Male Bedouin Social Workers in Israel

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine gender perceptions within the Bedouin community in Israel, particularly the perception of masculinity among male social workers of the community. These men work in a field in which most of the employees are women, and their professional values conflict with the values of Bedouin culture and society. The research employed a qualitative methodology in the phenomenological tradition. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from 20 male Bedouin social workers aged 40–54, all married and fathers. The interviews revealed their struggle to accommodate both their personal and professional masculinity and their society’s traditional view of masculinity. This complex dichotomy is manifested in the different behaviour of the social workers within their society and in their personal and professional spaces.

IMPLICATIONS

• Respecting or honouring local knowledge is important for social workers in all contexts.

• Bedouin social workers integrate two types of values and principles—those of social work and those of their local culture—that are equally important and that present a fascinating ethical challenge for them.

• Recognising native knowledge is an important aspect of a social worker’s education.

本文旨在考察以色列贝都因社区的性别观感，尤其是其中男性社会工作者对男子气的认识。这些男子在一个雇员多为女性的领域中工作，他们的专业价值与贝都因文化和社会的价值产生冲突。本研究采用现象学传统的定性方法，对20位40至54岁之间、皆已婚并为人父的贝都因社会工作者做了半固定访谈 。访谈显示，他们努力适应个人及行业的男子气，以及社会对男子汉的传统观念。这样复杂的分裂表现为社会工作者在社会中以及在个人及行业空间里的不同行为。

KEYWORDS:

• Gender Perceptions
• Bedouin Community
• Male Social Workers
• Personal Masculinity
• Traditional Masculinity

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.