Read:Intercultural Communication and Religion PDF Textbook Communication Between Cultures CH 3 pp. 97 – 150Arranged (1 hour 30 min) to be viewed Thursday, March 7th (90 minutes)In an APA style essay, please use the reading assigned and the attached file from the fiu library.Discuss the film “Arranged” and the impacts on the lives of the
family members and the elements of each individual’s right to love who
they choose.ReferenceAnnabi, C. A., McStay, A. L., Noble, A. F., & Sidahmed, M.
(2018). Engaging with Arranged Marriages: A Lesson for Transnational
Higher Education. International Journal of Educational Management, 32(2), 284–297. Retrieved from http://http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ1169891&site=eds-live (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.Arranged Marriage_IJEM-03-2017-0065.pdf
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International Journal of Educational Management
Engaging with arranged marriages: a lesson for transnational higher education
Carrie Amani Annabi, Amanda L. McStay, Allyson Fiona Noble, Maha Sidahmed,
Downloaded by Florida International University At 19:47 04 March 2019 (PT)
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Carrie Amani Annabi, Amanda L. McStay, Allyson Fiona Noble, Maha Sidahmed, (2018) “Engaging
with arranged marriages: a lesson for transnational higher education”, International Journal of
Educational Management, Vol. 32 Issue: 2, pp.284-297, https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEM-03-2017-0065
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IJEM
32,2
Engaging with arranged
marriages: a lesson for
transnational higher education
284
Carrie Amani Annabi
School of Social Sciences, Heriot-Watt University Dubai, Dubai,
United Arab Emirates
Downloaded by Florida International University At 19:47 04 March 2019 (PT)
Received 17 March 2017
Revised 29 May 2017
1 June 2017
Accepted 1 June 2017
Amanda L. McStay
School of Management, Heriot-Watt University Dubai, Dubai,
United Arab Emirates
Allyson Fiona Noble
Heriot-Watt University Dubai, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and
Maha Sidahmed
School of Social Sciences, Heriot-Watt University Dubai, Dubai,
United Arab Emirates
Abstract
Purpose – High levels of absenteeism have been observed amongst male students attending two
transnational higher education (TNHE) institutions in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). One reason offered is
an obligation to attend engagement ceremonies. Many ceremonies are linked to arranged marriages.
The purpose of this paper is to contradict assumptions that suggest that higher education reduces arranged
marriages, and to highlight that university policies overlook cultural nuances.
Design/methodology/approach – Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 25 male postgraduate
students aged between 22 and 45. Content analysis was used to analyse and interpret the data.
Findings – Several interviewees chose to have an arranged marriage and some saw their postgraduate
studies as an opportunity to have a better chance of securing a wife. Equally, several students felt that
university policies were unsympathetic to cultural obligations.
Research limitations/implications – This research was restricted to male students from two TNHE
institutes in the UAE.
Practical implications – This research provides insight for TNHE managers by providing student-centric
research into cultural reasons that prevent student attendance.
Social implications – TNHE is not fully responsive to familial obligations within collective societies.
In consequence, there has been a lack of sympathy within policies regarding students’ requirement to fulfil
cultural commitments.
Originality/value – The paper explores the challenges of creating culturally sensitive educational policy
and practices.
Keywords United Arab Emirates, Research paper, Education policy, Transnational higher education,
Arranged marriage, South Asian men
Paper type Research paper
International Journal of
Educational Management
Vol. 32 No. 2, 2018
pp. 284-297
© Emerald Publishing Limited
0951-354X
DOI 10.1108/IJEM-03-2017-0065
Introduction
Often the notion of arranged marriage is seen in western cultures as a predominantly
Islamic construct. However, arranged marriage is a cultural conceptualisation that also
includes Christianity, Hinduism and Jainism, and features strongly in South Asian societies
(Bowman and Dollahite, 2013). This paper adds value because it looks at male students’
attitudes where, typically, female attitudes are most often sought.
As educators, we noticed that both male and female students often took time off mid
semester in order to attend family ceremonies. This led to the current study which provides
empirical data from two transnational higher education (TNHE) institutions that draws on
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the knowledge that students often provided documentation regarding their obligations to be
present at engagement ceremonies.
However, in this paper, we examine the attitudes and beliefs towards education and
arranged marriages of 25 postgraduate male students aged between 22 and 45 attending
two TNHE institutions in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The research draws on detailed
interviews examining the students’ attitudes towards and experiences of contemporary
relationships, and whether these attitudes and experiences result in a bias, either for or
against, assisted, or arranged matrimonial practices. The paper considers whether
possessing a TNHE academic degree is believed by students to provide enhanced status for
matrimony. Alternatively, does it encourage a different conception that challenges the static
vocabulary around arranged or assisted marriages? In turn, this raises the question of
whether education could potentially provide male students with a new social awareness that
challenges parental influences and cultural interpretations.
