 3.1A and B.

54

TABLE 3.1A: DEMOGRAPHIC DATA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NAME AGE RELIGIOUS GREW UP LIVED IN PARENTS’
TRADITION IN HOUSEHOLD ED. LEVEL
Joann 19 Baptist Monroe, MI Mom, Dad, Mom=BD
brother, sister Dad=DDS
Donna 18 Baptist Milan, MI Mom, Dad, Mom=Mstrs
sister Dad=BD
Jacque 18 Baptist Detroit, MI Mom Mom=Mstr’s
(Dad) Dad=Mstr’s
Libby 20 Baptist Novi, MI Mom, Dad, 3 Mom=HS
brothers Dad=BD
Ellen 22 Episcopal Ypsilanti, Mom, Dad, Mom=Mstr’s
Ml sister, Dad=BD
relatives
Jane 20 Episcopal Ypsilanti, Mom, sister, Mom=BD
MI bother, (Dad) Dad=Mstr’s
Nicole 19 Lutheran Cadillac, MI Mom, Dad, Mom=BD
(ELCA) sister, brother Dad=BD
Erin 21 Lutheran Portage, MI Mom, Dad, Mom=SC
(ELCA) brother Dad=BD
Margaret 20 Lutheran Saginaw, Mom, Dad, Mom=BD
(LCMS) Ml sister Dad=M.Div.
Lucy 19 Lutheran Ann Arbor, Mom, Dad, Mom=Mstr“s
(LCMS) MI sister, brother Dad=Mstr’s
Emma 18 Lutheran Saginaw 8 Mom, Dad, Mom=Mstr’s
(LCMS) White sister Dad=BD
Lake, MI
Renee 20 Lutheran Silver Mom, Dad, Mom=Mstr’s
(LCMS) Spring, 2 sisters, 1 Dad=Ph.D./
MD, brother M.D.
Whitmore
Lake, MI
LEGEND:

HS = high school diploma

SC = some college, no degree
M.Div. = Master of Divinity
Mstr’s = Master’s degree

ELCA=Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America
LCMS=Lutheran Church-Missouri

Synod

 

RN = Nursing school
BD = Bachelor’s degree

DDS = Doctor of Dentistry
(Dad) = Divorce, Dad lived
in separate home

 

 

55

 

TABLE 3.1 B: DEMOGRAPHIC DATA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NAME AGE RELIGIOUS GREW UP LIVED IN PARENTS’
TRADITION IN HOUSEHOLD ED. LEVEL

Lana 20 Methodist Conneaut, Mom, Dad, Mom=RN

OH sister, brother Dad=HS

Bonnie 22 Methodist Plymouth, Mom, Dad, Mom=BD
Ml brother Dad=Mstr’s
Molly 19 Methodist Grand Mom 8 Dad Mom=Mstr’s

Rapids, MI Dad=BD
Carrie 19 Methodist Ann Arbor, Mom and Mom=Mstfs

MI brother; (Dad) Dad=un-

known

Leah 20 Presbyterian Cedarburg, Mom, Dad, Mom=BD

WI 8 sister, brother Dad=Mstr’s
Brighton,
MI

LeeAnn 19 Presbyterian Livonia, MI Mom, Dad, Mom=BD

sister, half- Dad=Mstr’s
sister

Kara 19 Presbyterian Brighton, Mom, Dad, Mom=SC

Ml sister Dad=BD

Joy 19 Presbyterian Brighton, Mom, Dad, Mom=BD

Ml half-brother Dad=BD

LEGEND:

 

HS = high school diploma

SC = some college, no degree
M.Div. = Master of Divinity
Mstr’s = Master’s degree

RN = Nursing school

BD = Bachelor’s degree

DDS = Doctor of Dentistry

(Dad) = Divorce, Dad lived
in separate home

 

 

 

Methods

The methodology of the case study consisted of two parts, the ﬁrst of which
was an interview between the informant and the researcher. The interview
questions (Appendix A) allowed the researcher to gain more in-depth
information from the informant regarding the spiritual practices and inﬂuences of
the family of origin and her church. The second piece of the case study was the
creation of a spiritual ecomap by the informant (Appendix 8). Based on the
research of David Hodge (2000), the spiritual ecomap visually depicts the
inforrnant’s relationships with inﬂuential components of her microsystem, which,
Hodge asserts, contribute to identity formation. The ecomap displays the
woman’s spiritual strengths and what she views as her spiritual resources.
Together, the interview and the ecomap yielded insight into three concepts
believed to shape gender identity: spiritual strengths and resources, self-
concept, and perceived gender role expectations.

To assure validity of the methodology, two pilot tests were conducted prior to
beginning the case studies. The pilot tests assisted the researcher in knowing
how much time the process took, which was helpful information to offer when
soliciting informants. In addition, the pilot tests allowed the researcher to make
certain that the interview questions were clearly comprehensible to the informant.
Interview question ten (“How did your family express its spiritual beliefs?”) proved
awkward during both pilot tests; neither of the informants quite grasped the
concept. This difﬁculty was addressed by adding the phrase “at home” at the

end of the question. During the pilot tests, the researcher discovered the

57

importance of stepping out of the room while the informant ﬁlled out the ecomap,
allowing each woman the opportunity to think and create the map in private. The
informants were quite willing to share the ﬁnished product, both visually and
verbally, but appeared uncomfortable with my presence during the creation
process. It also became apparent that it was necessary to assure the informants
that questions eight and twenty one were not “trick" questions (“Tell me your
deﬁnition of what it means to be religious;” and “Describe your relationship to
God”). Facial and body language indicated that informants thought these
questions might be testing their theological knowledge and/or some other
researcher agenda. Therefore, when posing these questions in subsequent
interviews, they were always prefaced with the statement, “This is not a
theological question, I’m interested in your deﬁnition/description.” Lastly, the
order of the interview changed from the ﬁrst to the second pilot test, and that
order was used for the remainder of the interviews. Initially, the intent had been
to have informants complete the ecomap ﬁrst, and then proceed with the
interview questions. It was decided to change the format of the interview for two
reasons; ﬁrst, asking basic demographic questions at the outset facilitated the
informants’ overall level of trust and ease. Secondly, it was found that
informants’ ability to complete the ecomap was assisted by some introduction to
the content of the interview.

The interview questions were created from the research questions, which
provided overall guidance to the research project. The relationship between the

research questions and the interview questions is illustrated in Table 3.2 A and

58

8. Due to the inter-relationship of concepts among the research questions, some
of the interview questions brought insight to more than one of the research
questions. The ecomap (Appendix B) allowed informants to create a visual
picture of their spiritual strengths and weakness (research question 4). The
circles on the map representing spiritual inﬂuences in the participants’
lives included some prompts (i.e. circles already labeled), as well as blank circles
for individual assignment.
Operational Map

The operational map (Figure 3.1) illustrates the research process, built on the
foundations of church culture and parents and family of origin. The contexts of
church and family of origin, part of Brenfenbrenner’s (1987) micro-and meso-
systems, were shown to play a key role in gender identity development.
Grotevant (1992), a theorist and researcher of adolescent identity, upholds the
importance of context in the development of identity, asserting that identity is
continually updated as new experiences are encountered. James Cote (1996)
also supports the inﬂuence of contextual forces, stating that “identity is not the
exclusive property of the individual but rather is something that is realized
strategically and circumstantially” (p. 132). One must acknowledge, Cote
maintains, that the individual constructs identity in relation to external
circumstances such as day-to-day interactions, cultural institutions (e.g. church)
and social structures (e.g. family).

The content of the interview questions is depicted in the foundational

concepts, which rest upon the dual foundations of church and family. Deaux and

59

TABLE 3.2A: The Relationship

Between Research Questions and

Interview Questions

 

Research Question

Interview Questions

 

1. How does the culture of the
church inﬂuence female identity
development?

6. What was the religious tradition you
grew up in?

7. What are the primary beliefs of your
religious community?

17. Describe your relationship with those
you consider to hold a position of
spiritual leadership in your life.

21. Describe your relationship to God.

22. What facilitates the sense of

closeness(distance) with God?

 

2. How do the practices of the church
inﬂuence female identity
development?

18. What do you believe is women’s role
in your church?

20.Do you feel that your church is open
and supportive to you as a woman in
the goals that you have set for
yourself?

 

 

3. How do parent’s religious
practices and beliefs inﬂuence female
identity development?

9. What was your level of involvement
in your faith community as you were
growing up?

How did your family express its
spiritual beliefs at home?

What sort of religious experiences
stand out during your years at
home?

What particular rituals or practices
nurture your family’s spiritual
tradition?

How much autonomy did you
experience within your family’s
spiritual tradition?

What were the
similarities/differences between your
parents’ expressions of faith?

How did those differences in
beliefs/practices affect you and your
relationship with either parent?

How would you describe your current
relationship to your family’s religious
traditions?

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

 

 

60

 

TABLE 3.28: The Relationship Between Research Questions and
Interview Questions

 

4. How do spiritual strengths and
resources contribute to female
identity?

9. What was your level of involvement in
your faith community as you were
growing up?

11.What sort of religious experiences

stand out during your years at home?

17. Describe your relationship with those

you consider to hold a position of
spiritual leadership in your life.

 

5. How does self-concept contribute
to female identity?

13.How much autonomy did you
experience within your family’s
spiritual tradition?

19. How does your spirituality relate to
your plans for your life? Your
expectations for career and family?

21. Describe your relationship to God.

22.What facilitates the sense of

closeness (distance) with God?

 

 

6. How does gender ideology
contribute to female identity?

13. How much autonomy did you
experience within your family’s
spiritual tradition?

18.What do you believe is women’s role
in your church?

19.How does your spirituality relate to
your plans for your life? Your
expectations for career and family?

20.Do you feel that your church is open
and supportive to you as a woman in
the goals that you have set for
yourself?

 

 

61

 

I I Iron-(cu

 

   

   

 

5:82 56:0 980
Co 033 Eccegcsuu

528:
33:8
3232

 

       

$2.8
.matam
5:8qu

   

O

       

828:.
32:5
38:6“.

$9.0m

368:8 6:256:38
2: Co 802: 05008"

 

       

.matam Bo 8
Co 53855 aEmcoszm
2E5“. .285:

        

30.082
56:00

 

     

«amocoo
gem

5:... 120.2580 s

                                       

 

5:82 Emacs o. 233:8 2

85:8 28880" H 8255

5.8 929.8
meE
m.:o=m:_Eo:oo

    

         

9:825 Co
magi .macam

    

  

         

EoEm>_o>:_

83mm:
555 page“.

aacaw

     

mooSommm
ucm 26:95
33:3

 

.n mmDOE

 

          

62

Majon
etthe
the '1
pare
des

ex;

pr;

Major (1990) posit that the degree to which gender associations are referred to
either consciously or unconsciously in a particular context has a direct effect on
the inﬂuence of gender identity. For this reason, the conceptual map includes
parental faith traditions, naming of key spiritual leaders within the church, and
description of the faith community. Similarities and differences between parents’
expression of faith were asked in the interview portion of the case study.

The arrows ﬂowing sideways portray the inﬂuence of church culture and
practice on the informant, her parents, and her family of origin. The foundational
concepts on the right side of the map focus on the expression of spiritual beliefs
within the family itself. The informant’s personal relationship to God is placed
between the two foundational concepts, to illustrate that the relationship to God
bridges both foundational inﬂuences of church culture and practice as well as
family of origin. The arrows ﬂowing upwards indicate the assertion that all
components of the foundational concepts directly contribute to female adolescent
identity development. While there are many components that contribute to
development of identity, the proposed research focuses speciﬁcally on spiritual
strengths and resources, self-concept, and gender ideology.

Flax (1990) afﬁrms the importance of gender identity to the overall concept of
self, declaring that gender is a category of thought which affects society.
Supporting Bronfenbrenner’s and Deaux’s assertions regarding the importance of
context, Flax describes gender as a social relationship, shaped by social

relations. Certainly the contexts of church and family, central to those who

63

practice the Christian faith, offer powerful contexts in which to explore gender
identity.
Operational Definitions
The concepts that follow are taken from the operational map, and deﬁne how
the terms will be used in the proposed research.

. Culture: The way of life followed by members of the informant's
denomination,
including their world view, structures of behavior, and perspectives on life.

. Mainline ChnstianDenominations: Methodists, Lutherans, Presbyterians,
Episcopalians, and Baptists

. Church Culture and Practice: Inﬂuenced by denominational doctrine, culture
and practice are the result of what is believed and valued, and is evinced in
the day-to-day life of worship, education, and fellowship gatherings of church
members.

. Spiritual Leaders: Professional ministry staff of a church—Senior Pastor,
Youth Pastor, Youth Leader, Minister of Music, Director Of Christian
Education, and the like.

. Spiritual Rituals of Worship: lnformant’s description of who is involved in
corporate worship, and what activities constitute worship.

. Relationship to God: lnformant’s self-reported sense of closeness to God,
and how that relates to her day-to-day life.

. Denominatipns Primacy Religious Beliefs: lnformant’s summation of the
primary tenets of her church’s doctrine.

. Family Church Involvement: How often informant’s family attended church,
and in what groups and/or activities family members participated.

0 Parents: Biological, adoptive, and/or step-parents that informant lived with
while growing up.

. Family pf On‘gﬂ Parents, step-parents, siblings, step/half-siblings and any
extended family that lived in the house with the informant while she was
growing up.

de

Father’s Spiritual Tradition: Father's expression (verbal and actions) of his
beliefs about God and organized religion.

Mother’s Spiritual Tradition: Mother’s expression (verbal and actions) of her
beliefs about God and organized religion.

Personal Spiritual Beliefs: lnformant’s primary beliefs about God and
organized religion.

Family Expression of Spiritual Beliefs: Speciﬁc spiritual rituals done as a
family in the home.

Spiritual Strengths and Resources: The informant’s self-described strengths
and resources, as depicted in the spiritual ecomap.

Self-Concept: The informant’s self-values, self-beliefs, self-feelings, and self-
assessments.

Gender Ideology: The inforrnant’s self-description of gender appropriate
behaviors.

Identity Development: The result of ongoing interactions which include
personal expectancies, and context as sampled in church culture and family
of origin (Deaux & Major, 1987).

Female Gender Identity: “The fundamental, existential sense of one’s
femaleness, an acceptance of one’s gender as a social psychological
construction that parallels acceptance of one’s biological sex" (Deaux 8.
Major, 1990).

“To have commitments in those domains that you yourself see as central to
personhood, and to have an overriding sense of self that coordinates these
commitments” (Moshman, 1999, p. 86).

Researcher as Instrument.

l have a long history with the focus of the proposed research; given the

qualitative nature of the methodology, my personal biases must be

acknowledged. Growing up, my family attended church on a regular basis; my

siblings and I attended Sunday School and mid-week school, and family

members were involved in service and fellowship organizations. The

denomination to which my family belonged has a long history of down-playing the

65

inpOI
manc
deno

qulH

notﬁt
schoc
later
been
gende
yearc
have

am pr

importance of women's gifts and abilities, and maintains a very narrow doctrinal
stance on what women can contribute to the church’s ministry. The
denomination does not ordain women, nor are women found in leadership in the
full-time paid positions at the national, state, or local level. In some
congregations female members are not allowed to vote in matters pertaining to
the governance of that parish.

Since adolescence, l have been aware that my behaviors and aspirations do
not ﬁt the mold of what is considered acceptable in my denomination. In high
school I wanted to be youth group president, which was considered a male role.
I attended a university owned and operated by the denomination in which I had
been raised; I challenged my internship placement because it was based on
gender expectations I didn't feel I could fulﬁll. Over the course of my twenty-one
year career within the churches, schools, and universities of the denomination, l
have continued to challenge expectations and boundaries based on gender. I
am proud of the tag given by one of my colleagues—“the divine irritant.”

Over time, I have noted that within the church, many of my female peers as
well as students in my classes do not share my perspectives on the gender
inequities within our denomination. l have observed that female students who
come from very conservative religious homes hold very rigid views on acceptable
attitudes and behaviors for their gender.

I grew up in the same church; how did I end up with such different views?
Enter the variable of family of origin. Throughout my childhood and adolescence

my mother worked full-time outside of the home; as a young girl my father told

me I could do anything I set my mind to, and gave me opportunities to do so. All
of these experiences and perspectives come with me as l embark on this
research.
Data Collection

Data were collected during an individual meeting between informant and
researcher during the months of March through July of 2001. The majority of
interviews took place in campus churches, or in student resident halls. The
interviews took, on average, one hour. After introductions, the researcher went
over the consent form with the informant, for her signature. Included in the
explanation of the consent form was the request for permission to tape the
interview. The interview began with the collection of demographic data (e.g.
name, age), which allowed the informant a few moments to become comfortable
with the interview process. The interview questions proceeded as numbered,
through the completion of number sixteen. At this point in the interview,
informants were provided with the blank ecomap, a box of colored pencils, and
basic instructions on how to create the map. lnformants were then left alone in
the room until they had completed the process, which was anywhere from six to
ten minutes. When the researcher re-entered the room, the informant was then
asked to explain her ecomap, and the remainder of the interview questions were
posed.

An undergraduate student assistant, who was paid by the researcher,

transcribed taped data from each interview. Interview tapes were transcribed

67

verbatim. Tapes were labeled with a letter or number, to protect the informant
and keep interview responses conﬁdential.
Data Analysis

Decisions regarding coding, whether to pre-code, and how to coordinate the
data from the ecomap with the interview data was key information gleaned from
the pilot studies. Data gathered from the two pilot-studies were examined for
decisions regarding the case studies that comprised the research. The two pilot
interviews were very different, despite similarities in the informants’ present
situations. Therefore, it was the decision of the researcher not to precode,
allowing for further information from the interviews to inform the coding process.
The researcher did take ﬁeld notes during the interview process, particularly to
memo things that the tape would not pick up (e.g. facial expressions, body
language). A contact summary form (Appendix C) was completed after each
interview. This form incorporated ﬁeld notes as well as impressions and
reflections from the researcher.

After the interviews were completed, the researcher began to create codes
based on concepts taken from the conceptual framework and research
questions. After this step, several other codes were added which reflected key
variables that had become evident over the course of the interview process. A
listing of codes used for data analysis is provided in Table 3.3.

Data analysis included examination of each informant’s ecomap, which was
completed during the interview process. The pilot ecomaps provided visual

credibility to the data gathered through interview questions regarding informant

68

TABLE 3.3: CODING SCHEMES

Demographics:

AGE - age of participant

CITY - city and state grew up in
Church culture and practice codes:

CC - church culture

RT - religious tradition

WRC - women’s role in church
GOSUP - church supports personal goals
Family of origin codes:

PAM - parents” marital status

EDU - parents’ educational status
SIB - siblings

PDIFF - parental differences

RITS - family spiritual rituals/practices

Spiritual strengths and resources codes:

SPR - spiritual resources

SS - spiritual strengths

SL - spiritual leaders

GOD - relationship with God

EXP - standout religious experiences

Self-concept codes:

COLEX - college classes/experiences w
CONNECT - connection to religious tradition

AUTO - autonomy w/in family’s religious tradition
LIFP - life plans

Gender ideology codes:
CAFAM - expectations for career and family

69

spiritual strengths and resources. Conﬁrmation of the information from each of
the informants was achieved via the triangulation of data between their interview
question responses and their ecomaps. The ecomap readings were integrated
into the analysis of the interview questions in the discussion of ﬁndings with

regard to research questions one, three, and four.

70

Chapter 4
RESEARCH FINDINGS
Overview
This study explored the inﬂuence of church culture and the family system in
shaping female identity formation. From my interviews of twenty college women
between ages nineteen and twenty-two, I gained insight into the effects of their
experiences growing up in Christian churches as well as the inﬂuences from their
family of origin on the development of their gender identity. Listening to their
responses to the interview questions and examining their ecomaps provided an
understanding of their gender identity. Dialoging with informants evinced support
for how inﬂuential church practices, parental spiritual beliefs, and family spiritual
activities have been on the development of gender identity. Joann, a nineteen
year old raised in the Baptist church, states:
“Yeah, I, uh, well, l..l tend to have Iike...how do I word
this? I tend to express my views quite a bit...when
sometimes, like, as long as it’s not going against what
like, what my husband believes ..... so basically, I’m
gonna have to learn how to be submissive. That
could probably take a long time.”
Renee, a twenty year old who identiﬁed herself as a Lutheran, was raised in a
family that embraced both her father’s Lutheran tradition and her mother’s
Mennonite background.
“Acapella singing is-it’s integral to my family, but also to
my mom’s spiritual tradition. And even the hair, to some
extent, because they believe that hair is a glory and a
covering for women ...... My mom actually wouldn’t let

us cut it until we got to be, urn, old enough ..... I’ve always
had long hair... .it’s sort of who I am.”

71

These quotes illustrate just how great the inﬂuences of church doctrine and
practice as well as the expression of spirituality within the family were in the
development of gender identity of the informants. First-hand information gained
via the interviews also revealed how self-concept inﬂuenced female adolescent
identity through self-beliefs, self-feelings, and self-assessments. In addition, the
ecomaps created by the informants provided visual information that supported
the verbal data. The analysis of the data gathered is presented in six sections,
each section devoted to addressing one of the research questions.

Summary of Results
Research Question One: The Culture of the Church as an Inﬂuence on Female
Adolescent Identimgevelm.

The ﬁrst research question focused on the inﬂuence of the church in which the
informant attended, and included denominational factors such as doctrinal
stance, the inﬂuence of spiritual leaders, and the inforrnant’s personal
perspective on her relationship to God.

Primary religious beliefs.

Feminist theologians assert that the beliefs and practices of religious
denominations shape self-perception (see discussion in Chapter 2). King (1995)
asserts that, “perceptions of ourselves are shaped by and deeply rooted in our
culturally shared religious and philosophical heritage” (p2). Denominational ties
were clearly visible in the verbal responses to the interview question, “ What are

the primary beliefs of your religious community?” Similarity among responses fell

72

into categories according to the denomination to which the women were
afﬁliated.

Baptist respondents emphasized the centrality of Jesus’ death on the cross to
their overall belief system. Joann mentioned the Baptist belief in predestination
as central:

“Well, we believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross, um, to
save our sins... .well, some Baptists believe in double
predestination, so like, it’s basically a Baptist thing...”
Donna, also a Baptist, echoed the belief in Jesus, but included the role of
baptism:
“...that you believe in Jesus Christ and that he died, um,
and rose again to be saved, um , that you should be
baptized as a symbol of your faith, and that’s what I’m
going to say is the major ones.”
Both women’s statements of faith included beliefs/practices that are key
doctrinal issues associated with the Baptist church.
Methodists noted the importance of social action and liberalism, along with
faith in Christ and the role of human free will. Lana, who is planning on

becoming a Methodist minister, also mentioned the founder of the denomination:

“Um, well, it’s founded by John Wesley. And, urn, a lot of
it’s on the free will, and that’s the idea.”

Bonnie, a life-long Methodist, was frustrated by the question, and ultimately
offered:

“It seems from what I’ve observed that it’s a little
more liberal in it’s social ideas, I think."

Molly, who began attending the Methodist church in middle school, repeated the

liberal theme:

73

“Like, it’s more of a liberal church. I feel like it’s your
belief, your relationship with God is very personal. It’s
not, there’s not so many strict, like, it’s kind of more
open... I see it as, and just that message to love one
another.”

Presbyterians, like Baptists, frequently mentioned the importance of Jesus,
however their emphasis was on Jesus as the “only way." Joy’s response to the
question regarding beliefs, was typical of the Presbyterian women.

“Jesus is the only way to God, and that he is, you

know, I mean, he was a living sacriﬁce and that he

lived a perfect life, and... made the ultimate sacriﬁce

for us...”
Lee Ann’s reply included a doctrinal statement associated with the Presbyterian
church:

“The essential is unity, the nonessential’s liberty. So,

like, unity, our essentials would be like, urn, believing

in Jesus to go to heaven, and, um, .different things

like that. The nonessentials would be like sacraments,

that like, you can take your own view on it, because they

don’t think that’s like going to impact how you go to heaven.”

