Journal of Development and Social Sciences

Role of Stereotype Threat, Leadership Aspiration and Work from Home in Gender Gap in Leadership: A Study of the Higher Education Institutions of Pakistan

2023-03-22T11:14:40+05:00

This study examines the underrepresentation of women in leadership positions in Pakistani higher education institutions (HEIs), where women hold only 4.5% of leadership positions. Despite comprising nearly half of the population and labor force, women tend to pursue teaching careers due to domestic and caregiving responsibilities. Male faculty members predominantly occupy leadership positions in HEIs, which creates stereotype threats and obstacles for female faculty members. The COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the situation by increasing domestic and family responsibilities for women. The study used a quantitative, cross-sectional design to collect data from 329 Ph.D. female faculty members working in Pakistani HEIs. The findings offer insights into individual and organisational factors impacting the gender gap in leadership positions and suggest potential remedies to increase the number of women in leadership positions in Pakistani HEIs.

Academic Optimism: A Study of Secondary School Teachers’ Perceptions

2023-03-22T11:23:09+05:00

Teachers' positive conviction demonstrates that they can influence students' classroom, learning, and academic performance by putting their trust in their parents and cooperating with them. It is highlighted by believing their capabilities to overcome the hurdles and retort to failure with resilience as well as perseverance. The present research study was carried out to investigate the state of academic optimism as well as the relationship between its various aspects. The research makes a theoretical, managerial, or academic contribution. 1266 secondary school teachers were chosen at random from 216 Government Secondary Schools in Punjab. With permission, the Academic Optimism Survey was adapted. Pilot testing was used to ensure the instrument's validity and reliability. Data were collected in regularly scheduled meetings. To examine the data, descriptive as well as inferential statistics were employed. The ethics of research were followed. Teachers were found academically optimistic both at teachers and schools level. They confirmed the presence of academic optimism as well as its sub factors in the schools. A positive relationship was observed among collective efficacy, faculty trust and academic emphasis. There was no significant difference in academic optimism based on demographic variables. Without a doubt, school administrators may make wise choices regarding the adoption and implementation of best practices in their institutions. They might use the knowledge in the professional development programs.

Exploring the Teachers’ and Students’ Perceptions Regarding the Impact of Innovative Technologies on Quality Education

2023-03-22T11:25:13+05:00

This study has been conducted under the Interpretivist paradigm as the inquirer’s intent was to explore the phenomenon in depth. The university teachers (six) and the undergraduate students (Twelve) have been selected purposively for the study. The students were enrolled in the BS Education (Semester-VII) whereas the teachers were those who were teaching to the aforementioned classes. A Semi-Structured interview protocol has been developed and used by the inquirer for the purpose of the data collection. The instrument has been validated through the experts’ opinion before its actual administration to the participants. The collected data has been analyzed with the help of Thematic analysis. On the basis of the results, it is concluded that the teachers feel that incorporating innovative technology into classroom is very beneficial for engaging students and students pay more attention with the help of innovative technologies. Similarly, the students expressed that incorporating innovative technology into classroom is very beneficial for making lectures interesting and engaging.

Portrayal of Gender in Contemporary Fiction by Female Novel Writers

2023-03-22T11:42:13+05:00

Differences between the Sensory and Behavioral Problems of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder before and after Pandemic Condition of Covid-19: Fathers’ Perspective

2023-03-22T11:46:11+05:00

Autism is a severe disability, and it is one of the pervasive developmental disorders that have many mysterious signs, yet it remains the least understandable but has lifelong effects on the individual. The major objectives of the study were to know the occurrence of sensory and behavioral problems before and after COVID-19 perceived by fathers, 2) know the differences based on the locality of the respondents. The type of research was quantitative. 50 fathers residents of rural and urban areas were selected as a sample of the study by using purposive sampling technique from Lahore and Faisalabad. Researchers have developed a Likert-type questionnaire consisting of two domains, sensory and behavioral domains. Each domain consisted of 22 questions to elicit the responses from the sample. Researchers used the same instrument for knowing before and after covid-19 sensory and behavioral problems of children with autism spectrum disorder, after the pandemic condition of covid-19. The collected data revealed that Sensory problems after COVID-19 ( x ¯ 92.060) are higher than the mean of Sensory problems before COVID-19( x ¯ 64.74). The behavior problems after COVID-19 (x ¯ 83.1800) is higher than the behavior problems before COVID-19( x ¯ 57.880). There is a rise in the severity of the problem after COVID-19.