This paper offers a pragmatic examination of male student experiences in TNHE that
can feed back into policy making. This practical exercise does not purport to provide
theoretical implications. Rather, it is a reasonable exploration in response to the observed
behaviour around student absenteeism and the link between this and engagement
ceremonies. Any attempt to create a theoretical construct from this initial research would
lead to a crude model that would not serve these results well. Instead, we argue that policy
makers need to be attuned to a variety of intercultural needs and not apply a one-size-fits-all
policy code.
Following our brief critique of representations of non-western arranged marriages, this
paper explores the expectation of knowing an arranged marriage may be a future reality,
and how this affects the educational experience within TNHE. Focusing specifically on the
realities surrounding male student expectations, the men were asked to consider their views
on relationships, and whether these views had been re-evaluated in the light of their
university experiences. Interviews also explored whether educational policy supported the
cultural expectations set by arranged marriages. In so doing, a mismatch in students’
attitudes and educational policy was identified that might affect student motivation and
academic performance. In order to understand this mismatch, we first need to acknowledge
the geographical context of this study.
The private international university branch campuses based in the UAE differ from the
local federal universities in terms of gender segregation. In the former, education is
conducted in mixed gender classes, while the government universities have segregated
classes. Often TNHE institutions are not registered with the local Ministry of Higher
Education and Scientific Research and instead are licensed by a separate authority that
governs the quality of private education in the UAE. These licensing authorities use the
standards adhered to by the home country campus as the preeminent governing factor.
There has been criticism in the past that TNHE does not meet specific country or cultural
requirements, and this needs to be acknowledged if TNHE managers want to attract
diversity amongst students. Even at the most basic level, the TNHE institutions based in the
UAE only make small adjustments in consideration of being based in an Islamic country.
However, they are less responsive to the fact that approximately 85 per cent of the
residential population are expatriates, and the largest cohort living and studying in the UAE
are Indian nationals estimated in 2015 to be 27.15 per cent of the overall population
(The World Fact Book, 2016). These ratios are mirrored in the national profiles of students
attending TNHE institutions.
McStay (2016) noted a strong western influence on UAE’s tertiary education sector, and
recommended that the western-based parent campuses needed to enhance consultation and
build greater awareness of the cultural differences in their branch campuses, both in terms
of the country they were operating in, and developing a better understanding of the needs of
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the students and staff. Pyvis (2011) provided a commentary on challenges for quality
assurance in TNHE and had recommended that TNHE should incorporate policies, practices
and goals that foster educational diversity. He noted that “the pursuit of ‘sameness’ is in
contradiction of the preservation of diversity” (p. 741). The operationalisation of cultural
standards should incorporate the “perception, thought, judgement and actions which are
considered normal, generally accepted by, typical of and binding on a certain culture”
(Holzmüller and Stöttinger, 2001, p. 607). O’Mahony (2014) conducted a study of issues
within TNHE which showed that one of the largest challenges was related to cultural issues,
and that this included cultural relevance in governance (e.g. quality control and local
regulatory systems).
Types of marriage
At a simple level, marriage can be broadly defined in terms of two forms of marriage: either
“love” or “arranged” marriages. “Love” marriages tend to be more of a western construct,
where partners are free to choose each other (Munshi, 2014), whereas a traditional arranged
marriage is one that has been organised by the family on behalf of the couple (Bowman and
Dollahite, 2013). There is also much written about arranged marriage and romance
(e.g. Mody 2008; Jamieson, 2011) but the emphasis in this paper falls on male responses to
arranged marriage in the context of understanding its broader linkage to educational
timetabling and ethos as opposed to crafting a deeper sociological understanding of
intimacy. It is intended that future research will develop those themes.
Prevalence and characteristics of arranged marriages
In terms of prevalence, “arranged marriages have existed for millennia, and are widely
instituted among many cultures around the world” (Bowman and Dollahite, 2013, p. 207).
Arranged marriages are a common feature in South Asia (Ahmad, 2012; Allendorf, 2013;
Myers et al., 2005), the Middle East (Alsuwaigh, 1989; Nasser et al., 2013) and Africa
(Munshi, 2014). This is further confirmed by Harkness and Khaled (2014, p. 589) who state
that “marriages in which spousal choice is arranged by parents or other family members
have long been normative in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia”. Alsuwaigh (1989) noted
that a new, hybrid version of “semi-arranged marriage” has been growing in popularity,
whereby the couple may originally find their spouse but only marry them with the joint
approval of both families. Arranged marriages are not just between the couple, but also
between their two respective families; therefore, it is important that the process considers
the “interests of the individuals concerned against the needs of the families as a whole”
(Hense and Schorch, 2013, p. 107). The authors reported that in arranged marriages, the
families choose the criteria which they deem to be precursors for successful lifelong
relationships; love does not play a significant role in the selection criteria. Typically,
the couple are of the same caste and religion (Allendorf, 2013). It is not unusual for the
couple to only meet a few times before the nuptials (Allendorf and Ghimire, 2013).