Lutheran women frequently mentioned the concept of the trinity (Father,

Son, Holy Spirit), and the importance of grace, not good works.

“Jesus died on the cross to save our sins...and

we’re saved through grace and not by works.”

Nicole

“Well, I would have to say that it’s pretty much

built on grace through Jesus coming and saving

the world through grace, through dying on the

cross, through rising again.”

Emma

It was evident that the perspective of each respondent regarding the beliefs of

their denomination were inﬂuenced by their own personal needs and/or

74

experiences. Renee, who has attended many different denominations, and
whose mother is a Mennonite, found her understanding of Lutheranism through
the religious practices of the college she was currently attending.

“Since I don’t have a constant church community,
(college) has sort of become that ..... Urn, when I
came here, I, um, I was not quite so much in
agreement with Lutheran doctrine as I am now.”

Erin, who identiﬁed herself as a lesbian, described the church’s position on gays
and lesbians, and knew that there was a difference between the local
congregation and the larger church body.

“The church as in this congregation? Or this
church as in the denomination? The ELCA
is not...as...big on ...um, welcoming gays

and Iesbians...l would say the average one
(church) they would welcome them as
members... most of the time... but the church

itself it... uh... in terms of leadership, is very
anti-gay."

The responses from the two Episcopalian informants covered the importance
of diversity, acceptance, and encouragement to seek out truth; however, neither
woman directly mentioned the role of faith in God or Jesus.

“Well, the way I usually describe it is being really
Catholic without all the rules.”

Ellen
.recognizing diversity...accepting people,
because they have common beliefs...another
really big thing is charity, as far as outreach,

and community, and giving back.”
Jane

75

The themes evident among the denominations illustrate the inﬂuence of
church doctrine on shaping perception of self, as the informants readily provided
their perspective on the beliefs of their church.

Spiritual leaders.

Related to the assessment of church culture as an inﬂuence on identity
development was the perception of who has provided spiritual leadership. Those
recognized as spiritual leaders provided a role model to the informants, regarding
expected female behavior as a Christian in that church body. Deaux’s ( 1987)
theory acknowledges the importance of the social situation in which the
informants have interacted with their spiritual leaders, as those situations assist
in creating expectancies regarding gender behavior. Several women named
family members, which will be discussed later in the chapter; for the purpose of
focusing on the inﬂuence of church culture, only the responses which named
church staff, that is, clergy as well as youth directors, music directors, and the
like, were examined. When asked to name spiritual leaders in their lives, there
was no clear division along denominational lines. All Lutheran and Methodist
respondents named at least one clergy or other church staff member. Among
the other denominations, at least one respondent in each denomination named
someone on their church staff as a spiritual leader.

Donna, a Baptist with a troubled home life, described a very close relationship
with her youth pastor and his wife. Donna’s response illustrates the inﬂuence
church staff have not only in spiritual matters, but in day-to-day situations,

including family dynamics.

76

“Well, I would say, like the ﬁrst people that

really ever, really helped me and guide me,

and I really got to know them, were my

youth pastor and his wife back in (city). Um,

I mean, he taught Sunday school, and his wife was
there every weekend...you could go to her or him,
depending on like what you wanted to talk about...
and so they really helped me, like, I was having a
hard time at home, or I just, they would help me
put it back in perspective, like you know, your
parent’s really don’t need, it’s just that they have

a hard time showing... it’s not all your fault, what’s
going on at home... so they really helped me and
got me, and just encouraged me to like, stay strong
and not give up.”

Jane, an Episcopalian, also describes a close relationship with her pastor, which
has spanned much of her lifetime.

.our minister and our assistant minister at our

church, I think, are, you know, a big part of that...

the head minister has known me since I was 5

years old... .”
Twelve respondents named spiritual leaders who were church staff whose
speciﬁc title and responsibilities focused on middle and high school youth. The
inﬂuence of these staff members on informants’ adolescent years left a lasting
impression for these women.

“First it was Jake Nottingham, and we were

really close with him. And Mrs. Dupere, I’m

close with her. So it’s like I’ve been close to

the youth leaders...”

Lucy, a Lutheran

Joy had a very positive experience as member of a small group Bible study in

high school, comprised of females who were in the same grade. Joy’s response

illustrates the tremendous inﬂuence youth workers have on identity development.

77

.our small group leader Susan has been,
she’s just, she’s deﬁnitely an awesome woman
of God, who, uh, you know, she was there every
week, and you know, had us over to her house,
and all that kind of thing, you know, deﬁnitely,
she was a friend and also, just like someone to
look up to, you know, like an example of a good
wife and mom, and servant...”
Not all informants, however, have felt comfortable with church staff members.
Molly, a nineteen year old Methodist, states:
“I’m taking things in from them, but ljust, I’m
never, they intimidate me for some reason, and
I just never had a personal relationship with
them... .Like, I’m religious, but I don’t tell them
my problems... I’d like too, but I just haven’t yet..."

In order to participate in the interview process, one of the requirements was
that the informant be involved in campus ministry. As I began to conduct the
interviews, I realized that I had expected that there would be some reference to
the inﬂuence of the informant’s involvement in campus ministry. Only four
students named campus staff as spiritual leaders, and the role of campus
ministry in facilitating a closeness to God was mentioned twice. Perhaps the
primary focus of the interview questions on family and growing up years had the
respondents thinking more about their lives up to that point. However, the
questions about spiritual leadership and their relationship with God were worded
in the present tense. Another inﬂuence may be the age of the respondents, the
majority of whom were eighteen or nineteen, ﬁrst or second year college

students. They simply have not had enough interaction and experiences with

their respective campus ministries to feel the inﬂuence of the connection.

78

Relationship to God.

When asked to describe their relationship to God, and the closeness or
distance of that relationship, the responses varied widely. Jane, at twenty, does
not feel as close to God as she hopes to be.

“Not being secure in my faith, as much as l hopefully
will be when I’m older, when things are a little more
solid in my life, as far as relationships and just being
done with school, and being set in a career path... ."

Ellen’s response to the query reﬂected her recent successful treatment for a
malignant melanoma.

“I’m very thankful, I think that would be the description.
And I feel very fortunate. I feel that l have a very fortunate
life. And God being part of that, you know, and having

the spirituality that l have, I’m very thankful...”

Several of the women described their relationship to God as one of dependence,
and that they could always trust God to meet their needs.

“I pray to God all the time, for lots of things, I
try to talk to him a lot...for help with dealing
with things...”

Nicole, age 19

“I mean, he’s like my best friend. Like I can
talk to him about everything, whenever I need
help.”

Libby, age 20

“...and just that I can always, like, turn to God...

and, like, I might not get the answer right away,

but yet, like, I know that he will provide it for me.”
Joann, age 19

it’s an ongoing relationship, and even when I’m
not doing my part, I totally believe that God is there
and God’s taking care of me... .”

Emma, age 18

79

At the time of the interview, Erin was just days away from her college graduation,
and was uncertain whether she would pursue a graduate degree in sociology or
attend seminary. Her description of her relationship with God, however, was
quite certain.

“I work for God, I work with God... .But mostly

it’s the working for, I really think. And I’m

supported by God, and I look for answers, but

for the most part how I really see myself, in

terms of a relationship with God, is that I

work for God...”
Since Erin belongs to a Lutheran denomination that ordains women, it is possible
that the models of women in leadership had inﬂuenced her perspective on God.
While models of women in leadership may, indeed, have played a part, there
must be other factors that came into play, given Bonnie’s response.

“I think that my, uh, image of the God in my

life is kind of as a father ﬁgure, a parent ﬁgure,

it’s kind of looking out for me. Helping me

along the way, when I need it, making sure

that I don’t fall into any... .big pits (laugh).

it’s kind of like that, more than like friend

relationship, I would say it’s more like a

mentor-parent type ﬁgure.”
Bonnie belongs to the Methodist church, which also ordains women; she was a
student at the same large university as Erin, and was also just days away from
graduation. Bonnie’s response raises questions about the possibility of variation
of self- identity under differing circumstances. She was poised to graduate with a
degree in mechanical engineering from a highly competitive program in which,

Bonnie noted, women comprise only “about 20 percent” of the students. Her

response regarding her relationship to God was the most patriarchal and

80

theologically traditional, yet she grew up in a church that is one of the more
liberal denominations among mainline religions.

The theme of reliance was also present in the responses to the question
posed regarding closeness or distance to God. Lee Ann, age nineteen, stated
that not relying on God pushes her away from him.

not relying on him when I have decisions. Um,
even the little things, I’m like, ‘Oh, lcan take care
of that,’ and then like by doing that, slowly and
slowly other things, I’m like, ‘Oh, I can handle
that, too,’ and it just draws me; the more I rely

on myself, the further I get from God.”

Joy’s response includes the importance of reading the Bible in keeping her close
to God.

“...when I’m, when I’m in the Word, or you
know, if I haven’t, if I haven’t been reading, and
it’s hard because sometimes it’s like I can go,
you know, a few days without reading it, and

I ﬁnd it sometimes, like the next day I’m like,
‘Who is God again? lforget.”

Renee reiterates the importance of reading the Bible, but does so from a much
more pragmatic perspective.

“Well, always for me—it’s sort of a measure
of how close I feel to God is how regularly

I’m willing to take time out of my day to read
the Bible and pray. Um, and I can tell you
that it might even be going to church on
Sunday can be a gauge of that. And there
have been times the last two or three years
where l have gone four or ﬁve months without
cracking my Bible open.”

The most frequent response noted with regard to closeness to God was the

importance of prayer. Molly states the role of prayer very succinctly:

81

‘Um...so like, sometimes like when I pray, and
when I, sometimes...l don’t know, I can’t even,
you feel some type of connection and you know
someone’s listening to you and...and...l think
you know that he’s affecting your life and leading
you, like that’s, that’s when I feel close.’

With regard to their relationship with God, other signiﬁcant responses included
the role of Christian friends and church as facilitators in maintaining a close
relationship with God.

“It deﬁnitely helps me when I’m in an environment
where other people have the same beliefs as me
and are pretty much on the same level.”

Emma, age 18

“I think, well, how I feel close to God is hanging

out with my friends who are religious. Like

going to the campus ministry stuff always helps.”
Lucy, age 19

“Um..like being around other Christians, and,
you know, practicing worship, like when I go
to a Christian camp over the summer and
when I get back from camp, I’m just like on a
spiritual high ..... So I guess it depends on who
you’re around, that helps inﬂuence that.”

Libby, age 20

“I think going to church, and I think having the
friends that I do, who, who support that and
make sure that I’m, they’re there for me, and if

I need anything, I think that is a direct extension

of God, that they’re the angels in my life...”
Jane, age 20

Ecom ps.
Each informant completed a spiritual ecomap, a visual display of their
connections and relationships regarding their spiritual beliefs (Appendix B).

Information regarding church culture was gleaned by examining their connection

82

to the circle labeled “faith community.“ The thickness of the line connecting the
informant to the faith community circle indicated the strength of the relationship.
Arrows were used to show ﬂow of energy; that is, if the woman felt encouraged
and uplifted by her faith community, the arrow went from the faith community
circle to the informant circle. If the woman also felt that she gave back to the
faith community, the arrow went both directions between the informant circle and
the faith community circle. Twelve women indicated that the ﬂow of energy was
bi-directional between the faith community and themselves. Five women used
uni-directional arrows, illustrating the ﬂow of energy coming from the faith
community to them. Several of the informants mentioned feeling less connected
to their faith community since they had gone off to college. Donna used the
designated notation (d-d-d) to indicate that she felt distant from her faith
community. In the interview, she offered this explanation:

“I deﬁnitely feel less connected just because, urn,

of situations happening in my church, and that

I’m not there, um, and that our pastor is leaving

in June, so... .I just don’t care to be there right now.”
Carrie used a dashed line to illustrate her conﬂictual feelings regarding her
relationship with the congregation in which she grew up, recounting some
negative social interactions.

“....Um, it was deﬁnitely, like for the girls, it was

a contest to see who had like the best dress or what

ever. And for the guys, they guys were just, you

know, all hormone crazed. And that’s just what I

felt like, like it was a match-making thing. And I
didn’t really like it."

83

ﬂ)

A summary of the variables applicable to the ﬁrst research question regarding
the inﬂuence of church culture on identity development is presented as a cross
case display in Table 4.1. Responses to the pertinent interview questions are
presented, along with the informants’ ecomap symbols showing their relationship
to their faith community. Women who did not name any church staff members as
spiritual leaders were given a zero in that category. The width of the arrow in the
ecomap category indicates the strength of the relationship as indicated by the
informant.

Research Qgestion Two: The Practices of the Church as an Inﬂuence on
Female Adolescent Igpntitv Develom

The second research question focused on the practices of the church culture
as inﬂuences in female identity development. The ﬁrst research question
examined the unseen inﬂuences of church culture, that is doctrinal stance and
perceptions regarding one’s relationship with God. The second question took
into account the ways in which doctrinal stance is put into practice. From a
practical perspective, it is who does what in the day-to-day operations of the
church, and includes actions and statements that can be seen or heard.

Human ecology theory, which provided the foundation upon which this
research was designed, recognized the inﬂuence of the environment in human
development (Bubolz & Sontag, in Boss, Doherty, et. al, 1993). The principle aim
of ecological systems theory is the “systematic understanding of the processes

and outcomes of human development as a joint function of the person

TABLE 4.1: INFLUENCE OF CHURCH CULTURE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NAME CHURCH SPIRITUAL RELATE CLOSE TO ECOMAP
DOCTRINE LEADER TO GOO GOO
Joann Jesus died 1 church Can always Through
Baptist for sins staff turn for prayer <==
answers
Donna Jesus died 1 church Growing Devotions d-d-d-d-d
Baptist and rose staff, 1 and prayer
campus staff
Jacque One God, 0 Could be Relying on <=:>
Baptist Trinity stroryger God
Libby Tmsting 0 Best friend Christian
Baptist Jesus friends <:>
Ellen Accepting, O Thankful ls always
Episcopalian open close ‘:'
Jane Recognize 2 church Wants to Attend
Episcopalian diversity staff be closer church <:>
Nicole Jesus died 2 campus Talk w/& Feel God’s : :
Lutheran for sins staff ask advice presence
Erin Welcoming 4 campus Work w/& Campus <2
Lutheran outreach staff for God church
Margaret Jesus as 1 church Ambivalent Attending : : ::
Lutheran sacriﬁce staff church, song
Lucy Believe in 3 church Always Friends,
Lutheran God staff more to campus ¢=>
Ieam ministry
Emma Grace via 1 church Source of Christian : :
Lutheran Jesus staff strﬂgth friends
Renee College 0 Growing Taking time
Lutheran practices for God
Lana Free will 2 church Distant Actions,
Methodist staff, 1 when busy mood <::>
campus staff
Bonnie Liberal social 1 church Father, Distant
Methodist ideas staff parent when busy ‘:>
ﬁgure
Molly Personal to 2 church Question 8. Prayer <=
Methodist God staff trust
Carrie Accepting 3 church Purpose in Prayer, WWW
Methodist Christ staff life church
Leah Jesus only Bible study Serious, Too much
Presbyterian way leader grown up on feelirgs <:>
Lee Ann Essentials! 0 Trust and Rely for
Presbyterian Nonessential follow decisions <2
Kara Jesus as 0 Time w/ Obedience
Presbyterian sacrifice God <=’
Joy Jesus only 4 church Provider, Bible study,
Presbyterian way staff strength prayer <———-‘>

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Legend: _=relationship

""zconﬂicted relationship ¢::> =energy ﬂows to/from church and informant

d-d=distant relationship <2 =energy ﬂows from church to

informant

 

85

 

 

 

W0,

DGr

 

and the environment” (Bronfenbrenner, 1989, p. 188). Bronfenbrenner (1989)
further asserts that the individual is inﬂuenced by cultural ideations and
expectations. These ideations and expectations are certainly present in church
culture. Feminist theologians also have acknowledged the inﬂuence of the
environment in creating narrow depictions of who women are (Rosenblatt, 1991).

Women’s role in W.

The inﬂuence of the practical aspects of church culture on identity
development were clearly visible in the informants’ responses to the question,
“What do you believe is women’s role in your church?” Respondents frequently
named specific tasks and duties that they have observed women ﬁlling in their
congregation.

“Women have a big role. They can be elders,
youth ministers, and teachers.”
Leah, a Presbyterian

“I deﬁnitely think that there are many positions for
women that need to be ﬁlled. Like here we have
lots of committees, and I’m on one of them.”

Emma, a Lutheran
“Well, I know in my church like women have, they
have this thing called...umm...hearth keepers, or
heart keepers, something like that. But they, they
pretty much put on all the banquets or gather, like
social gatherings... .”

Libby, a Baptist

The practical implementation of each denomination’s doctrinal position on

women in leadership was completely evident. Once again, respondents’

perspectives on women’s role in the church fell clearly along denominational

86

lines. Three out of four Baptists did not believe that women should be pastors,
and that fact was shared before offering acceptable women’s roles.

“A woman could not be a pastor in our church. Her
role is just to be submissive. (pause) But I feel that
they could, they could do, urn, Sunday school as
long as the, as long as the boy was not like a man...
you know what I mean? Like after seventh grade,
that’s when they, that’s when the male would be
taking over the class... .”

Joann

Donna, also a Baptist, had a similar response; however, she emphasized her
perception of the proper roles for men and women.

“I don’t believe that they (women) should be
pastors in churches, because it’s like, the Pastor
is supposed to be the father of the church, and
it’s like, I think it would be just very awkward to
have a lady pastor, because, you know, they’re
supposed to be at home taking care of the their
family, but yet, if they were pastoring, they’d
have to take care of their big church family , and
I think that’s more of a role that men should ﬁll.
but I think that ladies can play a very important
part in church, just like helping organize events
for ladies Bible studies, um, organizing dinners
and suppers...”

Donna

Jacque’s response gives evidence of other cultural inﬂuences. Jacque is an
African American who grew up attending a Baptist church in Detroit.
“Well, probably take care of food... probably
the women, I don’t really see them as any
different from the men’s role, which is just
to be, um, deaconesses,... .actually we have
several female ministers... .”
Barta (1991) contends that paternalistic denominations socialize men to

supply leadership, while women are socialized to be dependent helpers. Support

87

for Barta’s perspective can be found in comparing Lutherans and Presbyterians,
where within each denomination there is variation on the practice of women’s
ordination. Two of the three major branches of Lutheranism in the United States
were represented among the interviewees. One branch ordains women, one
does not, and the respondents echoed their denominational afﬁliations.

“Um, women’s role in our church...l don’t
know... I’ve always seen it that they’re more
in the background, I guess...because it’s like
the pastors have always been male. I don’t
actually know any female pastors.”

Lucy

“I think that pretty much anything but pastoring
is ok—l’m really not for women pastors.”
Emma

Renee, who is a member of a Lutheran church that does not ordain women,
spoke of her personal struggle with women in leadership roles.

“I do think there are deﬁnite distinct roles,
that women are not equal—they have
different strengths and abilities. But my problem
growing up was that seeing even myself in this
sort of strong leadership tendency and sort of
this high capacity for leadership roles, and
wondering how do I ﬁt this together?”

Renee

When asked whether she had resolved the dilemma, Renee’s response evinced

a struggle between her abilities and her perception of her God-given role.

88

“And so I think perhaps, I mean I do see the

Biblical evidence for this sort of structure, um and

the way Paul set up his congregations. Um, but it
seems to me that if women are allowed to do —
women tend to go for the top leader roles—and men
tend to like to sit in the back and watch football. And
maybe God is calling us all to greater things that aren’t
necessarily natural, our natural human tendencies. That,
um, perhaps for me in my... .battle to step down and
seek other ways to serve... .but the idea—l had to come
to realize that there is usefulness and glory in things
that aren’t necessarily so up-front.”

The two women from the branch of Lutherans who ordain women presented a
decidedly different role for women, and the inﬂuence of their spiritual
environment was apparent.

“Women’s role? Um, I think women are,
can serve in any capacity, pretty much
they can do anything... .Whatever they feel
called to do, they’re entitled to do what
they want to do.”

Nora

Erin’s perspective included an added responsibility for women to be educators
and supporters of women’s role in the church.

“In this congregation I see that women’s

roles are, um, equal to men in terms of

mechanics of the church, and getting things

done, and how things need to be, and making
decisions. But I also feel that women have almost
a stronger responsibility...and that’s because of,
and I mean this is feminist of me, but it’s coming
out and saying women have stronger responsibilities
in a church then men do...to sort of raise some of
these sexist ideas and to stand up against that, and
to encourage education and support...everything
about, everything that concerns women, and that’s,
you know, women’s health and women’s lives and
children and family and work...and all those things
are really important to women that just sort of get
swept away... ”

89

 

 

Ar

«‘0:

There are several branches within the Presbyterian denomination, some that
do ordain women. It appears as though all of the women who identiﬁed
themselves as Presbyterian in the interview process were members of a branch
that does not support ordination of women. Based on the responses, it seems
that the particular branch of the Presbyterian church encourages women to be
active in leadership. The informants were supportive of women doing everything
and anything in the church short of being the pastor. Joy’s response supports
women speaking in the church service.

“Uh, quite a big one. I don’t know...l think, um,
just about everything but pastor. And they get up
there sometimes and talk too. So, um...and I’m,
in a way they are, because Pastor Smith’s wife,
you know she does a lot of the same things that
he does, and she gave the sermon last Mother’s
Day. Women are elders, and they’re leaders,
you know, I mean, they teach classes, I don’t
know... everything.”

Kara says she’s not certain what her church believes, but her reply supports the
doctrinal position offered by the other Presbyterians.

“I believe women’s role in my church is, to

like, not be like the head of the church. But
deﬁnitely have a say in things and um... um..

yeah, I’m not totally for sure where my church
stands at it, but like, I don’t think that women
should really, my personal belief is that women
shouldn’t be pastors, but I deﬁnitely think that
they do have a big role in the church and that they
can get involved in a lot of other ways.”

Among those identiﬁed as Presbyterian, Lee Ann offered the least inclusive roles

for women in the church.

90

 

 

6)!

the

Boil

 

“Um, in our church, I know we have women deacons,
um, and elders, but we really aren’t allowed to have
ofﬁcial teaching roles, I don’t think. Like we don’t

have female pastors. We have female Sunday school
teachers and stuff like that, because we get the women
down there sometimes to teach too, but urn, well... I
think sometimes men can do a better job with, with
pastoral work, and stuff, and I think females sometimes
get a little emotional... .”

All Methodist informants described very inclusive roles for women in the
church. Three of the four used terms such as “equality,” or “no distinction” when
discussing women’s roles.

“I don’t really see two different roles...l don’t
see a distinction.”
Molly

Lana and Bonnie provided descriptions of women’s roles that directly support the
human ecological perspective regarding the inﬂuence of the environment. Lana
experienced a male/female pastoral team at her home church, and notes not only
the equality of the team, but the complimentary nature as well.

“Well, obviously in my church, I have a woman
who is a minister, and I know in the Methodist
church, urn, women in ministry is ﬁne... .I see

a lot of important things coming out of women,
just as like men, I don’t think women are higher
then men, or men higher then women. I think
we’re all from God...l see like, with my minister,
when he’s at my church, you’ll get a different
total message then when she is...”

Bonnie links her view on women’s role directly to her experience growing up.

“I think women deﬁnitely have an important
role. I don’t know that it’s really different from
men’s roles; I would say, urn, most of the time
that I’ve been... .most of the time I was growing
up, there was one male pastor and one female,
so as far as leadership... it was a nice model.”

91

Ell

the

 

Carrie’s response brings a note of reality regarding what her church says about
women’s roles, and how that is actually carried out.

“Ideally, I think it would be the same as a man’s.
But I think in reality, life keeps on making it hard
for women... .like a majority of the Sunday school
teachers are women, the lady who is working as
the secretary is a woman. I kinda tend to disagree
with that. I think we’re a little bit past that.”

Both Episcopalian informants provided very inclusive descriptions of women’s
role in the church; however both women noted that there are duties that have
remained primarily identified with women.