Teachers’ Perception of Different Leadership Styles of Head Teachers in Public Girls’ Secondary School District Kech

2023-03-22T11:51:53+05:00

This research aimed to investigate the perceptions of teachers towards the various leadership styles practiced by head teachers in public secondary schools of the district Kech, Baluchistan. The study had two main objectives: firstly, to explore how teachers perceive their head teachers' leadership styles, and secondly, to identify the different leadership styles employed by female head teachers in public secondary schools in the Kech district. A quantitative approach using a descriptive survey design was utilized to conduct the research. The population consisted of 19 public girls' secondary schools, 19 head teachers, and 146 female secondary school teachers. The research sampled 9 female head teachers and 100 female teachers from 9 respective schools, selected through a random sampling technique. The data was collected using Likert scale (5 points) questionnaires, and analyzed using descriptive statistics. The findings suggest that the adoption of democratic leadership styles has a positive and significant impact on teachers' perceptions of their head teachers' leadership effectiveness.

Wadudia School and Swat Museum: Lost Heritage of Swat

2023-03-22T11:54:10+05:00

In the last decade, two significant buildings of the swat state’s era were deteriorated and damaged due to natural and man-made disasters, the wadudia school and swat museum. This paper aims to document, analyze and compare these events and subsequent reconstruction of these buildings. Conservation and preservation of built heritage is the collective responsibility of the state and citizens, due to its role as a valuable resource for present and future generations. Heritage buildings not only contain the material evidence of their time but carry itself the long history. This research used a case study as the primary research method combined with a descriptive research method. This study emphasizes the basic consideration for the protection and conservation of numerous heritage sites and buildings of the swat region. This is high time to consider built heritage as assets and resources, for their long-listed benefits including economic educational, and cultural tourism.

Gendering Advertisements: A Comparative Study of Pakistani Print Media Semiotic Discourses

2023-03-22T11:59:29+05:00

Print media advertisements are one of the most influential means of propagating a desired ideology to the target audience. The present study attempts to decode critically representation of Fe / male genders through the advertisements of two Pakistani daily newspapers, Dawn and Jung. The time span for data collection ranges from 1st June to 30th June 2022. The data has been analyzed by employing Kress and Hodge's (2010) model of social semiotics. This model focuses on the analysis at linguistic and semiotic levels. It finds that percentage of female representation in the advertisements is higher than male representation. The males and females have been shown in the advertisements of banking and finance, education, showbiz and media, and real-estate business. It contends that word picture conjunction works effectively in propagating desired ideologies. Therefore, the study concludes that genre of advertisement is one of the best sites for ideological investment.

Exploration of Organizational Trust Posed by the Heads in Teachers at College Level

2023-03-22T12:01:39+05:00

The purpose of the study is to explore teachers’ organizational trust at college level. The study is descriptive in nature and survey method was used. The teachers of Govt. degree colleges from province Punjab are the target population of the study while the teachers working in degree colleges in three divisions are the accessible population. Multistage sampling technique was used to select the sample for this study. At first stage three divisions were selected while at the second stage, sample of 50% of the total 352 colleges from accessible population i.e., 176 colleges were taken from the given divisions. The next stage, 5 teachers from 176 colleges were selected for data collection. A questionnaire on five points Likert scale was developed to measure organizational trust level of the teachers that they perceive to have from the principals in three areas i.e., their competence, credibility, and sharing information. The descriptive statistics were used for the analysis of collected data. On the basis of findings, it was concluded that majority of overall college teachers perceived to have had moderate organizational trust from their institutions heads and there was no significant difference in the overall trust level as well as different factors (competence and to share information) among male and female teachers. On the basis of conclusions, it was recommended that Principals have low level of trust in teachers’ competence and credibility, may arrange professional trainings and mutual discussion and reflections between teaching staff for enhancing mutual trust.

Portrayal of the ‘Other’: Tracing the Linguistic Imperialism in English Textbooks of Matric and Intermediate

2023-03-22T12:06:05+05:00

The notion of linguistic imperialism analyzes the dominance of the language used by the powerful over other languages of the world. This linguistic imperialism endangers the other indigenous languages of the world and promotes the myths about the necessity of learning English language. It also tends to promote Western ideologies and culture. The present study has focused on the ways English language has imperialized the education system of Pakistan and the ideological and cultural objectives of English-speaking countries. The data, for the current study, consists of English text books for Matriculation and Intermediate to evaluate their role in moulding the young minds and also the use of different linguistic devices that are employed in the books to influence the cultural ideologies and lifestyles of Pakistanis. Phillipson’s Linguistic Imperialism (1992) serves as a theoretical background for thematic analysis of the texts. The findings reveal that the prevalence of linguistic imperialism in the selected textbooks not only enhances the influence of English speaking people but also promotes their socio-cultural ideologies.

