Miliann Kang, Associate Professor of Women, Gender, Sexuality Studies
University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
Nahee Kwak, Research Assistant, Smith College ’14, Philosophy & East Asian Studies
Naheekw@gmail.com
I am conducting a study on how Queer Asian American women balance work and family responsibilities and would like to invite you to participate in an interview. While there has been much attention to “tiger mother” parenting, very little data is currently available regarding how Queer Asian American women are actually mothering and balancing the responsibilities of work and family life.
The interview will be completely confidential. Unfortunately, I cannot offer any remuneration, other than the satisfaction of knowing that your participation will potentially help to raise awareness of the particular challenges facing Queer Asian American women and to facilitate workplace practices, policy initiatives, and activism to better serve Queer Asian American women and their families. In addition, you may find the interview itself enjoyable and useful for gaining a deeper understanding of your own experiences and how they compare to other Queer Asian American women.
Anyone who self-identifies as an Queer Asian American woman, including immigrants, permanent and non-permanent residents, U.S. citizens, adoptees and those of multiracial ancestry, is welcome to participate. However, the study mainly focuses on second and 1.5 generation (those who were born in the U.S. or came here at a young age). The study includes single, married, divorced, lesbian and queer mothers and those engaged in both paid and unpaid work. If for any reason you feel uncomfortable answering any of the questions or if they do not apply to you, please skip them. For reasons of proximity, if I am unable to interview in person I may ask you to do a phone interview or fill out a written questionnaire. The interview usually takes 1-2 hours.
This research is being supported by an American Association of University Women Postdoctoral American Fellowship, a grant from the Institute for Asian American Studies at the University of Massachusetts, Boston and a research leave from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. It has been approved by the Institutional Review Board at UMass Amherst.
Please contact my research assistant at naheekw@gmail.com if you are interested in participating. Feel free to forward this invitation to others who may be interested. Following is a fuller explanation of the research project.
Beneath the “model minority” stereotype of Ivy League professionals and controlling “tiger mothers,” little is known about the actual experiences of Asian American women as they move into the workforce, become heads of households, and negotiate ties to ethnic communities and culture. Focusing on these women’s experiences of motherhood, this study’s research goals are:
1) to illuminate the ways that gender, race, ethnicity and class influence the everyday practices of combining mothering and work responsibilities
2) to understand the articulation of individual and collective identities through these practices
3) to reveal common challenges and barriers
4) to identify effective strategies and resources for this emergent group of mothers in the labor force.
Specifically, I investigate the following research questions:
What are the particular social contexts and cultural frameworks that shape Asian American women’s practices and ideologies of mothering? What are the patterns of work-family arrangements in different Asian American households and how do they compare to other racial and ethnic groups? What do Asian American women’s work-family conflicts reveal about exclusion and inequality in contemporary U.S. workplaces and policies?