“I think it’s very important. I mean, because we
have a male and female minister, I think that that‘s
a big deal for a lot of people...l think that there’s
a lot more equality, as far as people view how
far a woman can go in the church... .Um, there
are not, there are a lot more female Sunday
school people then there are male...and there
are only women on the altar guild, as far as l
know...And so, I guess, I guess there’s pretty
much, there may even be more roles for women
at our church, now that I think of it... .”

Jane

Ellen named very traditional roles for women in the church, and did not include
the role of minister until directly asked.

“We take care of lots of stuff. We plan stuff a

lot. Different little group, fun things to do.

Actually, our director of education, the church
school director is a male right now. But
traditionally they’ve been females, for a

real long time. But we do nice stuff, like set

up dinners, and coffee hours, and stuff like

that... .altar guilds and taking care of stuff, and like,
cleaning stuff up.”

92

 

pe

DC

Eller-

COnh

 

It is interesting to note that while many informants named women as spiritual
leaders in their lives, those who came from denominational ties that did not
ordain women stuck with the denominational viewpoint. It would appear that
women can ﬁll the role of spiritual leader unofﬁcially, but not in a publicly
acknowledged capacity.

Qtprch sppport for goals.

The second interview question associated with the inﬂuence of church culture
concerned the perceived support from the church for the goals they as women
had set for themselves. With one exception, the response from the informants
was overwhelmingly positive. The wording of the question made the depth of
perceived support difﬁcult to measure, and most responses were short and to the
point. Joy noted the important role she felt the church’s support had played in
her life:

“Yeah, I mean, I don’t know how much I’ve
been seeking that, like the support or whatever,
but I definitely think that, it’s there, like, in an
indirect way...they’ve made me, you know,

the church and all the stuff that I’ve done here,
you know, has made me a strong person and
they’ve done that for me, been there and
helped me to grow, so I think, you know,
whether they said, ‘Yeah, go get that

science business degree’... .but you know,
they help me to be the person who can

make that type of decision.”

Ellen noted that she received input on choosing a career from members in her

congregation.

93

TE

D;

rC

“Yes, yes. I always at coffee hour have someone
coming up to me, ‘How's school going, how are
you doing’... .and when l was trying to decide
what I wanted to do, I’d gone to (state university),
and I’d come home, .and I had no idea what I
wanted to do, and I had people sit down and talk
to me, ‘Well, you could do this, you could do this...
I do this and this is great, interesting...you

could talk to someone about this.’... But I never
felt discouraged, I’ve always felt encouraged,
and people are always very interested in what I
am doing, and where I’m going with things, and
very, very nice.”

Some of the women speciﬁcally noted whether the support they have felt
came from their congregation at home or their campus congregation.
“This church, yeah, this one is very supportive.
I don’t know if the one at home is... .there’s a
lot more older people there...”
Nicole
“My church community at home has always
been very supportive of me. Very supportive of
youth in the church in general... .but I always
felt like the church community was very
supportive of the youth, guys and girls...”
Bonnie
Lee Ann, who stated a very definite view about women not being pastors,
reiterated the point when discussing her feelings of support from the church.
Having made such a strong case regarding male and female roles with regard to
pastoral ministry, Lee Ann feels the church is more egalitarian regarding marital

roles.

94

“Yeah, I think so. Because they always encourage...

they look at women as just the same as men. Except

for like, um...no, not the pastor thing. But they

encourage women to get ahead in life. And, um...

that raising your family, don’t always, they don’t

have standard roles, like the guy must work, the

woman stays at home. They’re like, it doesn’t

have to be like that.”
Carrie began attending the Methodist church in middle school, and admitted that
she never quite felt that she ﬁt in there. She did, however, speak positively about
the transition during her freshman year of college to the campus ministry, which
operated separately but was housed in the same facility. Carrie was the one
informant who said she did not feel supported by her church.

“I don’t think that the church really...that the

church speciﬁcally, for me, is open. Like for

the campus ministry, treats me as they would

treat a guy. So I know as far as like answering

that question speciﬁcally, I don’t think the

church has really had that much inﬂuence.”

A summary of the variables associated with the inﬂuence of the practices of
church culture on female adolescent identity development is presented in Table
4.2 . A short explanation regarding each infonnant’s perspective on women’s
role in the church is provided in the first column. The second column lists
whether the informant supports women’s ordination. The last column states the
informants’ perceptions of support from their church for the goals they are

pursuing through their undergraduate education.

95

TABLE 4.2: PRACTICES OF CHURCH CULTURE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NAME WOMEN’S ROLE WOMEN’S FEELS
ORDINATION SUPPORT FROM
CHURCH
Joann Be submissive, teach- No Yes
Baptist under 7‘" gr.
Donna Important role No Yes
Baptist orggizing events
Jacque Take care of food, Yes Yes
Baptist deaconess, pastor
Libby Social events, nursery, No Yes
Baptist ofﬁce work
Ellen Take care of things, Yes Yes
Episcopalian plan thirm, altar guild
Jane Equality w/men, more Yes Yes
Episcopalian roles for women than
men
Nicole Women serve in any Yes Yes
Lutheran capacity (campus church)
Erin Equal to men, Yes Yes
Lutheran responsible to erase (campus church)
sexist ideas
Margaret Not sure, searching, No Yes
Lutheran Servant role
Lucy Support roles, in No Yes
Lutheran background
Emma Any role except pastor No Yes
Lutheran
Renee Distinct mlf roles, not No Yes
Lutheran egual
Lana All gifts are from God, Yes Yes
Methodist are equal
Bonnie Important, not Yes Yes
Methodist necessarily different (home church)
Molly No distinction between Yes Yes
Methodist mlf
Carrie Ideally mlf same, not Yes No
Methodist reality
Leah Can be elder, youth No Yes
Presbyterian leader, teacher
Lee Ann Deacons, elders, No Yes
Presbyterian teach children
Kara Have a say, but not be No Yes
Presbyterian the head
Joy Big role, leader, elder, No Yes
Presbyterian teacher

 

 

 

 

 

56

DE

Research Question Three: The Inﬂuence of Parents’ Religious Practices and
Beliefs on Female Adolescent Gender Identity.

The third research question emphasized the family environment, speciﬁcally
the role that parents have in creating expectations for religious belief and practice
by both their own behavior and the rituals and practices set forth in day-to-day
family life. Bronfenbrenner (1986) acknowledges that while the family is the
principle context in which human development takes place, development also
occurs in other settings as well, for contexts are interdependent. Based on
Bronfenbrenner’s theoretical perspective, several questions were posed to
informants regarding the expression of spiritual beliefs within their home,
acknowledging the importance of the family as well as its interaction with the
church. lnformants described the rituals and traditions that were a part of their
family’s expression of their spiritual beliefs, and discussed the similarities and
differences in their parents’ expressions of faith. This information was gathered
verbally as well as visually through the completion of the ecomap.

Family demographics.

When looking at the make-up the informants’ families, it must be noted that
seventeen of the twenty women came from intact families, which is far above the
national average. Since the focus of the research was on the informant, there is
only speculation about the inﬂuence of religion on marital stability.

Jacque’s parents divorced when she was four, and her father moved out of

state. Jacque has never lived or even stayed with her father since the divorce.

97

“I’m actually an only child. So while I was
growing up, throughout my entire life, it was
basically me and my mother.”

Carrie’s parents divorced when she was in sixth grade, and her father has
continued to live nearby, “So it’s like a ﬁve minute drive, it’s not very far at all.”
Carrie has stayed with her father a few times over the years. Carrie spoke at
length twice during the interview regarding her feelings of not belonging in the
church because she came from a divorced family.

“It’s hard to describe even, she (Morn) would talk to

Pastor Mack a lot, but it just seemed like we were

always kind of on the outside. And the other thing

was, dad wasn’t coming with us, and everyone else

here has the intact family, and we didn’t. And it

was really hard, and l, I was kind of angry... .my

mom, like coming here and needing support more

than any of these women, and not getting it. And

that just put even more pressure on her...”
Carrie is attending a state university in the city where she grew up, and the
Methodist campus ministry is housed in the same facility as the church where
she grew up. Since Carrie did not feel supported by the church as a high school
student, it is not surprising that she was the lone informant who stated that she
did not feel supported by her church.

Jane’s parents divorced when she was fourteen, and, like the others, has
never lived with her father. Jane theorizes that her mother’s spiritual faith and

involvement in church activities was part of what caused her parents’ marriage to

dissolve.

98

“I really don’t consider my father to be a man of
faith, I don’t really think that, I don’t think that he
really believes in anything religious... .he never
put down the fact that we went to church, I think,

I think that sometimes it bothered him how involved
my mom was in the church, and I think that she’s a
very giving person of, not only of gifts, but of
herself as well, and of her time, and I think that
sometimes it bothered him, how much time she
spent, either with people from the church or at
church in general... .the more involved my mom
got in the church, the more it bothered him, I think,
because he felt that it was more important to her
than he was...”

Two informants had step-siblings from a parent’s previous marriage; however, in
both cases the step-sibling lived with the inforrnant’s family for only a short time.
Having acknowledged the theoretical underpinnings of this research, which

include the family as primary context in which development occurs, it must be
noted that parents and children together shape the family environment. In the
course of conducting these interviews the researcher came across two women
who grew up in households where neither parent had any spiritual tradition, and
two other women who, in the course of their childhood, brought their parents into
a spiritual tradition. Erin’s experience illustrates the inﬂuence of the extended
family (Bronfenbrenner‘s mesosystem), as she attended church only when
spending time with her grandmother.

“My parents were not religious when I was growing

up... .my grandmother was Finnish Lutheran, and I

used to spend parts of my summer with her... so I

went to church all the time, every time I was up

north...l went to Lutheran Bible school in the

summer, from the time I was like three or four,

until I was seven or eight... .I was actually as

active as a small child could be at my grand-
mother’s church, when I was there.”

99

 

tl

 

 

Erin is considering attending seminary in a few years, and notes that her
grandmother, who has since passed away, would be proud if she knew.

Donna’s parents did not attend church, but she and her twin sister were
invited by a friend to attend a children’s program at a Baptist church, which led to

her involvement there.

“Well, my parents didn’t take me to church,

but one of my friends invited me to an AWANA
program at the Baptist church in my town. So,
then like I got to a certain section in the AWANA
program and I had to go to church three times to
pass it; and so, like, this lady and her husband that
lived, that it was on their way to pick us up to
church, they picked us up like every Sunday from
when we were in third grade, until when I could
drive when l was a junior in high school.”

Bronfenbrenner's concept of the inﬂuence of the mesosystem on the individual is
also clearly evident in Donna’s story.

Joy and Carrie’s parents did not have spiritual traditions either, but their
stories differ from Donna and Erin in that they found a faith tradition, and brought
their parents into the church. When asked about the religious tradition that she
grew up in, Joy replied,

“Actually, not really. We just started going to church
when lwas in eighth grade. Um, I came, at, I, one
of my best friends from, since fourth grade, I came
with her to youth group, and I liked it a lot, and then
I ended up bringing my mom and dad to church, so
we just started coming.”

Joy also talked about the irony of her role as a young adolescent in shaping the

lives of her parents.

100

“And my mom has, my mom says, like, I can’t
believe, you know, that our daughter, you know, we
were so lost and didn’t understand, and...then our
daughter is like thirteen and you know, brings us

to church and all that. So it was a pretty cool thing.”

Since Carrie’s parents did not have a religioustradition, she went back to the

traditions of her grandparents, providing background information for how she

ultimately became a Methodist.

“Urn, my dad’s parents were really, really, really
Anglican. Very strict; like his mom was a Sunday
school teacher. And my mom’s parents were both
Methodist, and I think that’s, like my Mom is
deﬁnitely not very religious at all. And neither was
my dad, he was kind of...pushed away from the idea
because he just never had a good relationship with
his parents or his family... .My aunt, my mom’s
sister, is Baptist, Southern Baptist, and is really
religious. So whenever I went over there, you
know, she’d give my mom the guilt trip about

not going to church. And I, lfelt, Istarted to

feel really guilty, like I had this obligation to go,
you know?

Carrie’s experience illustrates the indirect inﬂuence of the environment; her
aunt’s “guilt” was laid on her mother, however it was Carrie who felt compelled to
act on it.

Molly brought her family from a nominal religious tradition into enthusiastic
Methodists. Molly’s family had attended a Congregationalist church when she
was young, but she and her mother were not very interested.

“I hated getting dressed up and having to wake
up early, and then my dad, he, he always went
to church, he like, well, he always went to church,

it was very important to him, but he didn’t like
enforce it on me, or my mom.”

101

Later, they attended a non-denominational church, which Molly said was large
and impersonal, and she attended even more sporadically than the previous
church. Displaying the inﬂuence of church culture, Molly tells of ﬁnding a place
where “I started loving to go to church.”

in 10‘" grade, one of my friends, she brought me

to her youth group, and we went bowling, and the

pastor was there, and he was so friendly to me, and

was talking to me. And he said, ‘Come and join

our church,’ and it was a lot closer, so I brought

my parents to the church... .”

While they did not yield any speciﬁc trends, two other family dynamics must
be noted. First, most all parents of the informants were college educated; only
two informants had a parent who had only a high school diploma, and seventeen
of the forty parents had graduate degrees. Secondly, twelve of the informants
came from families in which they were either the only child, or had only one
sibling.

Involvement in falh commgnitv.

Nineteen of the respondents stated that they were involved in their faith
community while they were growing up. Each of the woman named two or more
activities in which they participated during their childhood and adolescent years.
The most frequent activities listed were going to Sunday school, attending

church, acolyting, involvement in youth group, and attending vacation Bible

school (VBS).

102

“I was basically as involved as I could be, I
suppose. I went to church and Sunday school
on Sundays. I sang in the choir since I was
like four years old. An, when I was old enough,
in middle school, I went to youth group.”
Bonnie

“I went to church every Sunday, went to Sunday
school every Sunday. I was an acolyte, served
cookies and Kool Aid after church sometimes.
Worked in the nursery, went on youth group
outing when we had them.”

Nicole

Four other informants besides Nicole mentioned involvement as a volunteer in
the nursery. Care of small children has been viewed as a traditional female role,
however it must be noted that the informants who included being a nursery
volunteer in their church involvement spanned both conservative and liberal
denominations.

Lane and Donna speciﬁcally noted opportunities for leadership as part of their
involvement in their faith communities.

“I was involved in the youth group pretty much,
and then I was involved in the youth council, and
l was like, I was secretary one year and treasurer
one year, and president one year.”
Donna
“And as I got into junior high, I was very active
in the youth group. In high school, things started
to change; I not only was active in the youth group,
I was on committees and boards, and I decided,
then when l discerned God’s call in my life, I
really got, really, really active in my church,
and in lay leadership and giving communion..."
Lana
One denominational trend that appeared with this interview question was the

inclusion of attendance at a parochial school as involvement in faith community.

103

Th

Three Lutheran women included their years spent in Lutheran grade school
and/or high school. In each instance, the women had a parent who was a
professional church worker—a teacher/principal, a family life director, and a
pastor—in a Lutheran congregation. The choice of parochial education for one’s
children certainly illustrates the inﬂuence of parental beliefs in shaping identity.

Spiritual expression in the home.

Four themes emerged when informants were asked about expression of
spiritual beliefs within the home. The most frequent manifestation of spiritual
expression provided by respondents was prayers offered before mealtime. Eight
respondents cited the practice mealtime prayer, although Nicole noted that they
prayed only before holiday meals, such as Thanksgiving and Christmas. Jacque
notes,

“We always, in family gatherings, ”and even if it’s

just like me and her (mother), we M pray

before every meal.”
As Jacque continued, she voiced the second prayer practice that ran through the
responses about family spiritual expression in the home:

“..She’s (mother), uh, she had me pray every, I

remember when I was a little girl, she had me

pray every night before I went to sleep at night.”
Three other respondents noted the importance of bedtime prayers; Renee
elaborated on the practice:

“Um, my mother—when she would come tuck us in,

which she did...l don’t know when she stopped doing

that, but it was not long...she would always come and
pray with each of us before bed.”

104

The second theme noted in family rituals of spiritual expression were activities
associated with Advent, the name for the season of preparation before the
celebration of Christmas. Several of the women mentioned the use of Advent
calendars, which are designed to help children mark the days approaching

Christmas.

“During Christmas, with the advent wreaths and

Advent calendars. We never had candy, my mom

was always like, ‘That’s stupid, candy,’ so we always

had the Advent calendars with the Bible verses in them.”
Ellen

“And, like, before Christmas we would always do
Advent together. My mom had this book, and
she would read that to our family.”
Kara
“...and at the special seasons of, Christian seasons
of the year, we would sometimes do special
activities, like during Advent. Light the Advent
candle, read the material that we got at church...”
Bonnie
It appears that what stood out for these women about the season of Advent was
that they were doing something with their family that they did not do the rest of
the year. It was obvious to them that their parent(s) had made some sort of extra
effort, to do devotions, provide an Advent calendar and/or wreath, and this sent a
message to the women.
The third theme noted among family spiritual rituals was going to church on
Sundays as a family.

.we go to church as a family.”
Lucy

105

“And the biggest thing with the way my mom celebrates,
or um, and shows being an Episcopalian is, um, it was so
important to my grandmother, that church was a big part
of who you were, and what made you a good person, so I
think that’s part of the reason that my mom is so strong in
her traditions, is, you know, that, you know, everyone
should go to church as a family... .”

Ellen

“...mmm, just going to church together...”
Kara
The uniformity of the response centers on a set time and activity in which each
family member participated.

The last theme that emerged in family spiritual rituals was not as tightly
focused as the ﬁrst three, but can be tied together under religious practices that
occurred in the home on some sort of regular basis. Each inforrnant’s
experience took a different format—family devotions, singing, reading Bible
stories, and the like.

“Well, devotions. Deﬁnitely, family devotions. We
did those, I would say, fairly regularly.”
Margaret

“We’ve always sang hymns and songs—spiritual songs.
Um, Dad every once in a while—it’s not regular, but I
think he’d like it to be regular—he holds Bible studies
sometimes after meals.”

Renee

“Once my mom became a Christian, she just like...books
everywhere. She had the Bible, she, she’s you know,
in the Word like daily. And um, she got involved in
Bible study and stuff, so, I mean, it’s just around our
house. I don’t know, and she started writing verses up
on the refrigerator and stuff like that, so, I don’t know,
it just became kind of, you could see stuff around the
house, books and, you know... .”

Joy

106

Famil rituals.

The responses provided by the informants regarding the spiritual rituals that
they felt nurtured their families spiritual tradition were echoed in the themes that
ran through the responses given to another interview question regarding how
families expressed their spiritual beliefs. Half of the respondents cited church
attendance as a nurturing family ritual.

“Deﬁnitely Sunday worship, that’s something, like
especially when we’re all home together, which is
rare now, holidays and special things, we go to
church altogether. You know,...so that’s the big
thing."

Lana

A second theme that came through as a family ritual was eating dinner
together.

“We go to church, and we eat dinner together
all the time...”
Kara

Praying before meals and family devotions also were listed as nurturing spiritual
family rituals. Lucy shared her family’s traditions, which showed an interesting
blend of the common responses regarding spiritual traditions.

“Well, usually it’s at the end of the year, like
around New Year's, we like make our new

year’s resolutions... .we usually sit around and
talk about it and then we’ll have a prayer and

like, just talk about things. That’s one thing we've
always done. Um...whenever we have family
get-togethers, like with my Dad’s side of the family,
like on holidays, we usually have some type of
message. Somebody usually does some type of
message or prayer around dinner, that’s like
tradition—l love that. And we go to church as a
family."

107

 

Erll
me!

bell

lhe ,,

hUrc.

 

Standout religious emrienoes.

When asked about religious experiences that stand out during their years at
home, only two respondents named experiences that were actually connected to
their families. Emma’s stand-out religious experience occurred not in her own
home, but at the home of her grandparents. It appears that Emma’s immediate
family did not usually pray together, which is what made the experience

memorable.

“..I lived with my grandparents for most of my
eighth grade year. And so, for about six months.
And I remember I was really upset about—I’d
gotten in a stupid ﬁght with some of my friends
or something...and my grandparents were like,
‘Let’s pray about it.’ And that was always what
they’d—that was always a solution. It always
made me cry harder, but it made me feel better
inside. But that helped mold my attitude about
problem solving and stuff.”

Erin grew up in a family that did not practice any spiritual traditions. Her
memorable spiritual experience is centered around the absence of spiritual
beliefs.

“I came to my sophomore year here, actually
was the ﬁrst time I realized that I really talked
to my parents about religion at all. And so
that was kinda odd, to realize that we hadn’t
ever said anything about it... Um, on a few
occasions, growing up, I actually asked my
parents why we didn’t go to church... their
response was always that you don’t need to
go to church to be a good person. And that
was pretty much it...”

The remainder of the informants responses were connected to events, usually

church sponsored, which had left a lasting memory for them. Half of the women

108

 

 

 

Cl

Bot
IESF

fOur

named a camp or retreat experience as a spiritual high point in their growing up
years. For Donna, it was more than just the spiritual experience at camp, but the
opportunity to be away from her home environment, which was very stressful.

“Going to camp... I just remember every year
going there, and loving it, it’s beautiful up
there. My counselors were always really

nice. And my sister and I would to together
and camp together...And we just had so much
fun. And speakers were really good too...they
just taught so much... .it was a safe place to me,
and I could go away, and just be away from
everything.

A few respondents talked about attending worship services as being memorable,
or even participating in the worship service. Lana’s response is typical of those
offered.
“Actually, my senior year I got to help distribute
communion at an Ash Wednesday service, that
really stood out."
Lana
Others talked about spiritual experiences such as the moment when they knew
they were saved, and publicly witnessed events such as baptism and
conﬁrmation.
“When I was saved, it was unbelievable, it
was actually eighth grade, when I ﬁrst started
coming (to church) ..... God totally opened my
eyes and opened my heart and ears all at the
same time, and lwas like, ‘WOW! Cool!’
You know, that was an amazing thing!”
Joy
Both Jacque and Carrie took trips out of the country with groups through their
respective public high schools. While not of a religious nature, each woman

found her experience to be profoundly spiritual.

109

 

be

enl
the
def.

felt

“A really good religious experience that I had
was when I went to Africa in 10'" grade, um,
with my school choir... .And we were sitting
in the church, and we, uh, we had learned
some African songs, and we sang one of
them... .And we were singing one of the
songs, and they were so, the looks on the
congregation’s faces, it was just, it was so
nice. It was just indescribable, they were
so happy that we knew, that we knew that
song and they were singing with us, and you
could just tell how much spirit they had... ."
Jacque

“The summer between my junior and senior
year of high school, I got a full ride scholarship
to go to Poland, so I went... It was pretty incredible,
because there are not Jewish people in Poland. Except
maybe in Krakow, a couple thousand. But, we went
to Auschwitz, and I walked around the whole thing,
But, um, I realized a lot of things that I hadn’t, because
I knew that, it was primarily a Jewish concentration
Camp... .and so we went to their cultural center, and
There was a woman talking about it, and she was
Saying that Auschwitz ..that the camp was actually
Reserved for Catholic priests and a, and Russian
Soldiers, Russian prisoners of war...there were a
Lot of monuments to Catholic priests who were
Killed in Auschwitz and became saints. So that was,
I guess, a keen realization that I had.”

Carrie

Autonomy.

Interviewees were asked to describe how much autonomy they felt they had

been given within their family’s spiritual tradition, and the responses were almost

entirely positive. While the responses were positive, it must be noted, however,

that there was wide variation on the interpretation of the term “autonomy.” The

deﬁnition was personal for each woman. Emma’s response indicates that she

felt that she had been given choices.

110

 

TVI

Dar

 

“Well, we always, when we were older, chose to go
to church. But, um, I don’t think it was really a
choice... like I just knew—that’s what you do—

you go to church...l guess it was my choice to
participate in youth group stuff and things like that.
But, um, let’s see, K through eight they chose the
school. But when we moved, they were considering
public schools, but both my sister and I wanted to go
to a Lutheran school. So that was a choice.”

Ellen also responded positively to the autonomy query, but immediately qualiﬁed
her answer.

