Full Description
This book explores the social, educational and linguistic acculturation of a group of Saudi wives and mothers sojourning in New Zealand while their husbands undertook full time study. Such sojourners, and their families, are faced with many challenges due to linguistic, social and cultural distance - as well as ethnic stereotyping and prejudice. They tell their stories in a series of interviews and focus groups, relating their pre-sojourn background, the challenges they faced and the changes they made during their sojourn, and their preparation for returning home post-sojourn. The narratives illustrate how these women renegotiated their own identities in relation to their changed circumstances and environment. The authors address the distinctive challenges faced by sojourners as opposed to immigrants, and present a nuanced and detailed picture of the women as individuals negotiating the complex interaction between the influence of the host country and the Saudi and Islamic identities of themselves and their children.
Contents
Glossary
Esra Yaghi: Preface
Part 1: The Background of the Book
Chapter 1. Adjusting to a New Culture
Chapter 2. Saudi Arabia: Religion, Culture and the Role of Women
Chapter 3. Saudi Mothers Sojourning in New Zealand: A Case Study
Part 2: The Mothers Tell Their Stories
Chapter 4. The Participants' Lives in Saudi Arabia
Chapter 5. The Participants' Initial Experiences in New Zealand
Chapter 6. Maintaining Children's Arabic Language and Religious Identity
Chapter 7. The Women Adapt Through a Community of Social Practice
Interlude: Focus Groups
Part 3: The Mothers Discuss Their Beliefs
Chapter 8. The Participants' Beliefs about Parenting
Chapter 9. Comparing New Zealand and Saudi Arabia
Chapter 10. Looking Towards Repatriation
Part 4: The Authors Reflect on the Study
Chapter 11. Discussion of the Findings
Chapter 12. Two Conceptual Models
Chapter 13. Implications of the Study
Gary Barkhuizen: Afterword: Coping Over Time
References
About the Authors
Index
