Listening to the Whispers: Female Faculty and Work Environment in Universities of Southern Punjab, Pakistan

Abstract

This research explored the experiences of female university teachers regarding the culture of work environment in public sector universities of Southern Punjab, Pakistan. Findings are drawn through the questionnaire including six main dimensions of the workplace. The respondents ranked the factors under each dimension. The analyses of calculated ranks for factors lead to identify two main categories: tangible and intangible or elusive factors. The higher ranks for the tangible factors are indicators of the priorities of female university teachers while the lower ranks of the intangible factors exhibit the discomfort of female teachers. The female university teachers face conservative gender norms, male dominance, obstacles to be self-reliant and limited opportunities for active participation in research, academic, administrative activities. The results do not completely validate the prevailed impression of the exhortative work environment for female university teachers.