“Tons! The only rule was you had to go to church
on Sunday, until you were an adult. But other than
that, yeah, I mean, I went through a stint where I
really thought that I needed a rosary, and to be able
to do the rosary, and that was totally accepted by my
parents.”

Lucy, whose father is a full-time church staff member, felt that the choices were
there if she had wanted them.

“It’s like I probably could have had those choices
if I’d not wanted to go to church, or you, not be
conﬁrmed, you know, it’s like I could have
probably fought it and been like, ‘No, I don’t
want to do this.’ But just because of the way I
was raised, I always wanted to have religion, I
wanted to be a Lutheran, I wanted to stay.”

Two respondents stated that they had limited freedom, in that there were
particular religions that they knew their parents would not accept.

“I think it, I guess that my family never really

discussed, like our beliefs, lwas just, lwas

expected to believe, and I guess I had the choice

of whether I wanted to go to church or not... I think

that, my parents, with Catholocism, they don’t like

the Pope thing and they don’t like all of the tradition.”
Molly

111

li\

“Like I could ask...oh, I still ask so many questions to
this day. Just even being here (college), I already have
so many questions... So, urn, yeah, they would never
let us go to a Roman Catholic or a Mormon church,
just because they feel that it’s completely, just that
they’re straying away from God...They would never
let us attend those. But we could ask whatever questions
that came to mind.”

Joann

Donna’s deﬁnition of autonomy was much broader, perhaps because she

attended church without the support of her parents.

“I would say I experience a lot (of autonomy) because
was allowed to go to church, and go to camp... .My
mom, her dad is a pastor for, I want to say a Lutheran
church, but so they, he was kind of like, when he
comes and visits, he’s like, ‘Why didn’t you go to

a Lutheran church?” and ‘Why did you pick a

Baptist church?’ and stuff. Idon’t know, lwas in

third grade. I didn’t know.”

Similarly, Carrie felt that she had experienced autonomy, in that she was the one

who persuaded her mother to go to church.

“It was a matter of convincing my mom to take
me, because I obviously couldn’t get away from
the house by myself. My dad doesn’t really care,
and my mom, she’s one of these people who’s
politically correct, and so she’d pretty much be
Ieaming about it with me.”

Libby and Lee Ann were two respondents who evinced very clear understandings

of how much autonomy they each had to make decisions regarding their spiritual

lives.

“Well, I mean, it wasn’t up to us to go to church.

Like, I mean, our family, we had to go, but like our

Parents made us go but it didn’t feel like that to me,

That they were making me go, because I wanted to

Go. But it wasn’t an option, if I were to not want to go.”
Libby

112

“I think my mom, well, my mom was raised Catholic,
and, um, when she was little, um, well when she
started going to the Baptist church, her mom stopped
talking to her for a long time. And my mom didn’t
want me to ever have to worry about that, so they,

if I wanted to go to my friends’ churches, they never
had a problem with that. And, um, my mom’s always
wanted me to make my own decisions, um, in religion.
And she knows that I don’t always, um, agree with the
church, and she doesn’t always agree with the church,
and that, she knows that as long as I follow what I
think Jesus wants me to follow, then I’m doing what
she wants me to do.” Lee Ann

Lee Ann makes no mention of her father’s inﬂuence or input regarding autonomy.

Parents’ expression of faith.

The last set of interview questions dealing with parental religious practices
and inﬂuence had to do with expression of faith. Women were asked whether
there were differences in the way their parents expressed their faith, and if those
differences affected their relationship with their parents. There were four women
who had at least one parent with no faith. Both Carrie and Jane characterized
their fathers as having no spiritual tradition; neither of Erin’s nor Donna’s parents
claim any spiritual tradition.

“Well, I mean, my dad is atheist, he doesn’t even
go to church on Christmas...So I don’t think he
feels any obligation towards it.”
Carrie
“I really don’t consider my father to be a man of faith.
I don’t, I don’t really think that, I don’t think that he
Really believes in anything religious. Um, lwouldn’t
Say that he’s anti-faith, I think, I mean he was never...

He never put down the fact that we went to church...”
Jane

113

“Um, neither of my parents are... my mom has
mentioned being spiritual on some levels, but nothing
really, nothing stands out at all. Either of them, either
of my parents.”

Erin

“They really didn’t express any faith.”
Donna

Molly noted that her mom was really just beginning to develop a spiritual
tradition.

“And then my mom, urn, she... she was at, a very
like just recently she’s become more, uh, religious.
Um, just last year she started with a group of a few
of her friends, her teacher friends, they started this
devotional thing... She just started doing it, she’s
just starting... .getting stronger.”

Molly

Of the remaining informants, six women believed that their mom was more verbal
about faith than their dad was. Many of these women also commented about
how quiet their dad was in general, not just on the subject of faith.

“I think my mom does more so than my father....
I mean my dad’s really active at my church... But
for spiritual conversations, it’s normally with my
mother.”

Lana

“My mom expresses it verbally, and my dad, you
can just tell by his actions, more or less. Like my
mother shared her testimony, like I’ve heard that
so many times. But my dad, he’s not really, like
if you ask him his testimony he would tell you,
but like he’s not really the verbal type...my mother
is the talker, and my dad the silent one.”

Joann

114

Yeah, they’re very different. My dad is very reserved,
And he has a hard time like, you know, my mom is,
She’ll throw her hands up in the air and she’s like,
‘JESUS!’ She gets all excited... .And so, he, I mean,
you can see it, and you can see it in his face, and he
deﬁnitely, you kind of have to pull it out of him to
get him to... it’s just a different thing.

Joy

“My mother is very outgoing...and is very friendly

and very talkative. And my father’s more quietly

involved, because he’s a very quiet person anyways..."
Ellen

“Well, my mom will talk about it whenever I want
to talk about it; she’ll bring it up sometimes... .and my
dad doesn’t really talk about it much... he’ll just kind
of go along with everything, and he’ll just kind of nod.
He doesn’t really have much input, I guess... .”

Kara

“Yeah, well my mom’s always been very open, well,
she like to talk about everything... .And my dad just,
doesn’t really want to talk at all...”

Lee Ann

Four women had parents who were the opposite combination, a more verbal
father, and a mother who was quiet.

“My dad is more verbal, he gets excited about things,

and is very straightfonrvard. I guess you could say he

processes things externally. My mom doesn’t talk as

much; she thinks about things, and then speaks.”
Leah

“My dad is much more like...l can’t think of the word.
He expresses his faith much more... .more expressively
(laughter)! I can’t say it right. My mom is more like,
reserved, and keeps to herself about her faith pretty
much.”

Libby

115

“Yeah, urn, my mom doesn’t express much, and my
dad does. Well, he’s not, uh, he’s really liberal in
his beliefs, but yeah. My dad’s more religious than
my mom.”

Nicole

Emma’s mother is a principal and teacher in a parochial elementary school, and

her dad works in a secular job. Emma’s description of her interactions with her

mother appears to be quite different from the mother’s public persona of her faith.

“Well, my mom, um, let’s see... I’m not really sure
about her. Like lately, I’m wondering. Like my dad,

I know how he feels... .He’s kind of a sentimental
gushy guy. He always talks about it, and um, he’s
very open about it, and he, uh, he likes to write
music—write songs—and so he’s recorded some of
them. And then he was always open about—he’s into
prison ministry... But my mom, it’s kind of strange with
her...she became a Christian when she was in college.
In all honesty, we haven’t really talked about it all that
much. I hear her say stuff, but it’s—it’s more like that’s
part of her job.”

Fourteen of the women interviewed agreed that the differences in their

parents’ expressions of faith had made a difference in their relationships with

their parents. Nine women stated that they believe that because of the

differences in how their parents expressed their faith, that they were closer to

their mother.

“My mom, I think maybe it made her feel like
we had something in common, and it’s something
we can do together...”

Carrie

“Yeah, my dad, I have a hard time relating to him
about things, you know, just talking, I guess, um,
and with my mom, I think I can talk to her about
anything, she’ll understand. And if she doesn’t,
she’ll just keep listening.”

Kara

116

“I’ve always had a stronger tie with my mother than
my father...so l...l don’t know... it’s just because

I think that my mother expresses her feelings and
my father... it’s kinda hard to tell, like, know what
he’s liken, what he feels about things...because
unless you come out, right out and ask him, you

really don’t know.”
Joann

There were ﬁve women who expressed a closer relationship to their father as

a result of the differences in religious expression between their parents.

“Well, I’m more like my dad to begin with...l don’t

always want to talk about it, like with my mom...she’s

just overwhelming sometimes to talk to...and so I

think talking to him...we can tell when the other one

doesn’t want to keep on talking and stuff...”

Lee Ann

“Um, like, I suppose that I’m closer to my dad, and,

and I suppose, I... I’m not really, he’s more, my dad’s

more open, talking about, that type of thing, and I

feel open to asking him questions and things... .”

Molly

Four women stated that there was no difference in their relationship with either of
their parents. These were women who did not note differences in their parents’
expressions of faith. Neither of Erin’s parents had professed a faith; Jacque
hadn’t lived with her father since she was four, which made it difﬁcult to note
speciﬁc differences in faith expression. Lucy and Bonnie felt that their parents
were on equal footing regarding expression of faith, and therefore did not see
how this could create any differences in their relationships with either parent.

“I think that they had very similar ways, but I mean,

I can’t really think of anything where they were

different in their beliefs and how they went about

doing it.”
Lucy

117

“Um, not really, although it was slightly different
because my dad, my dad grew up as a Methodist...
And my mom grew up as a Catholic...So they have
a little different perspective on it, I think. But as
far as the way that that, um...that that affects how
they practice religion or anything like that, they’re
pretty similar.”

Bonnie

Donna expressed strong feelings that her parents lack of faith has negatively

affected her relationship with both of them.
“Well, I would say just them not having faith or
religion has affected our relationship. Because
I really don’t tell my parents a lot. Especially
my mom, I don’t like, I don’t, I haven’t had
that relationship where I can just talk to her
about anything and ask her questions about
anything. I’ve always had to go to people
inside the church, if I’d wanted to ask certain
questions, and it’s like... .so I’d say it affects
us, because it’s a touchy subject since my
parents aren’t practicing, and so, so it did
probably affect our relationships a bit.”

Informant relJationship to family’s spiritual tradition.

The ﬁnal interview question associated with parental inﬂuence asked
informants to describe their current relationship to their family’s religious
traditions. Interestingly, the responses to this question fell decidedly along
denomination lines. Most of the women who had Baptist, Episcopal, Lutheran, or
Methodist ties used phrases like “completely tied,” “very connected” or “still
connected” to describe their relationship to their particular denomination. Erin,
whose parents do not have a spiritual tradition, cited her connection to the

Lutheran church as a family tie to her grandmother. Renee, whose mother is

118

Mennonite and father is a Lutheran, described her tie to the Lutheran
denomination as “a deeper connection to Dad’s faith.”

All four of the Presbyterian informants claimed ties to their local congregation,
but not to the denomination itself. They cited the importance of the teachings of
the church being aligned with Scripture, over denominational allegiance.

“I don‘t know, like in the future, like if I would
stay going to that church, or if I’ would ﬁnd another
one, because the church I go to now at school, is, um,
on the campus, is nondenominational. I really like
that, because we don’t have really any rules, you
just follow the Bible. I really like that a lot...”

Lee Ann

“Well, I guess like, I’m, I’ve been taught so much
that anything Bible based is good, and so...yeah,
I feel connected to ﬂip Presbyterian church, but
any church that’s Bible based and Christian faith,
so....”

Kara

“I don’t think you need to pick just one denomination,
as long as the church is based on the Bible, that’s
good...”
Leah
“So I’ve been going to a non—denominational church
(at college), but, you know, I mean that, those essential
things are still there, but like, this is, I mean, this
church is deﬁnitely home... .”
Joy
Their responses reﬂect a tie to the church in which they grew up in, but it is a
sentimental rather than doctrinal tie.
Two tables provide cross-case displays of the data pertinent to the third
research question. Tables 4.3A and B provide a summation of the interview

questions. The table is split into two pages because of the amount of information

119

that was gathered regarding parental inﬂuence. Table 4.4 provides a visual
display of the informants’ ecomaps of their connections to parents, family
members, and family spiritual rituals. The arrows show ﬂow of energy; left facing
arrows show energy ﬂow to the informant, right facing arrows show energy ﬂow
to the family member, and dual facing arrows

indicate bi-directional energy ﬂow. The width of the arrow indicates the strength
of the relationship; the wider the arrow, the closer the relationship. A straight line
indicates a connection without any exchange of energy. A dashed line was used
to indicate conﬂict of some sort in the relationship. A curved line illustrates that
the relationship is cutoff, or the connection is tenuous. The “d-d-d-d” shows that
the relationship is distant. Several of the informants used more than one symbol
to depict a particular relationship. Margaret used double arrows in all of her
family relationships to show the difference she feels exists in the flow of energy
between her and the family member. Leah delineated the difference between
her relationships to her siblings, an arrow showing energy flow from Leah, and
her relationship to other family members, showing distance. Jane also proﬁled
the difference between siblings, energy ﬂow from Jane to them, and the bi-
directional arrow, illustrating her relationship to extended family. The other
respondents who used two symbols (Emma, Molly, and Kara) were referencing

multiple feelings regarding a single relationship.

120

 

 

.00200 0.9m 20.0000>uwm> 200200 >0ucamuww .0305 250F020 5.» 200200
20.: 20205301.. 200200 b002080_0 202025.."me 02000008900 ”02000..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

20.0. 0.000 2000 220.02% 0:30 0900 20.2020 £00E 0E00 0.6 2.» 202025..
2 00.002200 020E E05. 000 .0 E05. :0. < 62.025 0220220.). 000. .0>«.00< 00c0m
000 0. 220. 3020 01.. 0:0 05 0E2002 000.200 20520 .00 200025..
00.002200 000E 0.0.0.3. 9:0. 000 2.» ..2 00.020 0.00:. .0 >05 0.2903 .01.. .05 SEE.
000 020 0.0 . .023 0300 00.6.0 E0>0 2.30» 20.20 .05 202025..
00.00228 .50 E22 .2, 0E0m 903 0:25 .0 :00 m0; 2 0020.0 0.8m 2020222200 2.» .05 .mm> >03
£2.00 E05. 022.900 0.280; 01.. 000.0 2002.3
.20E0050 2. E05. 00... 0m .2500 00D :0. < 2.60“. 0.00m 0.2m .00 “02090.2
202.0E02020 000 020 032.00. ..EocoS0 20520 0: 206830 2. 202025..
.6 220“. E02? 0E0w 20:20:. E05. .0000 0:02 >2; Q5. xm< 0.02.6290 .< 22w
000 0.0 0 £00.90 000 0.00E 0262 0020,2090 03.000 20520 202025..
000002200 :20 22; 2.0. 200 2.2000022 22; xolm0> >020 .20520 .00: .0EEzm wm> 502:2 0.00.2
E05. 220. 02-000 20520 020:0 202.00 0.20.3 20520 20:008me
0E 002.200 00... 020.2 0023:. E05. 0. 00.020 >._E0.. .20520 0.00:0... 0E00 .00 020..
00.002200 E05. 0030002 000 >000. 500.005 2020: $.80 20.000023
b0> 00... 0.0.2 20202.. 80.2 00: 0. 0030.2 .230 20520 0202 .20520 c0=w
>002 b0> 0020002 E05. 20520 20520 :0 .00 C .0 E02000 90020.0 .mm> .0200m
.0203 0 .._.w 000 .Eos.+ £00.90 000 0. om 0. 00... .m_00E .0 >020 20520 .05 2.» .mm .32...
00.002200 000.3 02. 000.? 0200.05 2292 0002020200 2020: Exam
b0> ..20_0-Eo_2+ 02. 2.205 00: 30> 0.00:. .0 >020 .00E< 2 022. 2.020 20520 03000..
.m0c 0 “0:02 20520 02020 :03 220.00 000. Go 250» .3000
$2 -2: 0.20.00 0202 0032.000. < -0205 c02>> 02.00 0. 02.00 9.0.0 .._020 02:00
00.. 020.200 000 0:02.00 .0 0.00E .0 £02.02 moi 0022-0 .0200m
>_0.0_0E00 Eo_>.+ _0€0> E05. 20220.2 .02 20.2000 .300 .0 002.220.... 50052 2200.,
20.200; 002020.50 coiaoﬁxw
220". 3.2.0... 02020.". 220". 320200 0.03.”. 000202000 020E0>_0>c_
2 000.0”. .0 000.5 0002020020 >Eoco§< >=E00 0:29.01 20.520 0E0:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

hzm2104m>mo :3sz 20 wozmagmz m< mmoFogg 920—0151 4<hzmm<m u<n.v m4m<._.

121

 

 

.00200 0.2.0 20..000>u0m> ..00200 50023000
.0390 2505.05 2... ..00200 20.... 20.02.3203 ..00200
b0.20E0.0 20.02.32u0m2 .020_.0>00u00>0o 020002

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

00.. 02.0E00 5.0052
.220 E05. 2.25 0.0E E05. E00002 .._.E0. 0 00 2020220 0.00.0.0 202052000
20.320 .0002 0.0E 02.0.. .00>.000. 000 .0 .000 .005 20.23EE00 .00>00 02.00 0200 0.0 2.> 50..
.220 E0525 .050 000 030.0 0.E05_ 0E00 500230 .0 202052090
20.320 .0002 2.0. 0. 5.000 .050. E05. 00.. ..00 .00202. .0E00 __.202200 00.5 20520 0.0V.
5.20 .050 000 >E020.30 20.320 .002 000002.25 .00220 0.0 202052020
20.320 .0002 000 00... 0.05. .2000 E05. 2035. .0 0.00E-50.0 02.5 0202... 2... .20520 22< 002
0002 0.2.0 .050 E05. 0025200 00E 00>00 02.02 002. 20.00.E 202052000
0. 0020.00__< 00o 00... 0.0.2 ..02.0> 00o 00.... -0 .20520 .<z<>>< 0:90 2... .00 2002
J20 b.0_2_E 5.25 20EE00 20.000.0x0 20.320 0. 5252003... 032.0 0.00505.
.2050 02.2.0E00 02-000 E05. 2030.0 0202 02...0.> 2.30.. .0... 02.00
0.00505. 2.0. 0. 2000 5.2.0. 0. 0>0..02 20.320 00202. 000.0 20520 .000.0 .0.002.0.2
02.02 50.20 0.0E 00o 0.0E0x0 000 0. 00.0098 .0_00E .0 50.0 0.2020005 0.200.0805 2.0.2
000 020 0.0E 0.20>0 500:02 039.0 2... .0.002.05.
2._0. 0E00 E05. .5 0E00 0.5020. 000 E00002 .005 .0_00E .0 50.0 0E00 20.320 .00 .20520 0.2200
0.00E .0 20.23EE00
E05. 2.55 20200 2. 000 50.0 ..20>0< 2.25 .0.000 .0000. 50. 0.0 0502.05.
220. 0E00 2000 0.05. ..02.0> E05. ..0. < .20520 ..00..0. 2.> 2... .00 00> 0202
20.200; 0020.0...0 20.000.0xm.
2200 2.5.0 .2050 2200 0.20.00 0.03.0 000200005. .20E0>_0>2_
0. 0.0.00 .0 .00tm 00020.0...0 >E020.3< .._.E00 030.0200 20520 0E02

 

 

h2m2002m>mn >H_._.Zmn= ZO mozm3202_ 0< 0m0_0.0<m0 mac—0.2mm 2<hzmm<0 "mad w2m<._.

122

TABLE 4.4: FAMILY ECOMAP CONNECTIONS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Name Mother Father Siblings] Family
other Family Spiritual
Rituals
Joann
Baptist <::l <::::I <_—__—',> <,‘::::
Donna <_______>
Baptist \ \ \
Jacque 3 : d-d-d-d-d d-d-d-d-d - -
Baptist ;‘ ’;
Libby : ...::: .._..W 1 : -
Baptist :‘—_"
5"” <:: 2 r i> <:I
Episcopalian <
Jane <::> <__>
Episcopalian ——-> <=>
Nicole
Lutheran
Erin .\ .\ d-d—d—d I
Lutheran
Margaret <,_‘_::l <::I .-————>
Lutheran ——> ———> <——— ‘——
Lucy
Lutheran <:::\> <:> <:> <:::>
Emma
Lutheran d-d-d-d <:> <:> <::
Renee ‘Wp —\
Lutheran
Lana d-d-d—d-d <:_J‘>
- <=>
Methodist =>
Bonnie
Methodist : : 3 : 3 3
Molly “\ .................... _\
Methodist d-d-d-d d-d-d-d
Carrie
Methodist => ‘ ‘ ' ’
Lea“ <:::l <::l ——_’ <:r
Presbyterian d-d-d-d
Lee Ann -
Presbyterian <5 5 > <=>>
Kara <::>
Presbyterian d-d—d-d \r/L;——> ""'.I::r:-“:::::::::::::.:"-:=-
JOY d-d-d-d
Presbyterian <:> <:> <:>
Legend:--=conﬂict; _=good relationship; d-d-d=distant; \=cut off;-> =energy to
«=energy to informant; E E =bi-directional energy another

 

123

 

 

Research Question Four: The Contribution of Spiritual Strengths and Resources
to Female Adolescent Identity.

The fourth question that guided the research examined the role of the
informant’s spiritual strengths and resources in shaping her identity. The
operational deﬁnition of spiritual strengths allowed for informants to describe their
perceived resources and their own strengths. Three interview questions supplied
insight into informants’ spiritual strengths and resources, as
well as information gleaned from each inforrnant’s ecomap. With regard to
spiritual strengths and resources, there were no clear denominational trends.

Traditionally, the doctrine and teachings of mainline Christian religions have
come from the life experience and perspective of men. Feminist theology holds
that the spiritual-self-in-relation to God must include women’s experience as well
as men’s (O’Connor, 1995). Feminist theology also challenges the narrow view
of women as meek and mild (Rosenblatt, 1991). Rosenblatt (1991) believes that
acknowledging women’s spiritual strengths and resources allows for recognition
not only of their spiritual nature, but also of their identity as leaders, and their
options for vocations. Research question four sought information from
informants regarding their spiritual-self-in-relationship to God, as well as to their
spiritual leaders, and their faith community.

Involvement in faih commgnitv.

There was wide variety of involvement experiences within respondents’ faith

communities. Church and Sunday school attendance were frequent responses

124

to the query regarding involvement in faith community. Several respondents
spoke with obvious passion regarding the inﬂuence of worship experiences.

“...I know this sounds bizarre, like ‘Oh, whatever... ,’

but I think if I had to choose, you know, if I could go

to church on Christmas or if I could get presents, I

would really pick church. l’m weird like that. I

like church, I like to be in church, I like hymns.”

Margaret

“Uh, l think...l think Christmas Eve services always

stick out to me, and it’s, it’s always, you know, just

the music, and, you know, the church is dark, and

there are candles; I think it’s, I think it’s always

very moving to me. And also services before Easter,

and, Easter morning service is, has got to be my

favorite... ”

Jane

For the informants who named church as signiﬁcant, worship was a source of
spiritual strength for them. One informant, Joy, narrowed the worship experience
down to one specific element, communion, as providing signiﬁcant spiritual
strength for her.

“That one (communion), every time, is always, it’s
always cool. It’s the same every time, but it’s not.”

Within the context of church, three women named service within the worship
service as meaningful in their involvement in their faith community. Within the
context of this research this is notable because leadership in worship has been
traditionally a male role. Both Jacque and Ellen have ushered in their respective
churches, a position that has been a male role. Acoltying (lighting and
extinguishing the candles on the altar) is typically done by children and
adolescents, and was mentioned by Ellen and Renee. The role has high visibility

before the congregation. Depending on the deﬁnition attached to the position, it

125

may or may not be a worship role that can be ﬁlled by a young girl. If it is viewed
as an extension of the pastoral role, acolyting has traditionally been reserved for
boys; if it is seen as a service role, acolyting can be done by both boys and girls.
Jacque’s service in worship was of a different nature; during her high school
years she played the piano for the youth service, and also ushered.

Involvement in church youth group in junior and/or senior high was included
as a notable activity within the faith community for fully half of the respondents.
For some women, involvement in youth group occurred when they became too
old for Sunday school.

