The purpose of this study was to explore the meaning of power for 36 disadvantaged women. Interview responses were coded for moral orientation (care, justice), self-definition (connected, separate) and relational context, as well as examined for themes of power. Analyses did not support the expectation that the majority of disadvantaged women would experience power as a care orientation. Moreover, being employed or a mother did not moderate a woman's view of power as justice or care. As expected, women were more likely to describe relational rather than non-relational power experiences. Identified power themes were consistent with those found by other researchers but several new themes were also identified. Dominant themes were: power is legitimized by a woman's role and power is destructive when used in a negative way.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Attanuci, J.
(1988) `In Whose Terms: A New Perspective Oneself, Role, and Relationship', in C. Gilligan, J.V. Ward and J.M. Taylor (eds) Mapping the Moral Domain. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
2.
Barnes, B.
(1988) The Nature of Power. Oxford, UK: Polity Press.
3.
Belenky, M.F.
, Clinchy, B.M., Goldberger, N.R. and Tarule, J.M. (1986) Women's Ways of Knowing: The Development of Self, Voice, and Mind. New York: Basic Books.
4.
Boyes, M.C.
and Petersen, M.L. (1991) `Connected and Separate Orientation in Self-conceptualization', Unpublished Manuscript, Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary.
5.
Brown, L.M.
and Gilligan, C. (1993) `Meeting at the Crossroads: Women's Psychology and Girls' Development', Feminism & Psychology3: 11-35.
6.
Cowan, C.P.
, Cowan, P.A., Heming, G., Garrett, E., Coysh, W.S., Curtis-Boles, H. and Boles III, A.J. (1985) `Transitions to Parenthood: His, Hers, and Theirs', Journal of Family Issues6: 451-481.
7.
Eichenbaum, L.
and Orbach, S. (1988) Between Women. New York: Penguin.
8.
Gallos, J.V.
(1989) `Exploring Women's Development: Implications for Career Theory, Practice, and Research', in M.B. Arthur, D.T. Hall and B.S. Lawrence (eds) Handbook of Career Theory. New York: Cambridge University Press.
9.
Gigy, L.
(1980) `Self-concept of the Single Woman', Psychology of Women Quarterly5: 321-340.
10.
Gilligan, C.
(1982) In a Different Voice: Psychological Theory and Women's Development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
11.
Gilligan, C.
(1990) `Teaching Shakespeare's Sister: Notes from the Underground of Female Adolescence', in C. Gilligan, N.P. Lyons and T.J. Hanmer (eds) Making Connections: The Relational Worlds of Adolescent Girls at Emma Willard School. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University.
12.
Gilligan, C.
and Attanuci, J. (1988) `Two Moral Orientations', in C. Gilligan, J.V. Ward and J.M. Taylor (eds) Mapping the Moral Domain. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
13.
Gilligan, C.
, Rogers, A. and Tolman, D. (1992) Women, Girls, and Psychotherapy: Reframing Resistance. New York: Haworth Press.
14.
Gilligan, C.
, Ward, J.V. and Taylor, J.M. (1988) Mapping the Moral Domain. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
15.
Grossman, H.Y.
and Stewart, A.J. (1990) `Women's Experience of Power over Others: Case Studies of Psychotherapists and Professors', in H.Y. Grossman and N.L. Chester (eds) The Experience and Meaning of Work in Women's Lives. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
16.
Guttman, D.L.
(1985) `The Parental Imperative Revisisted: Towards a Developmental Psychology of Adulthood and Later Life', in J.A. Meacham (ed.) Family and Individual Development. New York: Karger.
17.
Helson, R.
, Elliot, T. and Leigh, J. (1990) `Number and Quality of Roles: A Longitudinal Personality View', Psychology of Women Quarterly14: 83-101.
18.
Hinman, S.
and Bolton, B. (1980) `Motivational Dynamics and Disadvantaged Women', Psychology of Women Quarterly5: 255-275.
19.
Hochschild, A.
(1989) The Second Shift: Working Parents and the Revolution at Home. New York: Viking Penguin.
20.
Johnston, K.D.
(1988) `Adolescents' Solutions to Dilemmas in Fables: Two Moral Orientations-Two Problem Solving Strategies', in C. Gilligan, J.V. Ward and J.M. Taylor (eds) Mapping the Moral Domain. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
21.
Kaplan, A.G.
(1986) `The "Self-in-Relation": Implications for Depression in Women', Psychotherapy23: 234-242.
22.
Lemkau, J.P.
and Landau, C. (1986) `The "Selfless Syndrome": Assessment and Treatment Considerations', Psychotherapy23: 227-233.
23.
Levinson, D.J.
(1978) The Seasons in a Man's Life. New York: Knopf.
24.
Lyons, P. N.
(1983) `Two Perspectives: On Self, Relationships, and Morality', Harvard Educational Review53: 125-145.
25.
Margolis, D.R.
(1989) `Considering Women's Experience: A Reformulation of Power Theory', Theory and Society18: 317-416.
26.
McClelland, D.C.
(1975) Power: The Inner Experience. New York: Irvington.
27.
Miller, B.J.
(1976) Toward a New Psychology of Women. Boston: Beacon Press.
28.
Miller, B.J.
(1982) `Women and Power', Work in Progress Paper 82-01. Wellesley, MA: Wellesley College, Stone Center for Developmental Services and Studies.
29.
Perkins, R.E.
(1991) `Women with Long-term Mental Health Problems: Issues of Power and Powerlessness', Feminism & Psychology1: 131-139.
30.
Polk, B.B.
(1974) `Male Power and the Women's Movement', Journal of Applied Behavioral Science10: 415-431.
31.
Pratt, M.W.
, Golding, G., Hunter, W. and Sampson, R. (1988) `Sex Differences in Adult Moral Orientations', Journal of Personality56: 373-391.
32.
Rosen, L.N.
, Ickovics, J.R. and Moghadam, L.Z. (1990) `Employment and Role Satisfaction: Implications for the General Well-being of Military Wives', Psychlology of Women Quarterly14: 371-385.
33.
Skoe, E.E.
(1991) `A Measure of Care-based Morality and Its Relation to Ego Identity', Merrill-Palmer Quarterly37: 289-304.
34.
Sturdivant, S.
(1980) Therapy with Women: A Feminist Philosophy of Treatment. New York: Springer.
35.
Walker, L.J.
, deVries, B. and Trevethan, S.D. (1987) `Moral Stages and Moral Orientations in Real-life and Hypothetical Dilemmas', Child Development58: 842-858.
36.
Wallerstein, J.
(1986) `Women After Divorce: Preliminary Report From a Ten Year Follow-up', American Journal of Orthopsychiatry56: 65-77.
37.
Weber, M.
(1954) Max Weber on Law in Economy and Society. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
38.
Weitzman, L.
(1985) The Divorce Revolution, the Unexpected Social and Economic Consequences for Women and Children in America. New York: Free Press.
