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The Role of Women in Public Service as Politicians, Bureaucrats, and
Community Volunteers
A Thesis Presented to
The Faculty of College of Arts and Sciences
Lyceum of the Philippines University
General Trias City
In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree
Bachelor of Arts in Foreign Service
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Ma.. Rica G. Alcuetas
Marjorie Joy D. Maceda
Ma. Jessica T. Mercado
Nicole Ann E. Miel
April 2018
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1: Introduction
A. Background of the Study………………………………………………1-7
B. Statement of the Problem………………………………………………8
C. Theoretical Framework/Conceptual Framework……………………..9-12
Chapter 2: Methodology
A. Research Design…………………………………………………………13
B. Locale…………………………………………………………………….13
C. Description of Participants……………………………………………….14
D. Instrumentation……………………………………………………….14-16
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E. Data Gathering Procedure………………………………………………..16
F. Data Analysis…………………………………………………………16-17
Chapter 3: Results and Discussions………………………………………….18-30
Chapter 4: Summary and Conclusions………………………………………31-33
Chapter 5: Recommendations…………………………………………………34
REFERENCES………………………………………………………………35-37
CHAPTER I
Introduction
A. Background of the Study
Women’s emancipation and liberation have come a long way. The idea
that women should have equal opportunities and social standing with men are
now pervasive in public consciousness. Contributions made by women to society
are innumerable. Important changes in public policies have been led by women
both in and outside politics. Yet there is still a long way to go. There are
challenges facing women hindering the achievement of full equality, especially
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for those in and striving for leadership positions. The increasing participation of
women in the political sphere is helping women achieve parity with men as well
as in advancing women’s interests and social standing. Karp and Banducci (2008)
explored women's political attitudes and engagement in the political process. The
study investigated how the election of women in legislatures across different
countries affected the political engagement of both men and women. It is
observed that female representation positively correlates with attitudes toward the
political process, both for men and women. The study also posits a link between
lower engagements of women in politics with the lack of women in political
posts. Higher levels of women elected in offices are also associated with more
positive evaluations of the democratic process among individuals. On a more
specific level, Konyuncu L. and Subas (2016) analyzed women's political
representation in Turkey by using data gathered from interviews of elected female
mayors across the country. The study posits that representation leads to better
expression of women's interests in the political sphere. The study also implies that
female mayorship, in the case of Turkey, can contribute to gender-equality
particularly at the local-level politics. Before drawing conclusions from this study,
it is important to note that Turkey is relatively a socially conservative country and
the gender gap is still apparent, hence some of the article's presumptions might
not be valid in other countries. Studies have also been made as to how gender
affects policy making. Clots-Figueras (2011) studied the effects of female
representation in the Indian State Legislatures on public policies. The study found
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that gender does play a role in policy-making but socio-economic class should
also be looked at. It is found that female legislators in seats reserved for lower
castes were more in favor of "women-friendly" laws. In contrast, women from
higher castes do not have any impact on these "women-friendly" laws and oppose
redistributive policies such as land reform and social expenditures. Caution
should be taken when drawing conclusions from this study since the Indian caste
system is unique. Nevertheless, it can be said that socio-economic class, as
opposed to gender, is more significant in determining certain political views and
matters and highly influences one's disposition regarding the role of the state.
Women also play significant roles in the political sphere not just as elected
officials but also as part of civil society movements and social struggles and there
are challenges and obstacles they face continually. Eber and Tanski (2001)
examined the potential of women's collective projects and grassroots movements
in the case of Chenalho in Mexico in response to economic crisis. It also details
the obstacles they face and considers the implications in relation to other
marginalized communities facing similar circumstances. Using the case of
Chenalho, the study highlights that rural women play a crucial role in generating
income for their households and communities during economic crisis. Their role
in production is also important to support the development of grassroots economic
alternatives. The experiences of the women's grassroots projects on Chenalho also
highlighted how indigenous communities are continually oppressed through
patriarchal attitudes and structures combined with racism, class exploitation and
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violence. The study highlights how integrating social justice issues with
development goals is crucial in achieving a fairer society. Martin (2014) looked
into the state and nature of women's political leadership in the labor movement in
the American context. Women's contributions to the struggles of the organized
labor movement are very significant yet most leadership positions in unions and
labor organizations have been held by men. Though recent dynamics that are
playing might paint a more optimistic picture when it comes to women holding
leadership positions, the study suggests that there are still structural and
institutional barriers that hinder women to have a larger role. Detrimental
stereotypes such as women being less fit for leadership roles are still pervasive.