Arranged marriage dichotomy and its reflection of collective societies
Early writing on marriage seemed to promulgate that love marriages for those from South
Asian backgrounds presented a “struggle between tradition and modernity” (Harkness and
Khaled, 2014, p. 589). This dichotomy has been depicted through the lenses of western and
Eurocentric biases, which portray this form of matrimony as “duty-bound systems that
suppress individual freedoms and subjugate women” (Ahmad, 2012, p. 194). Little has been
researched from the point of view of the groom. However, it is important not to get drawn
into an individualistic account of marriage, or lose sight of the situated cultural practices in
which arranged marriages are negotiated.
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India provides a rich backdrop against which to understand the multifaceted and
culturally diverse examples of arranged marriages. Despite divergent cultural and
religious ideological differences that shape expectations of arranged marriages, Juvva and
Bhatti (2006) noted that these variations are bridged to an extent by the fact that India,
comparative to western societies, is much more collectivist. Part of this collectivism
manifests itself through the respect given to the older generation. In turn, young single
adults expect their parents and future in-laws to have a strong influence over the choice of
marriage partner. Hense and Schorch (2013) acknowledged that most often it is the
mothers who scout for potential spouses on behalf of their children. Ahmad (2012)
emphasised the importance of mothers in the process of partner selection, and discovered
that mothers were more amenable to their daughter’s choice when the daughter held an
academic degree. There is little written on the fathers’ role in arranged marriages
(Hense and Schorch, 2013). Indeed Jennings et al. (2012) acknowledged generally a lack of
research on paternal influence in arranged marriage in comparison to a larger number of
studies on maternal influence.
Religion and marriage
The power that women potentially hold within the role of mother or mother-in-law in the
decision-making process of arranged marriages cannot be decontextualised from religious
doctrine. For example, marriage is viewed as both obligatory and sacramental in Hinduism.
This concept creates a union between both families, as marriage is considered a lifelong
commitment (e.g. Allendorf and Ghimire, 2013; Banerjee, 1984; Majupuria and Majupuria,
1978; Pothen, 1989). Divorce is not permissible in Hinduism nor is the remarriage of a widow
or inter-caste marriage (Pothen, 1989). Hinduism also provides guidance on hierarchy
relating to gender and respect for elders (Banerjee, 1984).
In Islam, marriage is regarded as a foundation for society and is governed by Islamic law
(Shariah) which provides conduct guidelines for both men and women in relation to protocol
and practices (Kamali, 2008). Ahmed (2013) attested that “there is relatively little written
about the evolving dynamic of the Muslim marriage process, particularly in a modern
Western context” (p. 4). In her study of second-generation Asian Muslims in the UK,
she contended that the first-generation Asian Muslims are keen to uphold arranged
marriage traditions against a sea of change. This echoes Ramadan’s (2004) earlier reportage
of increased tensions between first-generation and subsequent Asian Muslim immigrants
with regard to preserving Asian cultural Islamic heritage in non-Asian environments.
There is a perception that Christian marriage belongs to a western construct of “romantic
love”, which would be less likely to promote arranged marriages. However, arranged
marriages among Christians in India are widespread, even if they are bound by a different
constitutional framework. The British-Indian administration enacted the Indian Christian
Marriage Act of 1872, which regulated and solemnised Christian marriages in India
(Desai, 1972). This legislation extended to all of India, with the exception of some territories.
For example, marriages amongst Christians in the former State of Cochin are governed by
the provisions of the Cochin Christian Civil Marriage Act of 1920, and there is no statute
regulating marriages among Christians in some other states, e.g. Kashmir and Manipur,
where, instead, customary or personal law takes precedence (Lijphart, 1996).
Dowries
Dowries are part of the organising principles within arranged marriages. These payments
are essentially the “transfer of wealth made by the family of the bride to that of the groom at
the time of marriage” (Munshi, 2014, p. 4). Dowry payments are common in South Asia
(e.g. Anderson, 2007; Botticini and Aloysius, 2003; Caplan, 1984; Rozario, 1998;
Waheed, 2009).
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In an Indian context, despite the Indian Dowry Prohibition Act of 1961 (Desai, 1972) the
dowry system is still widely practiced, and according to Anderson (2003), the transfer of
wealth from the bride’s family to the groom’s is on the rise. In an earlier paper, Rao (1993)
noted that the actual amounts that transfer between families have increased in the
latter part of the twentieth century – a trend that he dubs “dowry inflation” (p. 283). This
inflationary trend also correlates with higher education, where grooms command a higher
price if they have a university degree. Munshi (2014) affirmed that the educational
attainment of a groom helps differentiate him from his competition. Munshi (2014)
highlighted that dowry payments were particularly prevalent within the Protestant
Christian community of South India.
Munshi (2012) had earlier reported that within the Muslim community, the level of dowry
increases where there is a shortage of eligible grooms resulting in the pool of prospective
brides widening. This in turn means that educational attainment becomes a significant
differentiator between men. The practice of grooms receiving dowries prevails in Muslim,
Christian and Hindu communities throughout Southeast Asia (Munshi, 2012, 2014).
This differs from the practice of providing dowries in Arab-centric cultures, whereby it is
the bride who commands the dowry (Coulson, 2011).
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