“I did Sunday school when l was little, ...and then,

when I got into junior high I started doing junior

high youth group. And then I did senior high youth

group in high school.”

Emma

Donna also notes the difference that age made in her involvement in her faith
community, as well as the opportunities for leadership that youth group provided.

“Um, like, I would say once I could drive I was more

involved... .I was pretty involved in the youth group,

and then I was involved in the youth council, and l

was like secretary one year and treasurer one year,

and president one year...”

Lee Ann talks about her youth group experience as an opportunity to gain

experience on many levels, including leadership.

“I went on the trip to Colorado with them that summer.

And then the next year, um, I did the same thing, and I

went to Mexico on a mission trip. And then my senior

year, lwas involved in, like they just started a leadership

thing, for like, to run the Sunday morning services for

the kids, not for the, I guess like Sunday school for high

school. And I was involved in that, then the Mexico
mission trip again... .”

126

Renee describes her youth group experience at a small church where, in the
absence of adult leaders, she took the responsibility of leading Bible studies. In
addition, Renee and her sister made certain that the youth leader roles of acolyte
and crucifer (carrying the cross) were covered in the worship services.

“I ended up leading the youth group, um, Bible studies

simply because none of the adults wanted to when l

was ﬁfteen. And I was one of... .I remember one

summer my sister and l were the acolyte and crucifer

every Sunday just about, except when our family was

out of town...”
Interestingly, Renee’s college experiences have caused her to re-think her
leadership roles. She is the informant quoted on page 89, referring to the need
to lead from the background. Her experience at a Christian college appears to
have changed her perspective on how she exercises her leadership abilities.

A few of the women mentioned involvement in “Pioneer girls” as an area of
involvement in their spiritual community. This is notable because besides
Sunday school, Pioneer Club was the only other activity mentioned which
occurred at the elementary school level. Pioneer Club is also notable given their
mission statement.

Pioneer Clubs is a Christian ministry that’s entirely
driven by a passion to evangelize and disciple today’s
children. Pioneer Clubs provides programs for churches
to sponsor a weekly club ministry for young people

from age two through twelfth grade. Pioneer Clubs helps
kids have fun, Ieam new skills, build relationships, study
the Bible, and ultimately, Ieam to live for Christ in every
aspect of life. (wwwpioneerclupsorg)

Given their mission statement, Pioneer Clubs has the opportunity to inﬂuence

spiritual identity, and thus, overall gender identity.

127

Several women described special events, usually sponsored by the
denomination at the state or local level, which were very meaningful in shaping
their spiritual identity. Jacque talked about the acceptance she felt in a large
group at a regional conference.

“Well, one really good religious experience I had, I
went to, I can’t remember the full name of the
conference, but it was like a Midwest um, it was a
regional... .yeah, it was a regional Baptist conference,
it was for the Midwest. And I went there for a couple
of days, and it was churches from all over the Midwest.
It was pg great, I’ve never, I almost wish I went

again, because I, probably the only time I didn’t

have a lot of fun, was because of the group of

people that l was with. And that goes back to me

not liking to be the new person or me not liking

the person, to not know everybody as well... .But

the total experience, it was great. It was just great.
And... it, it just felt like so much community, it just

felt like everybody... .it just amazed me you could
bring all these people , pull all these people from
different states, and you, just worship the Lord

like that... .”

Nicole spoke at length about a three week experience which her Sunday school
teacher recommended. Nicole noted, “that summer was probably the biggest
thing,” and continues to inﬂuence her in her search for a college major and a

career.

128

“My Sunday school teacher heard of the Summer
Sunday Sampler, and that’s for people who thought
they might be called or something, and just to let us

go and have a taste of, urn, what’s it’s like to be in
seminary, like you could be a pastor, a...l don’t even
remember any more, but all those different things you
could do ..... It was just like seventeen of us for three
weeks, and we attended classes, three different classes,
three times a week. Each week was a different class.
Um, we were guided by, urn, like some people in the
seminary, some younger people, and, we did a lot of
volunteer work, we did a lot of praying and meditation,
and, um devotions, and since there was only seventeen
of us, over three weeks, we all got really close, and it
was a really cool experience.”

Jane described two programs, one that took place at her church, and the other
was sponsored through the larger church body. Both programs offer guidance in
the transition from adolescence to adulthood, as well as opportunity for
leadership.

my church does the “Journey to Adulthood”

program now... .lt’s um, it’s three different programs,

and it starts with, right at thirteen, which is like

junior high school students, that age group, and

then they have, um, the high school group, and

then they have the eighteen to nineteen year olds... .in
high school I did a program called ‘Happening,’ and

it’s a spiritual retreat weekend for high school students,
by high school students. Until recently it was completely
run by high school students with only adult chaperones...
There was a senior in high school, either in November or
in May, you were the rector of the meeting, and you were
in charge...”

The events described by these three informants left a lasting impression on their
spiritual formation, perhaps in part because they occurred in an environment

outside of what they associated as the ordinary.

129

Spiritual leaders.

A second question employed to investigate the research question regarding
spiritual strengths and resources contributing to identity focused on spiritual
leaders. The operational deﬁnition provided in Chapter 3 deﬁned spiritual
leaders as, “professional ministry staff of a church—senior pastor, youth pastor,
youth leader, minister of music, director of Christian education, and the like.” It
became obvious over the course of the interview process that the informants
defined spiritual leaders as anyone who had provided guidance and/or teaching
in their spiritual lives. Friends were the most frequently named spiritual leaders,
reﬂecting the make-up of the microsystem of college students. Mothers were
also mentioned as spiritual leaders, and informants made reference to their
ability to talk openly with their mothers. The naming of family members as
spiritual leaders supports their inﬂuence in shaping gender identity.

“My mom is one of those spiritual leaders for me...
um, it’s close. She’s kind of more subtle and just
like gentle...”
Kara
Grandparents and siblings also were included among spiritual leaders for most
informants.
“I think my brother has also been, um, an important
person in my spiritual life. We just kind of have
complimented each other, lthink. Uh, I got involved
with like district youth groups and things like that
before he did, and I introduced him to those things,
and then he kind of got more involved than me. So
it’s kind of like we’re both, we both pull each other

up when we need it.”
Bonnie

130

There were six informants who, in naming the individuals whom they felt were
their spiritual leaders, did not include anyone from their church’s professional
ministry staff. Renee was the only respondent who did not name any spiritual
leaders. Her initial response was, “Hmmm, I don’t always have the reverence for
them that I’m supposed to.” Renee went on to elucidate on individuals who had
been in positions of spiritual leadership in her life for whom she had no respect.
Ultimately, she named one of her college professors, and then added, “They’re
human just like me...and in some cases, not as intelligent.”

The informants who named professional ministry staffers they considered
their spiritual leaders included pastors, youth workers, music ministers, and
campus chaplains. The ministry staff who were named had made some kind of
personal connection with the informant. Erin identiﬁed seminary interns who, as
spiritual leaders, had been helpful to her in deﬁning her identity as a Christian
and a lesbian, and her consideration of entering seminary.

“I would have to say the last three interns, including
Sue, who I never, I wasn’t here when she was the
intern, but I have met her. I went to her ordination.

I don’t know if you know anything about that. She’s
um, a lesbian woman who refuses to promise to remain
celibate... .um, John (campus pastor) went down to
perform the ordination, she asked that he do it, and, so
a bunch of us went down there. Even though I’d never
met her, it was real important for me to go down....
And I met her then, and talked to her, and so we
communicate fairly regularly, every couple weeks or
so by email. Urn, and she’s been a big help to me in
this process. And Janet Smith was our intern last

year, who’s also a lesbian woman...”
Erin

131

Joy named two church staff members as instrumental in helping her to grow

spiritually. Her experience illustrates the inﬂuence that church staff have the

potential for exerting in the lives of young people.

“Pete, Pete Becker, who is the music director for
youth group, and Jeff Jones, who is the pastor,
those two. Pete is deﬁnitely someone I would
talk to on kind of a weekly basis, and he would
ask em, you know whenever I’d see hi m, like,
before I left for school (college), he’s like,
‘What are you going to be doing when you go
to school, to, you know, keep in the faith,’ and
you know just asked a lot of questions that...
He definitely makes sure everybody’s on

track, as far as keeping up with... .keeping up
with our relationships with God.”

Joann described the relationship she has with her pastor, whom she named as a
spiritual leader in her life, who was also a close family friend.

“And Pastor Chase is, uh, the pastor of my church,
of course. And he’s just a very wise man, and I

just go to church and I learn so much from him...

We have them over to our house, like, if they don’t
come over to our house then we either go out to eat
with them every Sunday. So it’s almost like they’re
family. Then they come to holidays; it’s kinda crazy.”

In naming spiritual leaders in her life, Bonnie actually described her pastor as a
role model in her life. Bonnie belongs to a Methodist church, a denomination that
ordains women, and so her pastor, as a woman, could provide the role model of
a Christian woman.

“Um, the assistant pastor at my church when l was

in high school was, um, very involved with the

youth, and she, uh, was kind of, kind of like a

role model in a way, um, so, kind of an example for
spiritual life and life in general...”

132

Lana’s comments regarding her pastors echo the important role that women
clergy play in the lives of young women.

“My ministers back home, the couple, they, uh,

they’ve really had impact. I think about the time

I started to get, started to become more spiritual

and more active, was when they started to come,

when they, when they moved to our church... .”
Lana

54320.09.-

The ecomaps created by each informant provide a visual picture of the
personal relationships that provide spiritual strength for them, as well as the
informant’s perception of the resources they provide. Table 4.5 renders a
summary of the personal relationships from each ecomap. The informants were
instructed to indicate the strength of the relationship with the width of the
line they used to connect the individual to themselves, and to use arrows to
indicate ﬂow of energy. Each informant’s drawings were duplicated as closely as
possible in Table 4.5. Arrows ﬂowing toward informants indicate that they felt
that they were receiving something (e.g. support, encouragement) from that
individual. Arrows ﬂowing away from informants indicate that they felt that they
(the informants) were giving something to that individual. A bi-directional arrow
indicates that there is both giving and receiving on the part of the informant.
Reading across each row provides insight into each inforrnant’s perceived
spiritual resources. Renee’s ecomap indicates that her greatest resources are
her siblings; Nicole’s map does not indicate any strong
spiritual resources. The ecomap readings from Donna, Nicole, Erin, Molly, and

Carrie show that none of these informants perceives spiritual strength in their

133

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TABLE 4.5: ECOMAP SPIRITUAL STRENGTHS
Name Relation- Relation- Relation- Relation- Other
ship to ship to ship to ship to Spiritual
God Spiritual MIF Siblings Leaders
Leaders Spiritual Included
Traditions
Joann Friends, G,
Baptist C: ‘5 ‘5 ‘5 <:> csmgc
Donna .
‘—. . ‘—. . ,1}. H..-
.IBaacsutge Grandmother
Libby ‘ <d.d.d.d> . w. ‘ . Christian
Baptist 7 friends
Ellen ‘ C: C:
Episcopanan <:l <:l i::> A meal
Jane 4<== <==J ¢=> U" “ es,
Episcopalian 5’ cglose Inez‘ds
Nicole ose he s,
Lutheran ‘ ‘ WW — boyfriend
Erin <d.d.d.d> Grandmother,
Lutheran l <:> \ \ partner
Mar aret (,__l Friends, G,
Luthgeran <2 +— —§ § l:> roommates
. if” l<:::t> <———> ‘5' <=> <::> ”"""“
u eran
Emma _ <—_—_—> Yth leader,
Lutheran ‘ S d-d <:> GP, G
Renee <=>
Lutheran ‘ _‘ — Boyfriend
Lana d.d.d.d Ministers,
Methodist <=> ‘5 0:: ==> —5 friends
Bonnie ‘ ‘ Female friend
Methodist c: ¢=$ <:> Wesley
nen s
Molly <— __ Friends
Methodist ‘ ’ d_d.d.d i \
Carrie ”:2,
Methodist <:> => \ ‘_' ’ None
Leah '
Presbyterian <:> <2 C: <2 ‘d-dd—d’ Boyfn'end
Lee Ann
<,.__‘——_—'_::J _
Presbyterian <:'_‘> <:=:i i=:;> <:> Friends
Kara d.d l-l.S.& college
Presbyterian <; “M ”W“ c=> """""" <:-_—_-> friends
Joy <:) ‘ FI'IOI'IdS,
Presbyterian ‘— = : : : <:> strangers

 

 

 

LEGEND: G=Grandparents; CM=church members; CS=camp staff; CC=campus congregation;
CP=campus pastor

 

134

 

 

relationship with their parents. Lucy appears to have multiple spiritual strengths,
based on the number of bi-directional arrows and their given widths.

Blank circles were left on the ecomap, so that informants could write in
spiritual strengths and/or resources that were unique to them. The last column
on Table 8 indicates whether the informants included any individuals outside of
their immediate family. The relationships named in this last column supports the
earlier comments regarding informants’ perceptions of who their spiritual leaders

are.

Research Question Five: The Contribution of Self-goncept to Female

Adolescent Identity.

The ﬁfth research question focused on the contribution of self-concept to
female identity. The researcher has posited that self-concept is inﬂuenced by
church culture and practices, by parents, by gender ideology, and spiritual
strengths and resources. The operational deﬁnition of self-concept included self-
values, self-beliefs, self-feelings, and self-assessments. The interview questions
which supported this section of the research asked about spiritual autonomy
within the family of origin, the inﬂuence of spirituality on life plans, relationship to
God, and how that relationship is nurtured.

The study of self-concept has, traditionally, been premised on the male
experience (Adams, 1994). Feminist theorists have expanded the research to
encompass conceptual perspectives based on women’s experiences.

Chodorow’s (1978) theory emphasizes the importance of the relationship with

135

mother as primary caretaker. Jean Baker Miller (1991) contends that women’s
personality development occurs within relationships.
Self-values.

Examining the interview data, there is evidence to support the feminist
perspectives of Chodorow and Miller. lnformant’s self-values, self-beliefs, and
self- feelings evince the importance of relationships with others and with God.
The theme of relationships was particularly prominent in the informants’ self-
values. They described their future in terms of expected relationships, especially
those of wife and mother, as well as the value they place on marrying a Christian,
and raising their children as Christians.

“Urn, but I deﬁnitely think I want to grow up and
have a family...”
Emma

“I plan to get involved in the church community. I
mean, I would like to meet a guy who is Christian.
Or if I meet a guy that wasn’t, that he'd be willing to
start going to church, and stuff like that.”

Lucy

Eight respondents extended the expected relationship of marriage to include the
role of motherhood. The inﬂuence of church and their experience in their own
family is evident in the stated importance of raising children to have faith and to
be involved with the church.

“I’d like to have a family of my own, and I’d like
to, you know, marry a Christian, and raise them
going to church, and having a strong church
background.”

Molly

“Umm..well, I want my husband to be somebody who
is also a strong Christian...so, yeah, like I want to have
a strong Christian family, raise my kids to be Christian
kids...”

Libby

136

These quotes illustrate the inﬂuence of both church culture and family of origin in
shaping the inforrnant’s self-concepts of wife and mother. Lee Ann’s response
was typical of the respondents who talked about the expectation for career, in
that marriage and family was discussed ﬁrst, and a career outside of the home

was secondary.

“Well, uh, I know for my family, for my husband, I
won’t even date anyone who’s not a Christian right
now. So they’re going to be a Christian, and that’s
going to impact my life right there. Career wise, I
don’t know... .”

Margaret was much more ambivalent about a career, but was quite certain about
her future roles being in relationships and connected to the church.

“Urn, career, shameer...l don’t know about career.
Career is just—career is something you just do,
but it’s not really who you are, in my case, anyway.
I’m gonna go to law school, probably, and do some
kind of law, probably, but maybe not... .l’ll always
be—I think I’ll deﬁnitely be one of those adults
who’s completely, ridiculously up to her elbows
in things at church at all times. I deﬁnitely see
that happening and working with individuals within
the church. I deﬁnitely see myself continuing to do
volunteer work... .”

Nicole values a variety of relationships, and all of them ﬁgure in to her long-
term plans for her life.

“...when I think about my future husband, I just
picture some guy that I’m going to work side by
side with, and do God’s work, and do like, uh,
community service... Um, my friends, my closest
friends, are all strong Christians, and um, I plan

on staying friends with them. I think that pretty
much, if I can ﬁnd a job where I feel like I’m

really serving God, then I would be really happy... .”

137

Nicole mentions her self-value of the importance of her spiritual relationship with
God in choosing a career; other informants also focused on the inﬂuence of faith
on career choice.

“Well, I guess, I mean, lwould want to make sure

that whatever I’m doing is like, ethical...l want to

be an ethical business woman... .”

Libby

“I think that my religion has a lot to do with me

wanting to be someone in the medical ﬁeld, as far

as being able to help people, and make a difference

to other people, outside of my family... .”

Jane

Donna’s response regarding the inﬂuence of spiritual beliefs on her future bears
evidence to the security she experienced as a child attending church. Her
description of her home life as a child was one where there was not much
warmth or nurturing. Neighbors regularly took Donna and her sister to church,
where church members became a surrogate family for her.

“Yeah, it (church) was the perfect environment. So,

like, because my parents would ﬁght, and so I could

go to church, and like, no ﬁghting, just like, there

was this one guy, and he was older, and like he would

give candy to all the children every Sunday...So it was

like really cool.”
Donna’s description of the church environment is a vital piece in understanding

her description of how her faith shapes her expectations for her future.

138

.and so yes, I’m graduating with a major in
teaching; that doesn’t mean that I want to end up
there. I mean, I’d much rather end up, like at a
church, married to a youth pastor, and like helping
with the youth group, or just being really involved
in the church. That’s what I want, I want to be
involved with the kids, more in a one-to-one
situation, and small group settings than big
classroom settings in public schools...”

Self-beliefs.

The theory of Kay Deaux (1987) was used to construct the theory upon which
this research was based. Deaux views behavior from the human social
behavioral perspective; that is, perceivers’ cognitive dispositions operate to
maintain their original expectancies for a target. Behavioral conﬁrmation,
frequently termed, “self-fulﬁlling prophecy,” refers to the processes by which the
perceiver’s expectations for a target are adjusted in such a way that the resulting
behavior objectively conﬁrms the perceiver‘s initial expectancy. It was obvious
that the teachings of the church inﬂuenced the expectancies for a target
regarding informant beliefs about self, thus supporting Deaux’s theory. The most
prominent self-belief shared by respondents was the importance of submission to
God; all desires and decisions must be open to God’s guidance. Both Joann and
Molly believe that God will lead them to a college major and a career.

“Well, right now, um, I’m undecided in a major, so

I’m like really depending on God for that one."
Joann

“Yeah, like, I guess, you know, lthink if God, He

intends me to do something, like my personality

would be good for some type of job, like he’ll lead

me there... .so, I’m praying for him to show me how

to use myself, to do what needs to be done.”
Molly

139

Bonnie’s spiritual beliefs have affected her self-belief regarding her intended
career and role in life.

“We’ve talked in Wesley sometimes about what kind
of ministry people are called to. Some people are
called to ministry, you know, pastoral ministry. Some
people are just called to be Christians in the world.
And that’s, I think, where my role stands more.”
Bonnie

Lee Ann and Joy echoed the belief that God will guide them in making

decisions.

“I really rely on God to help me when l have decisions.
Even the little things... .”
Lee Ann

“ ..... I don’t know, I guess my, deﬁnitely my

spirituality, like my relationship with God is,

you know, how I make all my decisions... .”
Joy

In addition to submission to God, Leah and Joann believe that in the marriage

relationship, their behavior and opinions must be submissive to that of their

husband as well.

“Yeah, I, uh, well, Itend to have Iike...how do I
word this? I tend to express my views quite a bit...
when sometimes, like, as long as it’s not going
against my husbands beliefs—unless like my
husband’s going off of like biblical text, then it
would be ok—but basically, I think I’m gonna
have to Ieam how to be submissive...”

Joann

“In marriage, man is the leader... it’s an equal
relationship, but the man has the ﬁnal say... .”
Leah

140

Church culture and doctrine, and perhaps family of origin have shaped these
women’s belief about the role of wife. The target behavior has caused them to
adjust their expectancies accordingly.

Self-feelings.

The content of the interview questions shaped the feelings about self that
were shared in the interview process. The self-feelings shared were focused
particularly on the informant’s relationship with God. The two prominent themes
centered on closeness to God in prayer, and the role of worship/church
attendance in maintaining a faith relationship with God. Several women spoke of
the importance of prayer in feeling close to God.

“Well, what keeps me close to God, I would
say, is prayer....”
Joann
“When I pray and... I don’t know, I can’t even...
I feel some type of connection, and you know
someone’s listening to you, and...and...l think
you know that he’s affecting your life and
leading you, like that’s when I feel close...”
Molly
“I think, well, how I feel close to God is I pray
every night before I go to bed.”
Lucy
The self-feelings generated through prayer enhance the faith of the informant.
This, in turn, encourages a change in the target behavior of the individual, that
she be more “Christ-like,” an ideology that has been shaped by androcentric
doctrine and practice.

Attending church and participating in the service through song was the

second way that respondents described feeling close to God.

141

“Ok, um, oh—church charge me often in a big
way... .But mostly, mostly hymns...l read some
of those words and I’m just like, ‘Oh! This is
my lifel’ and I start crying...”

Margaret

“Prayer, and the services here (campus ministry)”
Carrie

Jane’s response echoes the importance of being in relationships with people as
well as with God.

“I think, going to church, and I think having the
friends that I do, who support that and make sure
that I’m...they’re there for me, and if I need
anything, I think that is a direct extension of God...”

Libby also feels that being around her Christian friends keep her close to God.

“Um... like being around other Christians, and
you know, practicing worship, like I know when

I go to, I go to a Christian camp over the summer,
and when I get back from camp, I’m just on a
spiritual high, and I feel so close then... So I
guess it depends on who you’re around, that
helps inﬂuence that.”

Self-gssessmept.

Self-assessment also was included in the operational deﬁnition of self-
concept, and several informants offered assessments of where they were in their
faith life, and what they felt they needed to change about the practice of their
faith.

“...And I, I don’t know, I feel like I’ve just
been realizing more about myself, more about
like, I don’t know, things that aren’t necessarily
good things about myself, and, um, it’s been a
struggle to give those things up for me the past
year, and, uh, yeah, I feel like God has just held
on to me, and it’s so frustrating sometimes...”
Kara

142

“l base my relationship with God too much on
feelings, and I need to base it more on faith.”
Leah

“I need to be closer... .l’m close to God, but not
close enough.”
Jacque

Both Lana and Carrie offer more holistic self-assessments that described, from
their perspective, just how they see themselves.

“Um, I think that my spirituality is who, above all,
who I am. People who don’t know me and just meet
me for the ﬁst time, I think that that’s something
they’re going to pick up on, that, that something that’s
going to make my life what it is. Um, obviously if
I go into ministry, my spirituality is making that
everything. I mean, I’m going to be daily living
that, and that’s why I struggled when I was
doubting, because I was like, ‘Well, I know God’s
trying to call me, but why am I doubting all this?’
.And I think I went through that phase in my life
so that, when people actually come to me to ask
me that, I could be able to tell them, ‘You know, I
went through that too.’... ...”

Lana

“You know, a lot of people ask me why I believe,
because most of the people I hang out with and am
staying with aren’t really religious at all; and I say,
‘Well, logically, it just makes the most sense.’ Urn,
like the Christian explanation for why we’re here,
and how things come about, you know. Because if
I didn’t have God, I don’t think I would have any
purpose to my life, you know... .”

Carrie

These comprehensive self-assessments come from two women whose family
and church experiences, thought to inﬂuence self-concept, are very different.
These women happen to be the same age, and are both members of the

Methodist denomination.

