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Exploring occupational gender‐role stereotypes of male nurses: A South African study
Author(s) -
Rabie Tinda,
Rossouw Lizelle,
Machobane Bandile F.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
international journal of nursing practice
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.62
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 1440-172X
pISSN - 1322-7114
DOI - 10.1111/ijn.12890
Subject(s) - emic and etic , psychology , qualitative research , social psychology , sociology , social science , anthropology
Aim The aim of the study was to investigate stereotypes of occupational gender roles about male nurses, as viewed from both emic and etic perspectives. Background Male nurses are a minority group in health institutions. Stereotypes have been questioned regarding these males' occupational role and presence in the nursing profession. Design A qualitative description design was used. Methods During 2016, semi‐structured interviews ( N = 30) were conducted with male nurses ( n = 10) (emic group), female nurses ( n = 10) and discharged patients ( n = 10) (etic groups) from four public hospitals. Results Seven categories with respective themes and subthemes emerged. Three categories were captured for emic groups, namely, existing stereotypes, experiences of stereotyping and the influences of stereotypes on work performance. Four categories emerged for etic groups, namely, treatment preferences, types of stereotyping towards male nurses, origin of stereotypes and effects of stereotypes. Conclusion Positive and negative stereotypes were reported by both emic and etic groups, with etic groups revealing more stereotypes. Effort should be made by both management in the practice environment and the media to counter the stereotyping of male nurses.