An Acoustic Study of the Role of Consistency of Input in Acquisition of English Central Vowels in Pakistan

2023-03-22T12:07:38+05:00

The study is aimed at observing the effect of consistency of input on the acquisition of English central vowels /ə/, /ɜ:/, /ʌ/regarding jaw opening (correlated with F1), tongue fronting (correlated with F2) and Duration of vowels. This is a quasi-experimental research that has a frame of ‘pre-test-post-test control-group’. The researcher took three intact class groups, at middle level from a public girls school, and assigned them to experimental groups and control group. Experimental Group A was consistently exposed to English RP based audios/videos for 60 consecutive days. Experimental Group B was inconsistently exposed to input in alternative days adding up to 30 days. Control group C was not given treatment of any kind. The target central vowels were embedded into / hvd/ syllables in the carrier phrase ‘say --- please’ as a stimuli. Each phrase was recorded five times in pre-test and five times in post-test adding up to twenty seven hundred tokens of English central vowels. FormantPro (Xu, 2013) software was run to obtain average values of F1, F2, and Duration of vowels of each participant. The results of the data show that central vowels of group A, particularly vowel sound /ʌ/, are significantly affected by consistent exposure to RP vowels contrary to the central vowels of group B and group C. This study recommends consistent exposure of input for effective acquisition of English phonology related to administrative and pedagogical practices.

Evaluating the effects of Demographic Factors of Head Teachers towards Awareness of Punjab Education Code at Secondary School Level

2023-03-22T13:15:30+05:00

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of demographic factors of head teachers towards awareness of Punjab education code at secondary school level. The study was quantitative in nature. For this purpose, self-developed questionnaire was used to collect the data. Stratified Random sampling was used for the selection of the sample in this study. The samples of this study were 160 head teachers, 100 from district Lahore and 60 from district Okara. The data generated by instrument were tabulated and analyzed through statistical package of social sciences (SPSS). Mean analysis, independent sample t-test and one way ANOVA on data were applied, and effects of demographic factors of head teachers towards awareness of Punjab education code were explored. The results of this study showed that the most of head teachers had average level of awareness about Punjab Education Code; they responded marginally correct to the rules of Punjab Education Code. There were found no significant effects of demographic differences of head teachers on their awareness about Punjab Education Code. The results of this study were supported by some of the findings reported in earlier studies while contradiction with some studies did exist.

“If A Vine does not produce Fruits and Flowers, People throw it away” The Discursive Construction and Negotiation of Stigma related to Childlessness in rural Pakistan

2023-03-22T13:23:27+05:00

Being childless is an unbearable condition for women in the pronatalist Pakistani society and has a prominent place in community dialogues. Childless women bear the brunt of childlessness. These women face stigma expressed in community members’ talks. This study presents a discourse analysis of community members’ thoughts on childless women. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and observations and analysed using a social-constructionist approach to discourse analyses. Four interpretative repertoires -childlessness as the will of God, childless women as worthless, or as ill-boding women and a medical repertoire are prominent in the community. These repertoires are used in different contexts to both stigmatise and destigmatise childless women. This study focused on the views of different stakeholders with both a direct and an indirect link with childlessness, such as childless women, their partners, older women, and healthcare providers in the community. We plea through this study that community members should be sensitised about possible stigmatising behaviour with childless women. More research should be conducted to find out the medical reasons of childlessness in the area.

The Prevalence and Relationship between Tolerance and Life Satisfaction in Male and Female Multiple Sclerosis Patients in Peshawar, Pakistan

2023-03-22T18:39:42+05:00

The study evaluated the prevalence and relationship between tolerance and satisfaction in patients with Multiple Sclerosis in Peshawar, Pakistan. Tolerance affects MS patients due to psycho-somatic aspects and its satisfaction with life. Correlational and convenient sample technique has been used. Ninety MS patients’ data is collected, and the Tolerance for disagreement scale and satisfaction with Life scale were used to analyze the level of tolerance and satisfaction in MS patients. 35 males and 54 females were selected for research. The participants' mean age is 33.4%; their mean of tolerance for disagreement is 40.33; and their average level of life satisfaction is 15.03. Tolerance for disagreement had a significant relationship with Satisfaction with Life. Therefore, satisfaction with life affecting the tolerance for disagreement in a MS patients. This study indicated that Tolerance for disagreement and Satisfaction with Life is correlated; as tolerance decreases, satisfaction will automatically decrease. Satisfaction level is effective in enhancing tolerance for disagreement. Psychologist and counselors need to work on MS patient’s mental wellbeing by addressing Life satisfaction and tolerance level.

Evaluating Effects of Gender, Education and Age on the Identity of People Who Stutter

2023-03-24T09:54:42+05:00

Adult onset stuttering is a condition that refers to a stutter where an adult who has previously shown age-appropriate communication skills suddenly starts facing dysfluency in his speech. Previous studies assert that those who stutter are more likely to experience the negative psychological and emotional impacts of stuttering on their identity. Interaction between a person who stutters (PWS) and others around him comes together to develop PSW’s identity. This study examined how PWS’s gender, education and age affect the CSI constructions using the Concealable Stigmatized Identity (CSI) constructs. Salience, centrality, and disclosure were the factors against which the relation of gender, age and education was examined. The study concluded that the relationship that gender and age have with three constructs of CSI remained insignificant. However, education has a significant relationship with the constructs.