143

Table 4.6 provides a cross-case display of each of the areas that were
operationally deﬁned as a part of overall self-concept. Not all informants
provided information in every category, and those boxes have been left blank in
order to make the absence of information in those. categories more visible.
Reading across the categories provides insight into each inforrnant’s self-
concept. Leah values God’s direction in her life, believes the man is the leader in
the marital relationship, and assesses that her faith is too frequently based on
her feelings. The picture of Nicole’s self-concept from Table 4.6 illustrates her
verbal profession in the interview that she was searching for direction for her life.
Nicole states deﬁnite values, but evinces no self-beliefs, feelings, or assessment.
Likewise Margaret’s, claim in the interview that, “I just keep slapping him (God) in
the face, ignoring God, pretending he’s not there, like going off and doing my
own thing,” is supported in her self-beliefs and self-assessment.

Overall, the components of self-concept provide insight into identity
development, the contributing factors of formation as well as where each
informant is in the process. Arnett’s (2000) research builds a strong case for the
ongoing development of identity through the early twenties, and that assertion is
certainly supported in this research. Age of informant was not a factor in
evincing a more complete picture of self-concept as a factor in identity

development.

144

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TABLE 4.6: THE CONTRIBUTION OF SELF-CONCEPT ON FEMALE
ADOLESCENT GENDER IDENTITY
Name Self-Values Self-Beliefs Self-Feelings Self-
Assessment
Joann Prayer, Baptist Submission in Close to God in Sin keeps her
Baptist husband marriage yrayer from God
Donna Marry 0, $$ Close to God in Growing closer
Baptist doesn’t matter devos 8. prayer to God
Jacque Establish God is present Could be closer
Baptist career before in daily events to God
family
Libby CF, be ethical Jesus is best C. friends keep
Baptist business friend her close- God
Ellen Involve in Always feels Thankful
Episcopalian church, many E close to God
Jane Helping people Close to God in
EJISCOpaIian church, pegDIe
Nicole Serve God,MC
Lutheran CF, Cfriends
Erin Works w/God, Close to God
Lutheran support by God via shared view
Margaret Example set by She is Church, hymns Frequently
Lutheran parents unfaithful-God =close to God wanders fr faith
Lucy MC, CF, L., Prayer 8. CF
Lutheran faith infuse wrk =close to God
Emma Being Lutheran God as source People of faith
Lutheran of Stre_ngth =close to God
Renee Stay home Pray, worship
Lutheran Mom, h.school =close to God
Lana Faith Sometimes Feelings get in
Methodist distant fr God way w/God
Bonnie CF Her role to be God protects
Methodist C. in world
Molly MC God will lead to Close to God in
Methodist career prayer
Carrie Faith, career God gives life Close to God in Faith gives life
Methodist over kids/famly purpose church, prayer meaning
Leah God’s direction Man is leader in Faith based too
Presbyterian in life marriage much feeligg_
Lee Ann MC, God’s God will help
Presbyterian input- decisions wldecisions
Kara Spending time God has a plan Need to be
Presbyterian w/ God obedient to
God
Joy MC, God’s God is Strength, joy,
Presbyterian input-decisions everything peace, wisdom

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Legend: C=Christian; CF=Christian family; devos=devotions; E=Episcopalian; L=Lutheran

MC=marry a Christian

 

 

145

Research Question Six: The Contribution of Gender ldeolpgy to Female
Adolescent Identity Develmment.

 

The ﬁnal research question centered on the contribution of gender ideology to
female identity. Operationally deﬁned as, “the inforrnant’s self-description of
gender appropriate behaviors,” four questions from the interview informed the
findings regarding gender ideology.

Women’s role in ﬁtlﬁ M-

Jean Baker Miller (1991) asserts that female identity seeks to fulﬁll two needs,
to use all of a woman’s capacities, and to do so within a context that will fulﬁll her
desire to be “in relationship” with another. The spiritual focus of this research,
and the informants’ ties to mainline denominational churches, must be
acknowledged as presenting unique contexts for creating the desire to be “in
relationship.” Feminist theologian King ( 1995) contends that gender and
religious culture are interrelated, as “perceptions of ourselves are shaped by and
deeply rooted in our culturally shared religious and philosophical heritage” (p. 2).
The historically paternalistic perspective of Christian doctrine and practice
supports women entrusting their care to men. In addition, paternalistic doctrine
places women as second class citizens, submissive to men, and limits their roles
to those of wife and mother. The inﬂuence of the church in shaping gender
ideology, and, in turn, identity development, was clearly evident in the informant’s
responses to the questions regarding women’s role in the church, and how their
faith will inﬂuence plans for the future. As discussed under research question

two, informant’s self-description of appropriate roles for women in the church fell

146

neatly along denominational lines. Women from churches that include women at
all levels of service, including pastor, noted this in their responses. All four
Methodist women used terms such as “no distinction,” and “equal” in describing
women’s roles in the church. The Presbyterian informants, from a branch of the
Presbyterian denomination that does not acknowledge women’s ordination, all
made mention of the inappropriateness of women holding the pastoral role in
their responses. These women did, however, support women in other leadership
roles within the church. The Baptist infon'nants were more restrictive in
describing women’s role in the church, and named very traditional female roles
such as food preparation, nursery care, and ofﬁce work. Joann, a Baptist,
asserted that women’s role in the church is to “be submissive.” Jacque, who
grew up in a Baptist congregation in which women are ordained, named the
traditional women’s roles ﬁrst, and named the role of pastor at the end of her
response. The Lutheran women were clearly split along denomination lines.
Those belonging to a more liberal Lutheran denomination were very forthright in
naming women as equal, and as leaders. Women from the more conservative
Lutheran denomination characterized women’s role in the church as “servant,”
“helper,” “in the background,” and Renee’s response, of “finding glory in other
than leadership positions.” The inﬂuence of church doctrine and culture were
clearly evident in the gender ideology that emerged from the informants’

descriptions of women’s roles in the church.

147

Life plans.

The gender ideology that was present in the self-described appropriate

women’s roles in church also was evident in the self-described expectations for

the future. Nineteen of the twenty respondents included the gender appropriate

role of wife and mother as part of their future plans. In employing the operational

deﬁnition of gender identity as a commitment to the domains that one sees as

central to personhood, and to have an overriding sense of self that coordinates

those commitments, the respondents evince appropriate gender ideology and

identity (Moshman, 1999). The inﬂuence of church and family in shaping the

expectations for marriage and motherhood were evident in several of the

responses.

“I know I’m going to raise my kids in the Lutheran
church, like how I was raised. An, um, and just like,
I know there’s some things I’ll do different than my
family. Like I think I’ll be more likely to have family
devotions and stuff like that, and, you know, talk about
the relationship aspect of it earlier on. Because growing
up a lot of time I thought that it was about... like, ‘You’re
a Christian, and this is what Christian’s do.’ Not, ‘You
have this person in your life and because of Him you
act this way.”

Emma

“I mean, I would like to raise my family Lutheran and
have my kids grow up like I did and, you know, go to
church, Ieam about God and stuff.”

Lucy

“Um, well, despite my—well, I want to—l want to be
a stay-at-home mom. A home-school mom. Um, and
I want to raise my kids to have strong faith and sound
habits because I think in a lot of cases morality is
nothing more than a habit you’re forced in to.”

Renee

148

Erin, who is in a committed lesbian relationship, did not name wife and mother
as future roles. Erin’s response shows appropriate gender ideology, as these
roles would be less deﬁned and clear in a lesbian relationship. Erin also evinced
gender ideology in her description of future plans.

“Um, I’m trying to decide if, I mean now I feel like it’s
a decision I have to make, or a decision I have to look
for, whether I want to pursue sociology or to pursue
seminary...um and I really have no idea. And I know

that sexuality and the church are going to be a part of
it...”

Autonomy.

Interview questions regarding autonomy and church support for goals yielded
much less information about gender ideology. The responses to both questions
were, universally, short, concise, and positive. Libby was the only respondent
who claimed that she had to go church, although she didn’t speciﬁcally say that
she felt she had no autonomy.

“Well, I mean it wasn’t up to us to go to church. Like,

I mean our family, we had to go, but like our parents’

made us go, but it didn’t feel like to me, that they were

making me go, because I wanted to go. But it wasn’t

an option if I were to not want to go.”
The sameness of responses did not yield information useful to ascertaining the
contribution of autonomy in gender ideology.

Support from chgrch for goals.

Likewise the respondents felt that their church supported the goals that they
had set for themselves. Some respondents noted feeling differences between

congregations at home and on campus regarding support, but everyone felt

supported at one place or the other. Most women did not elaborate on their

149

responses, and so did not offer the depth necessary to glean insight regarding
the contribution of church support to gender ideology and/or gender identity. The
ovenrvhelmingly positive feelings of support from the church may be attributed to
a number of factors. As college students, the informants who referred to feeling
supported by their congregation at home are not there very often any more, and
so, perhaps, have only limited involvement and contact. Secondly, those who
referred to a campus ministry as supportive of their life goals are participating in
churches completely focused on meeting the needs of college students.

Table 4.7 offers a cross-case summary of the gender ideology of each
informant. A theme was frequently evident between the infon'nant’s description
of women’s role in the church and their explanation of how their spirituality
influenced their life plans. Joann cites women’s role in the church as that of
submission; she also lists submission to her husband as one of the ways her
spirituality will influence her life plans. Gender equality is part of Nicole’s
ideology, as she believes that women can serve in any capacity in the church,
and she also dreams of working side-by-side with her husband. Leah’s gender
ideology includes women’s submission to male authority. She listed several
roles for women in the church, but by omission made it clear that pastor is not
one of those roles. In her life plans, Leah described the man as the leader in

marriage.

Thggﬁeds of College Experiences on Spiritual Beliefs.

 

The ﬁnal question addressed college experiences as they related to their

spiritual beliefs. lnformants were given the opportunity to discuss course work or

150

TABLE 4.7: CONTRIBUTION OF GENDER IDEOLOGY TO FEMALE

ADOLESCENT GENDER IDENTITY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Name Women’s Role in Church Spirituality Inﬂuences
Life Plans
Joann Be submissive, not a pastor Be submissive
Baptist
Donna Organize events, not a Be a youth pastor’s wife
Baptist pastor
Jacque Take care of food, Get career together, then
Baptist deaconess, female pastor family
Libby “Hearth keepers,” nursery, Husband a strong Christian,
Baptist ofﬁce work, not pastor C. family, business ethics
Ellen Take care of things, plan, Marry E., raise children in
Episcopalian altar guild, priests church, help
Jane Important roles—equality Career choice-help people,
Ejiscopallan how to raise children
Nicole Women can serve in any Many a 0., work side-by-
Lutheran capacity side, raise C. children
Erin Equal to men, responsible Guide career choice, focus
Lutheran to erase sexist ideas on church and sexuality
Margaret Helper and servant Respect husband, involved
Lutheran in church, not into a career
Lucy More in the background, Remain L., children grow
Lutheran support up “like I did, ” career
Emma Many positions, but not Marriage as lifetime
Lutheran pastor commitment, raise children
Renee Find glory in service other Stay-at-home mom, home
Lutheran than leadership school children
Lana All are from God, equal gifts Spirituality is who I am,
Methodist to offer base family on faith
Bonnie Important role, not different Ministry of being a C. in the
Methodist from men wortd, raise family in chrch
Molly No distinction Many a Christian, go to
Methodist church
Carrie Ideally same as men, not Career over children and
Methodist reality family
Leah Elders, youth ministry, Man is leader in marriage,
Presbyterian teacher faith will effect mother role
Lee Ann Deacons, elders, not Christian husband,
Presbyterian teaching, not pastors business ethics
Kara Not the head, not pastor, Be in God’s will, raise kids
Presbyterian involved in other ways in church, pray w/them
Joy Big role-everything but Many Christian, effects
Presbyterian pastor every decision

 

 

 

 

 

Legend: C=Christian; E=Episcopalian; L=Lutheran

 

 

151

 

other activities in which they may have taken part that had challenged or
encouraged their spiritual beliefs. All but one respondent had some sort of
experience to relate, and some had multiple experiences. The most common
responses were focused in the academic realm of college life, especially
concerning religion courses.

“Well, I took a class called Religions in America,
and, um, that kind of exposed me to all of them, too.
Especially like, seeing all the non-Christian faiths,
they’re, it was really interesting. And I never even
really knew they existed. I mean, Baptist is what
it was.”

Libby

“Actually, I took a, a comparative religion class,
which is a requirement at (state university)...
Which I think is really cool. Um, and we touched
on, we didn’t get into a lot of the lesser known
religions, but obviously we had Christianity,
Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and lslam....We
had to do two different projects, and one of them,
if you were protestant you had to either go to a
Jewish or Hindu service... .So I went to a Hindu
service, and they had shrines, you know, and I just,
that’s just outside my realm of understanding...”
Jane

These responses are typical of those offered by the informants, and they spoke
of the new perspectives on spirituality and life philosophy that were brought to
light for them.

Courses outside of the religion and theology also were mentioned as having

had inﬂuence on the informants.

152

“Um... I took a women’s study course, it was
Women and Literature. And it was really a fun
class, and I really like it. It just kind of made me
think about things. Kind of like, the, there’s only
one person. You know, because the subject of
the literature was maniage and romance... But it
was just kind of like, no one want to hear about
what happens after your maniage, all of those
stories just end in maniage... .And it was kind of
disappointing to realize that your life wasn’t going
to be like that, but at the same time, I think, life
has it’s merits, so it just made me think about where
God, because it was obviously a non-Christian view
of the way people were.”

Nicole

Emma, who attended Lutheran schools for her entire K-12 education, found her
ﬁrst semester at a public university quite different.

“In my English class last semester, it was, my

teacher wasn’t a Christian, and that’s the ﬁrst

contact I’d had with it, with having non-Christian

teachers...”
Other experiences thatwere recounted fell under happenings on campus or in
the residence halls, or with a campus ministry activity. A summary of informants’
college experiences is provided in Table 4.8.

Summary of Findings
This chapter presented the major findings of the research study. Each of the

six research questions was examined using informant responses from the
interview questions and the ecomaps. Examination of the data collected

revealed that Christian church culture and the family of origin do affect the

development of identity, as well as overall gender identity in females.

153

TABLE 4.8: INFORMANTS’ COLLEGE EXPERIENCES

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Name Academic Experience Student Life
Expeﬁence
Joann Biblical Lit class- Drinking alcohol at
Baptist doctrine goes against B. student parties
beliefs
Donna Old Testament class-
Baptist prof was atheist
Jacque
Baptist
Libby Religions in America
Baptist class-exposure
Ellen Eastern religions Evangelized by
Episcopalian course-positive students-negative
Jane Comparative religion
Episcopalian course, speech class
Nicole Women and Literature
Lutheran course; a Prof who is C.
Erin Course on history of
Lutheran Israel-used Bible as text
Margaret Religion 201 course Meeting non-Christians
Lutheran
Lucy Discussions with
Lutheran roommate and friends
Emma English course,
Lutheran philosophy course
Renee Biblical Lit course
Lutheran
Lana Theology on Film,
Methodist Anthropology,
Astronomy
Bonnie Course on English Bible
Methodist
Molly Spring break trip with
Methodist campus ministry group
Canie Attending Jewish
Methodist student group
w/boyfrlend
Leah Old Testament course Transferring colleges
Presbyterian after sophomore year
Lee Ann Comments made by Involvement with
Presbyterian professors campus ministﬂ
Kara “Day of Awakening”
Presbyterian campus ministry event
Joy Theology course: +; Exposed to different
Presbyterian Anthropolochourse= - belief systems

 

154

 

Interviews and ecomaps clearly revealed the inﬂuence of church culture on
female identity development via practices with regard to leadership and
ordination. Informants’ responses, which named spiritual leaders within the
church, as well as church worship practices and denominational doctrinal beliefs,
revealed how church culture affects identity development. No two informants
attended the same church while they were growing up, yet the description of
basic beliefs was completely discemable along denominational lines.

The actual practices of the church effected female identity development
through the presence, or lack thereof, of women in leadership and pastoral roles.
Again, there was distinct evidence of the inﬂuence of each mainline
denomination’s practices regarding women in leadership, based on the
responses of the informants. The Episcopalian and Methodist women supported
women’s service in the church in a variety of roles, including those of leadership
and clergy. The Baptist women, with one exception, limited women’s roles within
the church to helping and organizing/planning events. The one Baptist woman
who supported women in leadership and pastoral roles came from a
congregation that had a woman pastor. The Lutheran women were split along
conservative and liberal lines. Those who came from the more liberal branch
supported equality for women in all areas of service in the church; those from the
more conservative branch did not support women in the pastoral role.
Presbyterian informants were all from a conservative branch of the denomination,

and they supported women as leaders, but did not think women should be in

155

positions of authority. None of the Presbyterian women supported women’s
ordination.

The religious practices and beliefs of parents inﬂuenced female identity via
spiritual rituals and practices that took place in the home, choices about
involvement in church activities, and through personal expression of faith. Where
there were differences in parental expressions of faith, informants were very
clear about the effects of those differences. The ecomaps provided input
regarding how connected informants felt to their parents, as well as whether
informants felt encouraged and supported by them.

With regard to spiritual strengths and resources, most informants cited
multiple ways that their spirituality had been nurtured over the years. Worship,
youth group activities, and special events (e.g. trips, retreats, attending religious
camps) were activities that the informants counted as offering spiritual strength,
or were a resource. Informant ecomaps provided insight into relationships with
God, spiritual leaders, and family members, and gave a visual picture of the
strength of each of those relationships.

Self-concept was shown to inﬂuence female adolescent identity through the
self-values, self-beliefs, self-feelings, and self-assessments held by each
informant. Church doctrine, church practice, and family of origin were all
implicated in creating self-concept. The importance of being in relationships with
God and with others was shown to be key to self-concept. Submission to God,

and in some cases, also to spouse, were examples of self-concept provided by

156

informants. Self-concept also included the roles of wife and mother, and these
relational roles were placed ahead of career aspirations.

Gender ideology was shown to contribute to female adolescent gender
identity via the church culture and practice, and family of origin. lnformants
gathered messages regarding gender-appropriate behavior from their church and
their parents, and created their own gender ideology based on what they heard,
observed, participated in, and lived. Gender ideology was gleaned through
informants’ self-described appropriate roles for women in the church, as well as
their narration of how their spirituality has inﬂuenced their life plans.

Chapter Five will provide discussion regarding the ﬁndings relative to each of
the research questions. In addition, the chapter will include personal

observations as well as suggestions for future research.

157

Chapter 5: Discussion and Conclusions

Overview
The purpose of this study was to understand the role of family of origin as
well as church culture and practice in the development of female gender
identity. The exploration of the inﬂuence of church culture and the family
system in shaping female adolescent identity formation was accomplished
through interviewing twenty college women between the ages of eighteen and
twenty-two. In addition, information was gathered from each informant via a
spiritual ecomap, which was created during the interview process. The
women who participated in the interview process were candid in responding
to the verbal questions, and thoughtful in the creation of their ecomaps. Their
responses supported the theoretical underpinnings of the research, and
provided insight into the shaping of gender identity by family and church
culture. Discussion of the ﬁndings will be divided into two sections; the ﬁrst
section will address the theoretical foundations of the research, the second
section will examine the key ﬁndings.
Theoretical Foundations
Two theories provided the foundation for this research: the human
ecological theory of Urie Bronfenbrenner, and the feminist theory of human
interaction by Deaux and Major. This study supported Bronfenbrenner’s
(1989) human ecological perspective of human development as a joint
function of both the person and the environment. Environmental inﬂuences of

religious denominations were evident in attitudes regarding women’s

158

 

leadership roles in church, in expectations for career and family, and in
gender ideology. Environmental inﬂuences of family were evinced in the
informants’ spiritual strengths and resources, in self-concept, and in gender
ideology. The joint function of the person and her environment was seen in
the creation of twenty unique ecomaps. Despite the similarity of
denomination, each informant had her own experiences within her local
church, with family and friends, and these experiences were reﬂected in their
ecomaps. In addition, when asked to delineate the beliefs of their
denomination, informant responses, although similar in some respects,
ultimately reﬂected different aspects of denominational doctrine. Personal
factors also were evident in the informants’ descriptions of their relationship to
God, of what keeps them close to God, and in their college experiences.
Each informant expressed a distinctive combination of spiritual activities that
they felt nourished their beliefs.

The mesosystemic relationship of church and family was evident in the
interaction of the parents as they took their children to church. For some
informants, the mesosystemic church and family relationship of weekly church
attendance as a family played an important role in their childhood experience,
and had great inﬂuence in shaping their spiritual beliefs. The mesosystemic
church/family relationship is also evident in the choice of some parents to
send their children to parochial school. Another example of the church/family

relationship occuned in the instances when informants were allowed to travel

159

with church groups, in which chaperoneslyouth counselors took on the
responsibilities of safety and well-being of the youth.

Deaux and Major’s (1987) theory asserts that gender-related behaviors
take place within the context of social interaction. This was evident in the
question regarding the role of women in the church, where responses
followed clear denominational lines. Women cited church practices and role
models from their church experience that reﬂected the church’s inﬂuence as a
socializing force in creating expectations for the “proper” or accepted roles for
women in the church. Over the years, the social interaction the informants
had experienced at church proved inﬂuential in their emerging gender identity.

Feminist theology has established the role of androcentric doctrine in
socializing women to become dependent helpers (Barta, 1991). Deaux’s
theory of “gender belief system” supports the assertions of feminist
theologians. The “gender belief system” consists of both descriptive and
prescriptive elements believed to be true about men and women, and serves
as the foundation for gender stereotypes. The predominance of informants’
self-stated life-plans, which revolved around marriage and family, illustrates a
“gender belief system” supported by many mainline Christian doctrines and
practices. Despite the fact that informants had committed their resources in
the pursuit of an undergraduate degree, the most prevalent response to the
question regarding life plans focused on the roles of wife and mother. The

inﬂuence of the church in creating a “gender belief system” also was evident

160

in comments made by some informants regarding why women cannot be
pastors—that they are too emotional, and that they must be submissive.

Figure 5.1(p. 181), discussed in Chapter Two (Figure 2. 4), displays the
influences that were conceptualized to shape female gender identity. Figure
5.2 presents a revised conceptual map, reﬂecting three changes. First, the
anow showing church culture and practice inﬂuences parents and family of
origin has been changed from a solid line to a broken line. lnfonnation
regarding parents’ involvement in church, and their spiritual beliefs was
gathered from the infon'nant’s perspective. The interview process did not
allow for input from parents, thus there was no direct information regarding
the inﬂuence of the church on parents, siblings, or other family members.
The second set of changes in the conceptual map reﬂects the research
ﬁndings that offered solid support for the inﬂuence of church culture and
practice and parents/family of origin in inﬂuencing the identity development
process. To this end, the anows have been made thicker, to reﬂect the level
of influence. The ﬁnal change is at the far right side of the map, where
individual arrows had emanated from each of the concepts of identity
development to female adolescent gender identity. The research
methodology employed did not treat the concepts separately, so to reﬂect the
inter-related data, an arrow connecting the three concepts is then connected
to the outcome of gender identity.

This study sought to examine the inﬂuences of church and family in

shaping female adolescent gender identity, and was well served by human

161

 

5.22%. .0850..."

0202000006 .00200 .0 0505.23
.0... 220. .0200.00 .0 020.020E.0u

00020322. .0523

020 .00>.. 502. 0.02.5 .0.02E0E
.._.E0. 02.03.02. 2.020 .0 >_.E0.n

 

 

 

20..02_E0200 0.30.200 .0 00020322." .

08200.0 .0550 0.2020020" e

20.320 .000. .0 00020322."

    

Hozmmum...

 

 

 

820000.00... 2030.2. 22.0
m 5. _ 0. V

 

 

 

 

 

        

00.000.
00:00

.000200

2.020
.0 >_.E00.0.20.00

/.

       

  

0.00002
.02
00 20E0>>

00200.0 020
0.3.30 20.320

  

 

-._00

       

000.5000”.
02.0290
022.00

 

  

 

.202. 0.050 .2200.
0.02.00

       

    

22.2.0.0
0.20E0>>

     

20..02_E0200
2050220 0:22.05.
.0 022.000

052 2<3h0m0200 "v.0 mmDOE

162

 

0002005 .9330 0.2020020"

     

22200. .030.>.02.n
020..0.000x0 .00200 .0 .030.>.._00
.0... 5.0. .0200.00 .0 020.020E.0u
00020322. _0.3._30
020 .00>.. >02. 0.02? .0.02E0E

20.320 .000. .0 00020322."