Women across societies and cultures still face socio-cultural, even ideological,
obstacles in further advancing as leaders and decision makers. Pynes (2000)
conducted an exploratory study to determine the gender composition of the Nonprofit sector. The study revealed the non-profit sector in the United States is
predominantly a female workforce, with as much as 87% functioning in voluntary
capacities. Despite the predominance of females working in the sector, the sample
of the study revealed that women heading non-profit organizations as chief
executives only outnumber men slightly, but men are predominantly functioning
as
presidents,
treasurers
and
board
members.
Women
are
strikingly
underrepresented in leadership positions with more men functioning in these roles
despite women comprising 77% of the surveyed workforce. However, the study
does not offer an analysis as to why this imbalance occurs as it is only an
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exploratory study. The author suggested a number of possible research fronts in
further investigating the reasons of why women are underrepresented in
leadership roles. Azmi, Ismail and Basir (2012) explored the status of Indonesian
Public Servants in terms of their opportunities, career prospects, motivations and
priorities. The study found that female public servants in Indonesia generally
believe that there are obstacles to further career advancement as most senior and
decision making roles are done by men. These factors are mainly cultural and
based on conservative and patriarchal value systems. However, a significant
proportion believes that women can lead organizations and they are also willing to
devote effort to advance in their careers. The study also noted the importance of
how the Indonesian public service is ensuring that women are represented well.
The authors are hopeful that the remaining gender gap would continue to decrease
in time. In larger group dynamics, Mendelberg and Karpowitz (2016) notes that
formal decision-making groups are extremely common yet women are
underrepresented in such groups. The study focused on how influential women
are in such decision making bodies and investigates women's authority in
leadership roles. The authors argue that women can build influence by being
equally represented in the discussion. They also argue that there is a need for
groups to have a larger proportion of women in order to achieve equal standing
with men. McLaghlin et al. (2017) discussed the different factors that affect a
woman's likelihood to gain positions of power, and the challenges they face once
in power. The authors identified "micro" and "macro" issues that women face in
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achieving parity when pursuing leadership positions. These barriers mainly stem
from pervasive societal values and biases that are disadvantageous to women
when striving for leadership positions. The authors then offered suggestions and
recommendations on how to level the playing field such as pursuing the diversity
agenda. But as they note, individual decisions and motivations are not enough,
institutional biases exists. At the turn of the century, Sobritchea (2000) provided
an overview of the achievements, challenges and prospects of the struggle for
gender equality particularly in Asia. The author emphasized that societies should
focus on enhancing women's role in leadership and decision making to fully
realize women's human development. The author identified key cultural and
societal reasons as to why women have a hard time getting into or staying in
politics, such as traditional gender stereotypes and biases. Politics is viewed as an
extremely masculine endeavor. Various strategies for promoting gender interests
in politics have been implemented by different countries. These include diversity
quotas and other "affirmative action" policies. Some have instituted Gender and
Development (GAD) approaches in development plans. Civil society groups have
also contributed by advocating grassroots and bottom-up approaches in promoting
women empowerment. As a closing remark the author concludes with stating that
participation of women in Asian politics should go beyond targets and quotas.
Human values and relationships must be fundamentally transformed and political
culture must be reinvented to make it more inclusive and participatory for women.
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Women have made and continually make significant contributions to
society. This study embarked on finding out the avenues in which politicians,
bureaucrats, and community volunteers collaborate and converge with one
another. As politicians, civil servants and civil society/community volunteers,
women are helping achieve a fairer and more equal society. Women have had an
increasing share of influence as they become more relevant than ever before.
