The sexual division of labor : the impact of organizational change upon group cohesion and the creation of occupational identity

Authors

Robert M. Bossarte, Florida International University

Document Type

Thesis

Degree

Master of Arts (MA)

Major/Program

Global and Sociocultural Studies

First Advisor's Name

Stephen Fjellman

First Advisor's Committee Title

Committee Chair

Second Advisor's Name

Hugh Gladwin

Third Advisor's Name

Lois West

Date of Defense

7-28-1999

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to identify the impact of recent organizational change upon the culture of firefighting.

The experiences of female firefighters were utilized as a measure of cultural change. A purposive sample of twenty-seven male and female firefighters were interviewed in a semi-structured format about their experiences in the fire service.

This research found that the culture of firefighting has adjusted to the presence of previously excluded groups by forging a division among the identities and roles of male and female firefighters. The white, male firefighters, who have traditionally constituted a majority of the workforce, have continued to identify with traditional firefighter roles and reported high levels of cohesion. In contrast, the female firefighters showed a greater variance in their identification with traditional roles and decreased levels of cohesion with the main body of the group.

Identifier

FI14051803

Comments

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Recommended Citation

Bossarte, Robert M., "The sexual division of labor : the impact of organizational change upon group cohesion and the creation of occupational identity" (1999). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 1773.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/1773