 

20..02.2.0200 0.32200 .0 00020322."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

      

  

             

 

 

 

 

    

 

  

 

2.2.0. 02.03.02. 2.020 .0 2.2.0." Hn.2m...0m...
L 002800.004. 2030.2. 225
t m. _2 _ F ‘
\‘|l'/
2.020
Iv 30.000. .0 >..E0n=0.20.0n.
.00200 I...
0 00200.0 020 0.00mm
1 . 00200
v ...00 A L 0.3.30 20.320 00 202.0 >>
000.3003.
02.02020 20..02.0.O
Fv .03.. .25 20..02_E0200 0.20E0>>

 

20.0.20 2.2.0.2
.0 022.000

 

 

.202. 0.050 ...200.

 

0.0E0n..
m5)— 4<Dhmm0200 me_>mm "N..." mmDOE

163

ecology theory, with its focus on the interdependence of family and its
environment. Both laws of nature and human—derived rules guide the
transactions between family and environment. This study showed the
influence of human-derived rules of church and family in shaping female
gender identity. The feminist theory of Deaux acknowledged the inﬂuence of
the social situation in creating expectancies regarding gender schema and
behavior. The informants in this study provided examples of how they
contextualized their behavior and cognition to meet the demands of the
immediate situation and the goals of their social interactions. Libby spoke
passionately of being an ethical businesswoman, yet denied the role of
leadership to women within the church. Margaret is attending a premier
university, and discussed her plans to attend law school; however, when
queried about life plans, she downplayed career plans over opportunities to
do volunteer work within the church.
Key Findings

Analysis of the data revealed ﬁve themes that were evinced as factors
contributing to female adolescent identity development. Doctrinal stance,
church activities, spiritual leaders, relationship to God, and family expression
of faith were consistent themes woven through the interview data. Identity
development, as discussed in Chapter Two, is an ongoing process throughout
the adolescent years. The ﬁve themes that emerged from the data played a
role in shaping the informants’ spiritual strengths and resources, their self-

concept, and their gender ideology, which, together, created their identity.

164

Table 5.1 (p. 165) displays the association between the research questions,
the coding schemes employed to analyze the interviews, and the key ﬁndings.
The table illustrates how the ﬁve themes support the six research questions
that guided the study.

Theme One: The Inﬂuence of the hurch’s Doctrinal tance.

The inﬂuence of the church’s doctrinal stance on the informants was
evident at several points in the interview process, and was shown to
ultimately inﬂuence identity formation directly and indirectly. This theme was
chosen for discussion ﬁrst because it informs subsequent themes. The
strong similarity of responses by denomination from informants regarding the
beliefs and major teachings of their church evinced how the denomination's
doctrine is communicated, even to younger members. The respondents
presented key doctrinal issues when asked, and knew the beliefs and
practices unique to their denomination. The doctrinal teachings of the
informants’ denomination also informed their perspective on women’s role in
the church. All of the women involved in the interview process provided a
description of women’s roles that was in compliance with the theological
teachings of their denomination. The opportunity for ongoing doctrinal
influence was seen in the responses from informants from four of the ﬁve
denominations included in the study, in which they claimed ongoing
allegiance to their denomination. Doctrinal inﬂuence also was evident in the
gender ideology of informants, which was predominantly focused on

assuming the roles of wife and mother. Within these roles, doctrinal inﬂuence

165

TABLE 5.1: LINKING RESEARCH QUESTIONS, CODES, AND KEY

 

 

FINDINGS
Research Question Coding Schemes Theme
1. How does the culture CC-church culture 1. Inﬂuence of church's

of the church inﬂuence
female adolescent identity
development?

RT-religious tradition
WRC-women’s role in
church
GOD-relationship w/God
SL-spiritual leaders

doctrinal stance
4. Relationship with and
perspective of God

 

2. How do the practices of
the church inﬂuence
female adolescent identity
development?

RT
WRC
GOSUP

1.lnﬂuence of church’s
doctrinal stance

2. Importance of involve-
ment in church activities

 

3. How do parents’
religious practices and
beliefs inﬂuence female
adolescent identity
development?

PAM-parents' marital
status

PDIFF-parental
differences
RITS-family spiritual
rituals/practices
AUTO-autonomy
EXP-standout religious
expenences

4. Relationship with and
perspective of God

5. Expression of spiritual
beliefs within the family

 

4. How do spiritual
strengths and resources
contribute to female
adolescent identity?

SPR-spiritual resources
SS-spiritual strengths
SL-spiritual leaders
GOD

3. Presence and “who" of
spiritual leaders

4. Relationship with and
perspective of God

 

EXP 5. Expression of spiritual
RITS beliefs within the family
5. How does self-concept COLEX-college 1. Influence of church's
contribute to female classes/experiences doctrinal stance
adolescent identity? CONNECT-connection to 2. Importance of involve-
religious tradition ment in church activities
AUTO-autonomy w/in 3. Presence and “who" of
family’s religious tradition spiritual leaders
LIFP-life plans 4. Relationship with and
GOD perspective of God

5. Expression of spiritual
beliefs within the family

 

 

6. How does gender
ideology contribute to
female adolescent
identity?

 

CAFAM-expectations for
career and family

LIFP

AUTO

WRC

GOSUP

 

1. Inﬂuence of church's
doctrinal stance

2. Importance of involve-
ment in church activities
3. Presence and “who” of
spiritual leaders

4. Relationship with and
perspective of God

5. Expression of spiritual
beliefs within the family

 

166

 

was further evident in the description informants provided regarding the
assumption of the wife and mother roles. lnformants from denominations
that ascribe to strict gender roles included submission to husband, and
assuming the role of mother meant staying at home with the children.

It is important to note that historically theology has been the domain of
men; men have been the ones to transform biblical text into theological
stance, and the transformation has been informed by their male experience
(Young, 1995). Feminist theologians have asserted that ecclesial teachings
have a propensity to use scriptural images of women that present them as
passive, meek, and gentle (Rosenblatt, 1991). This representation of women
fails to recognize women’s ability to be initiators in the same way the men are,
and creates a very narrow theological depiction of women (Rosenblatt, 1991).
The responses of the informants in this study clearly supports the effects of
androcentric doctrine in shaping attitudes about who women are.

Deaux and Major‘s (1987) gender-related theory asserts that behavior is
affected by personal beliefs as well as the desired outcomes of the
interaction. The theology of women as passive and meek translates to a
doctrinal stance that proclaims passive and meek as the God-intended role
for women; in turn, the church creates practices which allow women to be
involved only in roles that are supported by passive and meek behavior.
Together, theology, doctrinal stance, and church practice inﬂuence personal

beliefs and desired for outcomes of gender ideology.

167

Theme Two: Thmce of Involvemwm

The interview process revealed the pivotal role of educational and
recreational church activities in the lives of informants in this study.
Irrespective of the level of commitment to the church held by parents,
religious education was something all informants participated in. Sunday
school, vacation Bible school, and Pioneer Club were viewed by informants
as contributing to the shaping of their spiritual beliefs during the elementary
school years. Several informants from one denomination noted the inﬂuence
of having attended parochial schools that were associated with their local
churches. Two of the informants attended parochial school from kindergarten
through twelfth grade. Religious education was included at all grade levels.

The influence of denominational doctrine is evident in these religious
education agencies, as their teachings are informed by doctrinal beliefs.
Many denominations have publishing companies that produce doctrinally
approved materials for use in these educational agencies. The choice of Bible
stories studied, the pictures used to illustrate the stories, the way the stories
are told, and the language chosen (e.g. inclusive, or use of “man” as generic
for all people) are inﬂuenced by denominational doctrine. In turn, these
materials become the vehicle to communicate doctrinal positions. Feminist
theologians assert that educational practices inﬂuence gender expectations of
the believer (King, 1995, Graham, 1996).

Through junior high and high school, the focus of church involvement for

the informants turned to recreational activities, Bible studies, and special

168

events which were a part of an organized youth ministry associated with the
church. At this level, informants described not only the effects of the activity
itself (e.g. a community service event), but also the relationships established
with the adults serving as youth counselors. Those adults, no doubt, taught
and encouraged faith and life perspectives that aligned with the doctrinal
beliefs of the denomination. Ultimately, these religious and recreational
activities inﬂuenced identity through the content of materials, the focus of
activities, the role models of teachers and counselors, the choice of activities,
and the events that young people were encouraged to attend. Another
source of inﬂuence that occurred within the context of religious education was
socialization with other children/youth who espoused the same beliefs.
Church activities changed over time, as did the level of involvement by
informants. Bronfenbrenner’s (1989) concept of the chronosystem supports
the changes in activity and involvement, as well as the effects of interaction
within the church itself.

The effectiveness of religious education in creating a belief system for
participants was evident in the responses provided by the informants to the
question about college experiences that had affected their religious beliefs.
All of the informants related that they had had at least one experience in the
classroom or elsewhere on campus that had challenged them to think and/or
opened them to new thoughts. However, these experiences did not cause
them to make changes to their existing belief system; rather, they sought to

ﬁnd a way to make the experience ﬁt their current system, or they rejected the

169

experience outright. Deaux and Major (1987) afﬁrrn that people need to
display stability in their behavior. The application of this theory would explain
the informants’ reactions to these new experiences or concepts as college
students as the need to routinize their behavior and cognition in accord with
pre-established conceptualizations and behavior patterns, which were learned
in previous educational encounters.

Theme Three: The Presence and “Who" of Spiritual Leaders.

Verbally and visually informants indicated individuals they felt had
provided spiritual leadership in their lives. Spiritual leaders were named in
the interviews, and their relationships to the informants were depicted in the
informants’ ecomaps. Though operationally deﬁned by the researcher to be
individuals who hold various ofﬁces of public ministry, it turned out that this
was not always the case. Those named as spiritual leaders were not abstract
figure-heads, they were individuals with whom each informant had some sort
of personal relationship. Spiritual leaders were people who were a part of the
informant's microsystem, predominantly friends and family. This
phenomenon supports Jean Baker Miller’s (1991) and Carol Gilligan’s (1982)
assertions regarding the importance of females being in relationships in the
identity process, and that those relationships are deﬁned in terms of caring
and responsibility.

The preponderance of family members named as spiritual leaders
illustrates the ﬁfth theme regarding family inﬂuence in shaping gender identity.

Mothers, fathers, and grandparents were the family members named as

170

spiritual leaders. Mothers were the most frequently noted spiritual leaders.
Perhaps this was because of the prominent role mothers have, according to
Chodorow (1978), in the lives of their daughters, whom they view as an
extension of themselves.

It is also interesting that informants from all denominations represented in
the study, including informants who asserted that women should not hold
leadership positions in the church, mentioned mothers. It would appear that
informants make a distinction between formal and personal spiritual
leadership; women can’t be pastors, but they can be spiritual mentors on an
inter-personal level. Also, despite the rhetoric and teaching of denominations
regarding the male as holding the God-given “head of household” role, fathers
were not always seen as the spiritual head of the family, nor named as a
spiritual leader. It must be pointed out that seventeen of the twenty
respondents came from intact families, and so had a father present in the
household.

The inﬂuence of doctrine is present in this third theme as well.
Denominational doctrine informs the beliefs and practices of the spiritual
leader, who, in turn, has an inﬂuence in the life of the informant.

Theme Four: The Relationship with and Perspective of God.

Informed by denominational doctrine and teachings, informants’
perspectives regarding who God is inﬂuenced their gender identity. Some
informants described God as someone who makes decisions for them, as

was the case for three women who indicated that they were conﬁdent that

171

God would provide them with an academic major for their college career.
Others spoke of God as “Father,” or protector, and of their reliance on him to
meet their needs. Their descriptive narrations of God were clearly
masculine; thus, informants solidly evinced the claims of feminist theologians
who assert that the language of Scripture and the gender of God is viewed by
many Christians not as an expression for the time in which it was written, but
as something real and unchanging regarding the nature of God (Graham,
1996). The embodiment of God as male forever dooms women to a lower
status. Women can never hope to be held in the same esteem as men; after
all, men are the same gender as God himself. Practically speaking, God as
male also withholds ordination as pastor from women.

Relationships with God were described overwhelmingly in passive terms;
informants relied on, waited on, or sought patience. A more active, assertive
stance was evinced when informants discussed what keeps them close to
God. Prayer, Bible study, worship, and talking with friends bespoke
involvement and responsibility on the part of the respondent in building and
maintaining a relationship with God. The majority of informants know God
through church; they were introduced to the concepts of faith and a
relationship with God as children. These women continue to know God
through worship, educational opportunities, and Christian friends. Over time,
as the informants’ cognitive abilities change and mature, the language of
worship (e.g. inclusive language vs. use of “male” as inclusive of everyone),

the focus of sermons and Bible studies, and the leadership models present in

172

 

church organization add detail to the God they know. Androcentric doctrinal
inﬂuence was present even in denominations that embrace women at all
levels of leadership and service; informants from those churches described
typical female roles ﬁrst, and then went on to name the more traditionally
male roles of deacon, elder, and/or pastor.

Theme FiVmecmgﬂtU—alwmm

Expression of spiritual beliefs in the home and the rituals attached to those
beliefs communicate the importance and place of faith in everyday life. This
final theme also was informed by denominational doctrine, ﬁrst through the
decision by the parent(s) to be a member of a particular church/denomination,
and then in how that denomination shapes the parent(s) faith. The
environment of the church (e.g. the church’s posture on women) affects
parents’ attitudes and perspectives on gender ideology. Additional
denominational inﬂuence occurs through the materials chosen for family
devotions, in the choice of spiritual activities conducted in the home, and in
the activities at church in which the family chooses to be involved. Spiritual
expression in the home affects the sociological, psychological, and behavioral
environments of the family, which, in turn, shape the development of
attitudes, values, expectations, and patterns of decision-making for its
members (Andrews, Bubolz, & Paolucci, 1980).

The most common expressions of spiritual beliefs among the informants in
this study were prayer at mealtime and/or at bedtime. The activity of prayer

acknowledges the presence of and belief in God on the part of the parents. In

173

 

 

addition, prayer encourages the development of a relationship between
participant and God, so prayer in the home was a way for parents to introduce
their children to God, and to encourage them to have a relationship. Another
prevalent spiritual expression in the home was Advent activities. Advent,
which precedes Christmas, serves as an example of the inﬂuence of
denominational doctrine within the home, as not all denominations
acknowledge the season. lnformants described Advent activities as special
and different from other events that happened within their home, and
understood that the presence of these activities communicated the
importance of Advent and Christmas within the context of their faith life.

Attending church each week as a family conveyed to the informants the
importance of faith in the lives of their parents, since this was the one time
throughout the week that informants could be certain that their families would
all be together in one place. Some families extended this time together by
including a meal after church. For several informants this meal was also an
educational time, as their families discussed the sermon that was given in
church, and the important lessons and applications pertinent to each family
member.

Bronfenbrenner’s (1989) theory asserts that the effects of the environment
play an important role in human development, as the individual interacts with
its total surroundings. Parents choose the family religious activities and the
expectation for church attendance, both of which shape the environment

within the home. As parents create the family environment, that environment

174

has an effect on the other environments outside of the family, just as those
outside environments can affect the family. Female gender identity
development takes place in the mutual accommodation that occurs between
the settings in which the individual lives (Bronfenbrenner, 1989).

The relationship between parents and informants in this study was
affected by the ways in which parents expressed their faith. The individual
personality make-up of parents and informants as well as individual
expression of faith worked together to create varying degrees of closeness.
Overall, the expression of faith by a parent appeared to increase the
likelihood that the informant would describe the relationship as close.
Deaux’s (1987) interaction-based model acknowledges the power of the
social situation as an inﬂuence in gender identity development. The power of
the situation was evident in the comments made by some informants, who
explained that their perspective on the role of wife/mother was based on how
their own mother had fulﬁlled those roles.

Methodological Issues

Qualitative research strategies are, by their nature, relatively unstructured
(Greenstein, 2001). The interview questions certainly provided some
organization to the research process; however, it must be acknowledged that
no two interviews were the same. The personality of the informant affected
the depth of information gathered. Some women’s responses were straight to
the point, while other women provided more information than they were asked

to provide. I found myself wanting to prod those who were more quiet or

175

reticent in their responses, or to ask questions that were not in the interview
format. In an effort to maintain a sense of research integrity, l refrained from
straying too far from the interview questions. I did ask for clariﬁcation when I
did not understand an infon'nant’s response, or could not follow the train of
thought. The ecomaps were useful in ﬁlling in sketchy information,
particularly among less verbal informants. Ultimately, however, lfeel that l
was able to gain a more complete picture of gender identity development from
the more verbal informants.

Another methodological issue concerned three of the interview questions,
which did not yield the depth of information that was intended. By the time I
realized that the questions were not eliciting depth of content, I had already
completed several interviews. The questions that proved difﬁcult can be
found on Table 5.2 along with the actual intent of the question and the
informants’ perception of the question. I felt that if I had totally re-worded the
questions, it would have created an uneven process that would have affected
the data. The lack of depth in these responses was not fatal to the overall
research.

I recognize that qualitative research is not value free (Greenstein, 2001).
Throughout the interview process I was conscious of my own epistemological
orientation regarding the androcentric doctrine and teachings present in many
mainline denominations. Having struggled with the messages I have received
from my own denomination regarding my “place” within both church and

society, I was conscious of my bias in every interview. This certainly

176

 

 

 

 

 

 

TABLE 5.2: DIFFICULT INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

 

 

Question Actual Intent of the What Was Provided by
Question lnformants
11. What sort of religious What were the Religious experiences

experiences stand out
during your years at
home?

inforrnant’s most
memorable religious
experiences within the
context of the family?

that occurred during their
growing up years which
took place in association
with their church

 

13. How much autonomy
did you experience within
your family’s spiritual
tradition?

Did the informant have
the freedom to make
choices regarding her
spiritual beliefs and
practices?

Whether the informant
thought her parents
would have supported
choices if she had
wanted to make them

 

20. Do you feel that
your church is open and
supportive to you as a
woman in the goals that
you have set for

Jourself?

 

Did the informant feel
that her church supported
her pursuit of higher
education? Career
plans?

 

Whether the informant
felt she had been
supported in the
development of her faith
life.

 

177

 

inﬂuenced my reticence to stray from the interview question format. However,
my interest in exploring the inﬂuence of the culture of mainline Christian
denominations and the family system in the development of female
adolescent gender identity overwhelmed my personal concerns regarding
bias. Qualitative methodology allowed me to move beyond my own
perspective, and attempt to understand the contexts of church and family
from the standpoint of the informants themselves. The case study approach
allowed me to “develop as full an understanding” of each informant as
possible (Punch, 1998, p. 150).
Limitations

There are several limitations of the present research. The sample of
denominationally mainline Christian college women was not representative of
all college women who belong to mainline Christian denominations. First,
there was a lack of ethnic inclusion in the sample population. The
predominance of Caucasian women overshadowed women of other ethnic
origins who, indeed, have valuable contributions to make in the study of
gender identity development. Secondly, the informants were primarily from
middle class families; most of the parents were college graduates, several
had graduate degrees. Third, there were only two Episcopalians represented
in the sample, whereas each of the other denominations included at least four
representatives.

Another area of limitation in the study was the restriction of denominations.

Mainline Christian denominations exclude several other major Christian

178

 

 

church bodies, including Catholicism and non-denominational churches. It
must also be pointed out that the researcher made assumptions regarding the
mainline Christian denominations that were represented in the study. A
continuum exists within each denomination, representing variations on
practices and beliefs within individual churches as well as groups of
congregations. lnformants were not queried regarding the speciﬁc practices
of the congregation in which they grew up in, or their ties to a speciﬁc division
(e.g. branch, synod, convention) of the denomination to which they belonged.
Therefore, data regarding the context and environment of the congregations
in which the informants grew up was not available to inform within group
differences regarding denominational contribution to gender identity.

The fifth area of limitation was geographical, as the informants were all
college students from within the state of Michigan. In addition, the majority of
women in the sample population were raised in the Mid-West, and more
speciﬁcally, in Southeastern Michigan. Churches within the same
denomination as well as family dynamics are inﬂuenced by regional factors
such as climate, economy, and culture. These differences were not
represented in the sample population. Therefore, this study cannot address
the experiences of Christian women outside of mainline denominations
beyond the Mid-West.

Last, it must be noted that this research did not gather information
regarding gendered practices in the home. The interview process focused

only on spiritual and religious practices within the home, as well as parents’

179

expression of their own spirituality. The study gathered no information

regarding how gender roles were played out at home, or if gender roles within

the family mirrored the portrayal of gender roles by the church.
Recommendations for Future'Research

Several questions for further research remain. In the study of religion and
parents as inﬂuences in identity development, inclusion of denominations
beyond the bounds of mainline Christianity would increase the likelihood of
informants from ethnicities other than Caucasian. The effect of regional
factors could be explored by expanding the sample to include informants from
other areas of the US. Broadening the denominations included in the study
also would increase the participation of informants from all economic classes.

The investigation of the relationship between church and family would
illustrate what inﬂuence the church has in the microsystem of the family’s day-
to-day life. In addition, the study of church and family could reveal whether
the activities within the home mirror gender expectations as they are
portrayed at church.

This study included a high number of intact families, and the informants
asserted rather traditional gender roles both in the church and in the family.
Further study regarding the influence of church and family on the
development of gender identity could include more single-parent families, to
observe whether the absence of a parent contributes to gender identity. A
study focusing on father-only families would allow insight into the effects of

the proscribed gender roles that are taught within some denominations.

180

From a feminist perspective, while the relational aspect of identity was
clearly evident, there was surprisingly scant evidence of informants’
awareness of or engagement in the desire to be equal and included in the
work and life of their church and denomination. Theologically, the effects of
androcentric doctrine and practice were manifest in informants’ attitudes
about self as well as women’s role in the faith community, but again, they
made no mention struggle with the doctrine or practice. This stands in sharp
contrast to the prevailing attitudes and practices regarding women’s roles in
society as well as on university campuses. Future research needs to be
designed so that information regarding the conﬂicting messages from church
and society could be gathered. Opportunity to ask such questions could be
incorporated in the interview process.

Finally, there are some questions that have arisen from this study that
would be appropriately answered through a longitudinal study. The
informants in the present study were developmentally in early adulthood; a
longitudinal study that followed informants for ten to ﬁfteen years beyond their
college experience would provide information regarding the inﬂuences of
career and family choices on gender identity. Longitudinal data also would
bring insight to whether there were any differences in the sense of support
informants feel from their church between those who become stay-at-home
mothers and those who work outside of the home. An extended study would
also allow the researcher to gain perspective on whether church doctrine and

practice remain ongoing inﬂuences in gender identity.

181

Implications

This research study was constructed following the traditional mode of
scientiﬁc inquiry; that is, interest in gender identity was based upon theory,
and theory was used to form the research questions and operationalize them
into the interview process. Two theoretical frameworks served as the
foundation of this study, Bronfenbrenner’s human ecological theory, and
Deaux and Major’s gender-related behavioral theory. These theories were
chosen after careful review of the available literature regarding the
development of gender identity. Since many of the well-known identity
theories (e.g. Freud, Erikson) are premised on male development, Deaux and
Major’s feminist perspective was an exceptional ﬁt for the research topic. The
review of literature also was informed by feminist theology, which addressed
the androcentric inﬂuence of church doctrine and practice.

These theoretical perspectives affected the design and execution of this
study. Bronfenbrenner’s (1989) assertion of the interplay between the person
and the environment over the course of time directed the conceptual
foundation of the study as well as the research questions. The study also
incorporated Bronfenbrenner’s (1989) concept of the mesosystem, examining
the linkages and processes that occur between the informants’ families and
their churches. Deaux and Major’s (1987) theory informed the research
questions which sought to investigate the church as a socializing force in
creating expectations for gender roles. These two theories worked

harmoniously in the present research.