However, they still face societal and cultural attitudes that hinder them from
developing their full potentials.
Scope and Limitations
This study focused on exploring the perceptions, experiences, and
challenges faced by women who served as politicians, bureaucrats, and
community volunteers in the region of Cavite as well as in the national public
sphere. Data were gathered using semi-structured interviews. Since study is
qualitative in nature, the resulting findings can be subjective and broad
generalizations cannot be made.
Objectives
This study has the following objectives:
1. To explore the contributions of women to the society as public servants
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2. To explore the experiences unique to women serving in leadership capacities in
as public servants and community volunteers
3. To provide an understanding of the different dynamics present when serving as
female public servants and community volunteers
4. To identify if women serving in public service locally experience challenges
unique to their gender in their line of work
5. To determine the avenues wherein women in public service in specific roles
converge in attaining the goal of effective delivery of public services
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B. Statement of the Problem
In exploring the role of women in public service as politicians,
bureaucrats, and community volunteers, the study raised the following questions
to be addressed:
1. What are the major contributions of women to the society as a:
a. Politician
b. Bureaucrat
c. Community Volunteer
2. How do these three roles of women as public servants concur in delivering
services to the public?
3. What are the common challenges that women in public service encounter?
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C. Theoretical Framework
Cultural feminism has the idea of establishing an environment that is free
from the biased traditional values of masculinity, sexism and misogyny. It
upholds the liberalization towards patriarchal system and gives attention to the
women’s abilities instead of their differences with men (Alcoff, as cited in
Bartkowski and Kolmar, 2005). Mary Daly and Adrienne Rich were one of the
first proponents to justify the values and idea of Cultural Feminism which on this
focus is to minimize the imbalance on gender views and differences which was a
trend during the early ‘70s era. The two proponents argue that the essence of the
Cultural Feminism can be viewed through focusing the lens to women. For Daly,
it is men’s insecurity to the innate abilities of women that leads them to the desire
to dominate and take control. As an example, Daly used the gender specific
biological difference of both genders. A man’s barrenness for example may lead
to dependency on the woman’s abilities and energy instead. A woman who was
raised in the culture of patriarchy may have been convinced that their essence as a
woman is what sets their purpose,ability and limitation. They have believed that
the definition of woman lies in the biological aspect of their being but Daly noted
that these factors are rather apparent than real and inessential rather than essential.
Thus, Rich redefined the system of patriarchy and revalued the essence of the
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women to rediscover the essence of both genders that is subjected to gender
reductionism. Rich prophesies from the cultural feminism point of view that “the
repossession by woman of our bodies will bring far more essential change to
human society rather than seizing of the means of production by workers. In such
a world women will create new life and bring forth not only children but the
visions and the thinking, necessary to sustain, console and alter human existence.
Sexuality, politics, intelligence, power, motherhood, work, community, intimacy
will develop new meanings; thinking itself will be transformed.”
Cultural Feminism revalidates women attributes of love, creativity and the
ability to nurture when implied in the public sphere. The theory was used in the
study to explain how these female attributes helped women public servants to gain
leverage and make positive contributions to the society. Furthermore, the theory
served as the basis of the challenges faced by women as public servants in the
performance of their role in the country.
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Conceptual Framework
Women
Politicians
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Women
Bureaucrats
Effective
Delivery of
Public
Services
Women
Community
Volunteers
Areas of coordination
among the three roles
Challenges
encountered in
performing designated
duties
As presented above, the three roles of women in public service represent
the independent variables of this study from which all of the data were obtained.
The dependent variable, the effectivity of the delivery of public services, was
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determined by the fulfillment of women’s duties in the public service sector as
well as the interrelationship among the three roles. The intervening variable, the
(1) areas of coordination among the three roles, and (2) challenges encountered in
performing
designated
duties
served
as
the
determinants
of
the
strengths/opportunities and weaknesses/threats that possibly affected the
realization of the effective delivery of public services.
