Religious, Social, and Family Influences in the Socialization of Arab Muslim Women

Abstract

The study is an examination of religious, social, and family influences in the socialization of Arab Muslim women. It deals primarily with urban, middle class women of Palestinian, Egyptian, and Kuwaiti backgrounds as observed during the author's two-year stay in Kuwait and on shorter trips to Beirut, Cairo, and Amman. Extensive use of the relevant literature and interviews with Arab women from different backgrounds provided added information. Some of the differences and similarities between the urban society of the author's experience and the more extensively-studied, traditionally-oriented rural and village areas are discussed. Special attention is given to acceptable avenues of change existant in the society which have often gone unnoticed by researchers. An attempt is also made to contrast the author's observations with the view of Arab women often encountered in the literature and in the popular stereotype. It is suggested that a more dynamic and comprehensive perspective, attuned to the variations and complexities of societies in the Middle East, would be of value in future research on the area.