182

The interview process revealed the great bearing that the doctrine and
practices of the church have on shaping what the individual perceives to be
her spiritual strengths and resources. In turn, the spiritual strengths and
resources inﬂuenced self-concept and gender ideology. The triangulation of
data was key in bringing the central role of self-chosen spiritual strengths into
focus. The use of infonnant-created ecomaps enhanced the interview data,
and provided a visual picture of the spiritual resources that comprised each
informant’s life.

One of the key components of spiritual strengths and resources was the
informant’s perception of her relationships, with family members, with spiritual
leaders, with Christian friends, and with her faith community. This relational
aspect revealed that the individuals perceived by the informant as being
spiritual leaders were people who were part of their microsystem. Church
doctrine, therefore, has direct influence on spiritual leaders, through the ability
to dictate the gender of positions within the church—Sunday school teachers,
youth group counselors, youth Bible class teachers, and pastors—people who
would have direct contact with the informant and potential to be viewed as a
spiritual leader.

Further examination of the relational aspect of spiritual strengths and
resources revealed the prominence of family members who were named as
spiritual leaders. Family members exist in both the microsystem of the church
and the microsystem of the family. lnformants evinced that their parents’

spiritual expression brought them closer together, and those whose parents

183

did not have a spiritual tradition indicated that this created distance in their
relationship. The importance of a relationship in the perception of one's
spiritual leaders holds insight for the training of religious educators as well as
the religious community as they serve parents and families.

The unique position of spiritual strengths and resources informing self-
concept and gender ideology have their theoretical foundation in the blended
theory of Deaux and Major and Bronfenbrenner. However, employing
another human ecology theory may well expand the implications for future
study. Bronfenbrenner’s theory does not acknowledge issues of boundaries,
open and closed systems, and self-implied ﬁltering of information and ideas,
all of which were implied in the responses of the informants. Having
acknowledged the need for future research to include examination of the
seeming lack of struggle with the conﬂicting message from church and
society, a focus on systems theory would allow investigation into the
unexamined issues that were presented in this research.

Summary

This research represents a ﬁrst step in studying the joint influences of
church culture and family on female gender identity development. While the
scope of the study was limited, the data indicated that strong inﬂuences on
the development of gender identity exist within the doctrinal practices and
culture of the church. Church leaders need to be aware of the messages
regarding gender ideology that emanate from religious practices. Research

data support the importance of faith traditions that comprise inclusive

184

language in Scripture and worship, teaching Bible stories that illustrate the
lives of men gag women, and a church culture that is inclusive of all people.
This study supports the awareness that exists among Christian parents
regarding the inﬂuence that the expression of spiritual beliefs has within their
family. lnformants shared accounts of family traditions that included bedtime
prayer, devotions, weekly church attendance, and holiday activities. These
narratives illustrated their parents’ cognizance of the importance of their own
religious expression within the family. Parents also need to be aware of the
effect that the practices and culture of the church have on the development of
their daughter’s gender identity. Together, church and family can contribute
to awareness and practices that will assist young women in developing
gender identities that are not limited to passive, meek, mild, or submissive
roles, but include strong, self-initiating, responsible roles that will allow them

to lead full lives unlimited by restrictive gender ideologies.

185

APPENDICES

186

Appendix A' Interview Questions

. What is your name?

. How old are you?

. What city and state did you grow up in?

. Please tell me all of the people who lived in your house while you were
growing up. Tell me about them only by relationship (e.g. mother, father,
brother). If your parents are divorced, and you spent time at two residences,
please include the people who lived with you in both residences.

. What is the highest level of education attained by each of your parents/step-
parents?

. What was the religious tradition you grew up in?

. What are the primary beliefs of your religious community?

. Tell me your deﬁnition of what it means to be religious.

. What was your level of involvement in your faith community as you were

growing up?

10. How did your family express its spiritual beliefs (at home)?

11.What sort of religious experiences stand out during your years at home?

12. What particular rituals or practices nurture your family’s spiritual tradition?

13. How much autonomy did you experience within your family’s spiritual

tradition?

14. What were the similarities/differences between your parents’ expressions of

faith?

187

15. How did those differences in beliefs/practices affect you and your relationship
with either parent?

16. How would you describe your current relationship to your family’s religious
traditions?

17. Describe your relationship with those you consider to hold a position of
spiritual leadership in your life.

18. What do you believe is women’s role in your church?

19. How does your spirituality relate to your plans for your life? Your
expectations for career and family?

20. Do you feel that your church is open and supportive to you as a woman in the
goals that you have set for yourself?

21 . Describe your relationship to God.

22. What facilitates the sense of closeness (distance) with God?

23.Are you more or less connected to the denomination you grew up in now that
you are in college?

24. Have you taken any classes or had any particular experiences as a college

student that have affected your religious beliefs?

188

   

      

  

2.2.0“.

.050.
0053.0

 

     
    

 

 

      

3.232.500
5.0....

 

.800 .0081.

 
 

0800M. .03.... m

H0 220

202.2

03.2.20

2.2.00.

  

     
       
     

202.00;
5.0...
0.02.0.2

22.00.»
5.0“.
0202.0“.

 

 

3.020
.0 30.. 00.00.02.
3020 .0 20..00..0n AI.
20..00.232.2.00
9. .0 03.1.5 .8 u /
0.2020206. .20.0.0 .r. 0.000
0.2020..0.0. 000.0"
2.58.0.2 080"
n..2020..0.0.
_N3u0_=C8H .............................

 

 

 

189

Appendix C: Contact Summary Form
CONTACT TYPE: SITE:
CONTACT DATE:
DATE WRITTEN:
WRITTEN BY:

1. Main issues the struck me with this contact:

2. Summarize the information I got (or failed to get):
Question lnforrnation

1.

2.

3.

10.
11.
12.
13.

14.

190

15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.

24.

3. Anything else that struck me as salient, interesting, illuminating, or important?

4. New (or remaining) questions?

5. Concerns?

191

APPENDIX D

INFORMED CONSENT

You are being asked to participate in a research study. The study is being
conducted by Linda Behrendt, a doctoral candidate in Family and Child Ecology
at Michigan State University. In order to decide whether or not you should agree
to be a part of this study, you need to understand the risks and beneﬁts in order
to make a decision. This process is called informed consent.

This consent form gives information about the research study. After an
explanation of this study is given by the researcher, you will be asked to sign this
form if you agree to participate.

Purpose of this study
The purpose of this study is to investigate the inﬂuences of both religion and
parents in shaping female gender identity.

Relevant Information

You are being asked to participate in this study because you are a college
student involved in a denominational campus ministry. You are being asked to
participate in an interview process in which you will be asked a series of
questions about your religious upbringing and family involvement. In addition,
you will be asked to create an ecomap—a visual picture of your relationships with
those who hold signiﬁcance to you in the practice of your religious life. The
interview will take approximately one hour. You are free to withdraw at any time.

All information gathered in the interview will be conﬁdential. Data for the
purposes of this study will be conﬁdential, identiﬁed only by an assigned ﬁle
number. Your privacy will be protected to the maximum extent allowable by law.

Risks and beneﬁts

It is not expected that the interview process will pose any physical, psychological,
social, or economic harm. Any possible beneﬁts for the participant may come
through personal insight gained upon reﬂection of the interview process;
however, there is no guarantee of beneﬁts.

Other lnfomtation

Should you have any questions regarding your rights as a participant, you may
call the Human Subjects Committee representative, David E. Wright, Ph.D. at
517-355-2180. Should you have any other questions regarding this study,
please call Linda Behrendt at 734-995-7346.

192

You have the right to refuse to participate in this research study, thereby refusing
to sign this consent form, if you so desire, without any fear of prejudice. You are
free to refuse to continue participate in this study at any time. You will be given a
copy of this consent form. Your signature indicates that you have read the
information written above and have volunteered to participate in this study.

Signature of Participant Witness

 

 

Date

I have fully explained to the participant the nature and purpose of the above
study and risks involved. I have answered and will answer all questions to the
best of my ability.

Investigator Witness

 

 

Date

193

REFERENCES

194

REFERENCES

Adams, G. R. & Marshall, S. K (1996). A developmental social psychology of
identity: Understanding the person-in-context. Journal of Adolescence, 19,
429-442.

Adams, N. G. (1994). "A proper little lady" and other twisted tales of adolescent
femininity (Doctoral dissertation, Louisiana State University, 1994).

Andrews, M. P., Bubolz, M. M., & Paolucci, B. (1980). An ecological approach to
study of the family. Marriage & Family Review, 3, (1/2), 29-49.

Archer, J. (1996). Sex differences in social behavior. American Psychologist,
51, 909-91 7.

Archer, S. (1992). A feminist’s approach to identity research. In G. R. Adams, T.
P. Gullotta, and R. Montemayor (Series Eds), Adolescent identity formation:
Vol. 4: Advances in adolescent development (pp. 25-49). Newbury Park:
Sage Publications.

Arnett, J. J. (2000). Emerging adulthood: A theory of development from the late
teens through the twenties. American Psychologist, 55(5), 469-480.

Ary, D., Jacobs, L.C., & Razavieh, A. (1996). Introduction to research in
education (50 ed.). Forth Worth, TX: Harcourt Brace College Publishers.

Barta, K. A. (1991). “She spent all she had...but only grew worse”: Paying the
price of paternalism. In M. E. Rosenblatt (Ed.), Where can we ﬁnd her?
Searching for women’s identity in the new church (pp. 24-36). New York:
Paulist Press.

Bergant, D. (1991). Partners in the mystery of creation. In M. E. Rosenblatt
(Ed), Where can we ﬁnd her? Searching for women ’5 identity in the new
church (pp. 11-23). New York: Paulist Press.

Betz, N. E., Fitzgerald, L. F., & Farmer, H. S. (1988). The career psychology of
women. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 12, 367-370.

Bosma, H. (1992). Identity in adolescence: Managing commitments. In G. R.
Adams, T. P. Gullotta, 8. R. Montemayor (Series Eds), Advances in
adolescent development: Vol. 4. Adolescent identity formation (pp. 91 -121 ).
Newbury Park: Sage Publications.

195

Bretherton, I. (1993). Theoretical contributions from developmental psychology.
In P. G. Boss, W. J. Doherty, R. LaRossa, W. R. Schumm, 8 S. K Steinmetz
(Eds. ), Sourcebook of family theories and methods: a contextual approach,
(pp. 275-297). New York: Plenum Press.

Bronfenbrenner, U. (1986). Ecology of the family as a context for human
development. Developmental Psychology, 22, 723-742.

Bronfenbrenner, U. (1989). Ecological systems theory. Annals of Child
Deveopment, vol. 6, 187-249.

Brown, S. T. (1993). Life on the edge: Who are women on the edge of the
money economy? Church and Society, 83, 38-46.

Brown, L. M., & Gilligan, C. (1992). Meeting at the crossroads. New York:
Ballantine Books.

Bubolz, M. M. 8 Sontag, M. S. (1993). Human ecology theory. In P. Boss, W.
Doherty, R. LaRossa, W. Schumm, & S. Steinmetz (Eds), Sourcebook of
family theories and methods: A contextual approach (pp. 419-448). New
York: Plenum Press.

Caspi, A., 8 Mofﬁtt, T. (1991). Individual differences and personal transitions:
The sample case of girls at puberty. Journal of Personality and Social
Research, 61, 157-168.

Chaves, M. (1997). Ordaining women: Culture and conﬂict in religious
organizations. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Chodorow, N. (1978). The reproduction of mothering: Psychoanalysis and the
sociology of gender. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Chodorow, N. (1993). Family structure and feminine personality. In L.
Richardson 8 V. Taylor (Eds), Feminist Frontiers II! (pp. 82-89). New York:
McGraw-Hill, Inc.

Coltrane, S. (1998). Gender and families. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge
Press.

Cote, J. E. (1996). Identity: A multidimensional analysis. In G. R. Adams, R.
Montemayor, & T. P. Gullotta (Series Eds.), Psychosocial development during
adolescence: Vol. 8. Advances in adolescent development (pp 130-180).
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Cross, S.E., & Madson, L. (1997). Models of the self: Self-construals and
gender. Psychological Bulletin, 122(1), 5-37.

196

Daly, M. (1973). Beyond god the father. Boston: Beacon.
Daly, M. (1985). The church and the second sex. Boston: Beacon Press.

Deaux, K, 8 Kite, M. E. (1989). Gender and cognition. In B. B. Hess 8 M. M.
Ferree (Eds. ), Women and society: Social science research and
perspectives. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.

Deaux, K, 8 Lewis, L. L. (1984). Structure of gender stereotypes:
Interrelationships among components and gender label. Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology, 46(5), 991-1004.

Deaux, K. 8 Major, B. (1987). Putting gender into context: An interactive model
of gender-related behavior. Psychological Review, 94(3), 369-389.

DiSalvo, J. (1984). Class, gender, and religion: A theoretical overview and some
political implications. Women’s Spirit Bonding. New York: Pilgrim Press.

Dyhouse, C. (1981). Girls growing up in late Victorian and edwardian england.
London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.

Eccles, J. 8., Jacobs, J. E., 8 Harold, R. D. (1990). Gender role stereotypes,
expectancy effects and parents’ socialization of gender differences. Journal
of Social Issues, 46, 183-201.

Erikson, E. H. (1950). Childhood and society. New York: Norton.

Erikson, E. H. (1968). Identity: Youth and crisis. New York: Norton.

Erikson, E. H. (1975). Once more the inner space. In Life History and the
Historical Moment. New York: Norton.

Erikson, E. H. (1982). The life cycle completed: A review. New York: Norton.

Fine, M. 8 MacPherson, P. (1992). Over dinner: Femininity and adolescent
female bodies. In M. Fine (Ed.), Disruptive Voices. Ann Arbor: The
University of Michigan Press.

Fine, M. (1997). Sexuality, schooling, and adolescent females: The missing

discourse of desire. In M. M. Gergen 8 S. N. Davis (Eds.), Toward A New
Psychology of Gender (pp. 375-402). New York: Routledge.

Fiorenza, E. S. (1983). In memory of her: A feminist theological reconstruction
of christian origins. New York: Crossroad.

197

 

Fiorenza, E. S. ( 1985). The will to choose or to reject: Continuing our critical
work. In L. Russell (Ed), Feminist interpretation of the bible (pp.125-136).
Philadelphia: Westminster.

Fitchett, G. (1993). Assessing spiritual needs: A guide for caregivers.
Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress Press.

Flax, J. (1990). Thinking fragments: Psychoanalysis, feminism, and
postmodernism in the contemporary west. Berkeley: University of California
Press.

Gallup, Jr., G. 8 Castelli, J. (1989). The people’s religion: American faith in the
90’s. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co.

Gilligan, C. (1982). In a different voice. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University
Press.

Gjerde, P. (1995, March). A typological analysis of girls’ personality: A
longitudinal study of developmental pathways. Paper presented at the SRCD,
Indianapolis.

Graham, E. (1996). Making the difference: Gender, personhood, and theology.
Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press.

Greenstein, T. N. (2001). Methods of family research. Thousand Oaks, CA:
Sage Publications.

Grotevant, H. D. (1992). Assigned and chosen identity components: A process
perspective on their integration. In G. R. Adams, T. P. Gullotta, 8 R.
Montemayor (Series Eds), Advances in adolescent development: Vol. 4.
Adolescent identity formation (pp. 73-89). Newbury Park: Sage Publications.

Hall, G. S. (1904). Adolescence: lts psychology, and its relations to physiology,

anthropology, sociology, sex, crime, religion, and education. New York: D.
Appleton 8 Company.

Hampson, D. (1990). Theology and feminism. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.

Hart, 0., Fegley, S., 8 Brengelman, D. (1993). Perceptions of past, present, and
future selves among children and adolescents. British Journal of
Developmental Psychology, 11, 265-282.

Hartman, A. (1995). Diagrammatic assessment of family relationships. Families
in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Human Services, 76(2), 11-122.

198

Hodge, D. R. (2000). Spiritual ecomaps: A new diagrammatic tool for assessing
marital and family spirituality. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 26(2),
21 7-228.

Horst, E. A. (1995). Reexamining gender issues in Erikson’s stages of identity
and intimacy. Journal of Counseling and Development, 73, 271 -278.

Hudson, B. (1984). Femininity in adolescence. In A. McRobbie 8 M. Nava
(Eds), Gender and generation (pp. 31-53). London: Macmillan.

Hyde, J. S. (1996). Half the human experience: The psychology of women.
Lexington, MA: D. C. Heath and Company.

lnsel, P., 8 Moos, R. (1974). Psychological environments, expanding the scope
of human ecology. American Psychologist, 29, pp. 179-188.

Jenkins, K W. (1991). Religion and families. In S. J. Bahr, (Ed), Family
Research. New York: Macmillan.

Johnson, A. G. (1997). The gender knot: Unraveling our patriarchal legacy.
Philadelphia: Temple University Press.

Jordan, J. V., Kaplan, A. G., Miller, J. B., Stiver, l. P., 8 Surrey, J. L. (Eds)
(1991). Women’s growth in connection: Writings from the stone center. New
York: Guilford Press.

Keysar, A., 8 Kosmin, B. A. (1995). The impact of religious identiﬁcation on
differences in educational attainment among american women in 1990.
Journal for the Scientiﬁc Study of Religion, 34, 49—62.

King, U. (1995). Introduction: Gender and the study of religion. In U. King (Ed),
Religion and Gender(pp. 1-38). Cambridge: Blackwell.

Kroger, J. (1992). lntrapsychic dimensions of identity during late adolescence. In
G. R. Adams, T. P. Gullotta, and R. Montemayor (Series Eds), Adolescent
identity formation: Vol. 4: Advances in adolescent development (pp. 122-
143). Newbury Park: Sage Publications.

Kroger, J. (2000). Identity development: Adolescence through adulthood.
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Kroger, J., 8 Green, K. (1996). Events associated with identity status and
change. Journal of Adolescence, 19, 477-490.

199

Lee, J. W., Rice, G. T., 8 Gillespie, V. B. (1997). Family worship patterns and
their correlation with adolescent behavior and beliefs. Journal for the
Scientiﬁc Study of Religion, 36(3), 372-381.

Lorber, J. (1991). Dismantling noah’s ark. In J. Lorber 8 S. Farrell (Eds), The
social construction of gender (pp. 355-369). Newbury Park: Sage
Publications.

Lorber, J. (1994). Paradoxes of gender. New Haven: Yale University Press.

Luhaorg, H., 8 Zivian, M. T. (1995). Gender role conﬂict: The interaction of
gender, gender role, and occupation. Sex Roles, 33, 607-620.

Maccoby, E. E. (1988). Gender as a social category. Developmental
Psychology, 24(6), 755-765.

Markstrom-Adams, C. (1989). Androgyny and its relation to adolescent
psychological well-being: A review of the literature. Sex Roles, 21, 469-473.

McMillan, E. (1991). Voices speak out of fertile silence. In M. E. Rosenblatt
(Ed), Where can we ﬁnd her? Searching for women ’5 identity in the new
church (pp. 68-78). New York: Paulist Press.

Mead, F. S. 8 Hill, S. S. (1995). Handbook of denominations in the United States
(10th ed). Nashville: Abingdon Press.

Metzger, BM, 8 Murphy, R. E. (1994). The new oxford annotated bible. Oxford
University Press.

Miller, J. B. (1991). The development cf women’s sense of self. In J. V. Jordan,
A. G. Kaplan, J. B. Miller, I. P. Stiver, 8 J. L. Surrey (Eds), Women’s growth
in connection: Writings from the stone center (pp. 11-26). New York: The
Guilford Press.

Modell, J. 8 Goodman, M. (1990). Historical perspectives. In S. S. Feldman 8
G. R. Elliot (Eds), At the threshold: The developing adolescent (pp. 93-122).
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Morgan, M., 8 Scanzoni, J. (1987). Religious orientations and women’s
expected continuity in the labor force. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 49,
367-379.

Moshman, D. (1999). Adolescent psychological development: Rationality,
morality, and identity. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

200

Myers, D. G. (1998). Exploring psychology. New York, NY: Worth Publishers.

O’Connor, J. (1995). The epistemological signiﬁcance of feminist research in
religion. In U. King (Ed), Religion and Gender (pp. 45-63). Cambridge:
Blackwell.

Ossana, S. M., Helms, J. E, 8 Leonard, M. M. (1992). Do “womanist” identity
attitudes inﬂuence college women’s self-esteem and perceptions of
environmental bias? Journal of Counseling and Development, 70, 402-408.

O’Brien, K. M., 8 Fassinger, R. E. (1993). A causal model of the career
orientation and career choice of adolescent women. Journal of Counseling
Psychology, 40, 456-469. r

Paludi, M. (1992). The psychology of women. Dubuque, IA: Wm. C. Brown
Communications, Inc.

Patterson, S. J., Sochting, I., 8 Marcia, J.E. (1992). The inner space and
beyond: Women and identity. In G. R. Adams, T. P. Gullotta, 8 R.
Montemayor (Series Eds), Advances in adolescent development: Vol. 4.
Adolescent identity formation (pp. 9—25). Newbury Park: Sage Publications.

Pioneer Clubs. (n.d.) Retrieved October 12, 2001, from
http://www.pioneerclubs.or_'glwhatis.htm

Pipher, M. (1994). Reviving ophelia: Saving the selves of adolescent girls. New
York: Ballantine Books.

Poole, M. E., Langan-Fox, J., Ciavarella, M., 8 Omodei, M. (1991). A
contextualist model of professional attainment: Results of a longitudinal study

of career paths of men and women. The Counseling Psychologist, 19, 603-
624.

Punch, K. F. (1998). Introduction to social research: quantitative and qualitative
approaches. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Rey, L. D. (1997). Religion as invisible culture: Knowing about and knowing with.
Journal of Family Social Work, 2(2), 159-177.

Rosenblatt, M. E. (1991). Agent or icon: Scriptural images and the anthropology

of women. In M. E. Rosenblatt (Ed), Where can we ﬁnd her? Searching for
women’s identity in the new church (pp. 37-52). New York: Paulist Press.

Ruether, R. R. (1992). Sexism and god-talk: Towards a feminist theology. (2nd
ed). London: SCM Press.

201

Russell, L. (1974). Human liberation in a feminist perspective: A theology.
Philadelphia: Westminster.

_ Russell, L. (1985). Authority and the challenge of feminist interpretation. In L.
Russell (Ed), Feminist interpretation of the bible (pp. 137-146). Philadelphia:
Westminster.

Russell, L. (1987). Household of freedom: Authority in feminist theology.
Philadelphia: Westminster.

Spence, J. T. (1993). Gender-related traits and gender ideology: Evidence for a
multifactorial theory. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 64, (4), p.
624-635.

Springhill, J. (1986). Coming of age: Adolescence in Britain 1860-1960. Dublin:
Gill 8 Macmillan.

Steinberg, L. (1999). Adolescence. Boston: McGraw-Hill College.

Taylor, J. M., Gilligan, C., 8 Sullivan, AM. (1995). Between voice and silence.
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Thome, B. (1993). Girls and boys together...but mostly apart: Gender
arrangements in elementary schools. In L. Richardson 8 V. Taylor (Eds),
Feminist Frontiers II! (pp. 115-125). New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc.

Thome, B. (1997). Children and gender: Constructions of difference. In M. M.
Gergen 8 S. Davis (Eds), Toward a new psychology of gender (pp. 185-201).
New York: Routledge.

Unger, R. 8 Crawford, M. (1996). Women and gender: A feminist psychology.
New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

U. S. Bureau of the Census. (1997). Statistical abstracts of the United States:
1997. Washington, D. C.

Waterman, A. S. (1992). Identity as an aspect of optimal psychological
functioning. In G. R. Adams, T. P. Gullotta, 8 R. Montemayor (Series Eds),
Advances in adolescent development: Vol. 4. Adolescent identity formation
(pp. 50-72). Newbury Park: Sage Publications.

Young, P. D. (1990). Feminist theology/christian theology: ln search of method.
Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press.

202

 

 

Young, P. D. (1995). Feminist theology: From past to future. In M. Joy and E.
K Neumaier-Dargyay (Eds), Gender genre and religion: Feminist reﬂections
(pp. 71-82). Waterloo, Ontario, Canada: Wilfrid Laurier University Press.

I

203