Dear Mr Goh, I am Wina, a year 4 Sociology Student from NTU and is doing a Final Year Project on the influence of unemployment on male and married Singaporeans. The reason why I am interested to do a research study on unemployment in Singapore is because during the recent summer internship, I did a research on the ways Singaporeans PMEs search for jobs and found that there are many vulnerable mid-career PMEs out there who have lost touch on various job search skills as they did not prepare themselves for job loss. Also, i understand that unemployment among the PMEs will increase in the near future and it is a subject worth in-depth research. I was attached to CaliberLink set up by WDA to help enhance the job search skills and employability of the PMEs in Singapore. I have spoken to a number of male PMEs during my research and found that most of them lack family support during their period of unemployment due to the expectations the traditional patriarchal gender roles have of them which is to provide financial support for the family. However, it is difficult for the male PMEs to seek for support in society due to the self-esteem issues. As such, my current research seeks to explore more of this aspect of the impact of unemployment. When i was researching on the issues of unemployment in Singapore, your support site transitioning.org/ emerged the top search in Google and i have been following it for the past few weeks. Kendrick, my colleague at a tuition center, knows you personally and says that you have been helping the unemployed in Singapore for a good cause and i hope that you can be part of this research :) Below is the detailed information of my research for your kind perusal: Title of project The influence of unemployment upon the construction of masculinity of male, married and unemployed fathers in Singapore in the context of dual-earners family. The sociological definition of masculinity in this context is concerned with the social construction of what it means to “be a man” with the study of social roles and meanings of masculinities in relation to social institutions such as the family in society (Kimmel, 2014). Research questions 1) What is the influence of unemployment upon the construction of masculine identities of male, married, unemployed PMEs fathers in Singapore? 2) How do the States policies and discourses about unemployment and the PMEs family expectations influence (or not) the male, married and unemployed PMEs constructions of masculinities? 3) How does family play a part in the construction of masculine identity of the unemployed? 4) What improvements can be made to the current policies or programmes that can help the married PMEs fathers during their unemployment period?Research significance. This research aims to show how existing programs or policies in Singapore for the unemployed could be refined or improved to address the emotional and mental issues that unemployment creates for the PMEs’ constructions of their masculinities and fatherhood. The issues faced are mostly due to the social stigma (Letkemann, 2002), lack of emotional support and financial insecurities (Watson, 2012) face by the unemployed married men during their job search process (Strier, 2014). Research subjects Age: 35-55 (midlife career individuals) Number: 20 married and unemployed fathers with employed wives Participants’ period of unemployment- Short Term Unemployed (Less than 6 months unemployed)- Long Term Unemployed (More than 6 months unemployed) Interviewing period: 14th October to January 2015 Duration of interview: 30 minutes to 1 hour To ensure anonymity of the participants and the organization, the final research paper will not include the names of the participants and the organization and pseudonyms will be used to protect the identity of the participants. Interview procedures 1) I will make known to the interview subjects that the participation in the research is voluntary. 2) The interview will be audio recorded and they will be deleted permanently after the research. No other copies will be stored and duplicated for other uses. 3) The subjects are free to refuse to answer any of the interview questions during the interview. 4) The subjects are free to withdraw from the interview at any time. 5) The subjects could withdraw their data for the research at any point of time. Examples of interview questions 1) What do you think of the Singapore State’s policies designed to help the unemployed in Singapore? What are the differences between the help for different groups of people, men and women in particular? 2) How have the Singapore state played a role in affecting how you view your masculine identity during your period of unemployment? Relations with family and friends 1) What do you think of the family’s role in the construction of masculine identities and fatherhood? 2) What do you think of your relations with your family members nowadays? 3) What do you think of your relations with your friends and ex-colleagues nowadays? Gender roles 1) What do you think are the gender roles and values expected in Singapore’s society? 2) Do you think that your wife has taken the role of the “breadwinner of the family” now after you are unemployed? If no, why? If yes, why? Individual 1) What are your experiences of being out of job thus far? 2) What does being a man mean to you? How has being out of job influence the way you view yourself and others around you? Improvements 1) What improvements do you want to see with respect to gender expectations in Singapore? 2) What improvements do you want to see with respect to the current policies and programmes for the unemployed fathers in Singapore? Attached is the information for which you can help to distribute to your clients if you agree to participate in this research :) All the information of the participants will be kept confidential and i will not release any names during and after the research. I am also looking forward to have a one-to-one meet up with you if possible to discuss issues pertaining to unemployment in Singapore. Look forward to your reply! :) Best regards, Wina
Posted on: Thu, 09 Oct 2014 07:25:52 +0000
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