STUDENT NURSES JOURNEY THROUGH GENDER ROLE SOCIALIZATION IN HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT: A QUALITATIVE EXPLORATION IN PAKISTAN

Abstract

Purpose: This qualitative study analyses how young student nurses internalize gendered roles during their professional socialization in health care system.

Design/methodology/approach: Through a phenomenological lens, this research employs in-depth interviews with 25 nursing students from 5 major public hospitals of Lahore. This study utilizes NVivo-14 software for inductive thematic analysis to comprehensively analyze the nursing perceptions about their gender role socialization. Theoretical insights from Judith Butler’s gender performativity, Foucault’s knowledge-power dynamics, and feminist objectification theory frame the findings. In the culturally complex healthcare context of Pakistan, gender role expectations significantly shape the experiences and self-perceptions of nursing students.

Findings: The findings reveal central themes from various perspectives on nursing students’ journey. Gender role socialization happens from the point of view of personal concerns, societal challenges and institutional management exposure that they experience in public health sector of Lahore. The diversified themes are (1) the personal negotiation of “becoming an ideal nurse-mother” as aspiration following gendered norms (2) the social normalization on “ethos of good-modest girl” provides emotional labor due to societal expectations (3) the education offers scripted “femininity of serving lady” who avoids confrontation under cover lack of encouragement, (4) the health care management demands as “economy compensated caregivers” placement of nurses as under weak leadership and (5) the clinical setting appreciate “silence to patriarchal voices” under organizational hierarchies, reinforcing a submissive identity.

Practical implications: This research highlights how socialization processes in nursing reinforce gender hierarchies, thus impacting care quality and student retention. The study recommends gender-sensitive reforms in nursing pedagogy and leadership to promote equity, empowerment, and professional dignity in healthcare settings.

Originality/value: To the best of authors’ knowledge, this groundbreaking research describes sole perspective of nursing students from being just a student to qualified nurse.