CHAPTER 2
METHODOLOGY
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A. Research Design
This study used basic qualitative research (BQR) method as its research
design. The BQR method aims to interpret the meaning behind the experiences of
individuals that are socially constructed (Merriam, 2009). Basically, the BQR
method is well-suited for this study because of its objective to discover and
interpret the experiences of women as public servants as well the interrelationship
among the roles that women play in the field of public service, hence are socially
constructed.
B. Locale
The primary locations where the study took place varied according to
where the interviewees are situated. Two politicians were interviewed at the
municipalities of Silang and Magallanes, Cavite, respectively. Two bureaucrats
were interviewed at the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWD) in
General Trias, Cavite and the Civil Service Commission Field Office (CSC) in
Imus, Cavite. One bureaucrat from the Bureau of Immigration was interviewed
via e-mail. Community volunteers were interviewed at (1) Rescue Kabataan
office in Pasig City and (2) House of Representatives in Quezon City.
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C. Description of Participants
Participants of this study were women public servants serving in
incumbent positions at the time when this study was conducted. These
participants were selected through purposive sampling and convenience sampling,
respectively.
Politicians selected for this study were:
(1) Mayor Emilia Lourdes Poblete of the Municipality of Silang, Cavite
(2) Mayor Jasmin Angelli Bautista of Magallanes, Cavite
Bureaucrats selected for this study were:
(1) Jackylin Quibolen-Bonifacio, Immigration Officer, Bureau of Immigration
(2) Ma. Theresa Poblador, Director II, Civil Service Commission Field Office of
Cavite
(3) Rebecca Generoso, Social Welfare and Development Officer, Municipality
of General Trias, Cavite
Community volunteers selected for this study were:
(1) Abegail Mesa, Founding President of Rescue Kabataan
(2) Hon. Emmi de Jesus, Representative of Gabriela Women’s Party and former
Gabriela Volunteer
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D. Instrumentation
The researchers utilized a self-designed semi-structured questionnaire
for the interview participants. Semi-structured questions were used so that the
order of the questions could be changed depending on the direction of the
interview and to prompt the participant to elucidate further if necessary and to
establish his/her own style of conversation. The questionnaires comprised openended questions that would allow the participants to freely express themselves
throughout the course of the interview. The questionnaire designed were validated
by the corresponding panelists as well as the Thesis Adviser. The validated
questionnaire were also sent via e-mail to the respective participants of this study
prior to the actual interviews.The set of questions are as follows:
1. At what particular order of role (as a politician, bureaucrat and community
volunteer) are Filipino women most active and how did you say so?
2. What are the usual challenges these women encounter in the performance of
their role as politicians, bureaucrats and community volunteers?
3. What do you think is the best solution to combat these challenges?
4. How does the government support the Filipino women in performance of their
role in the country?
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5. How does women’s performance of their roles as politicians, bureaucrats and
community volunteers affects or gives an impact to the a.) beneficiaries of
their role b.) particularly the government?
6. From the recent times where women become more active in participating to
progress, what do you think are the major contributions of women to the
society as a:
a. Politicians
b. Bureaucrats
c. Community Volunteers
E. Data Gathering Procedure
This study conducted interviews as its primary sources of data. The
participants were individually interviewed at their respective locations using the
semi- structured questionnaires prepared prior to the data collection. Appointment
letters together with the validated questionnaire were sent via e-mail to the
respective participants of this study. In every interview, the researchers asked
permission to record the interview through mobile phones for accuracy in the data
analysis.
F. Data Analysis
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Data-Gathering
(Interviews)
Corroboration and
validation (Crossreference)
Transcription (Coding
and Developing
Category System)
Summary and
Organization
(Enumeration)
The method for data analysis used for this study is the interim analysis.
Primary sources of data were gathered through interviews. After the interviews,
the voice records underwent transcription. Category system for the activities of
the three roles of women in public service that emerged from the interviews were
built. The results obtained were organized and enumerated based on their
respective categories. Lastly, related literatures were utilized for corroboration
and validation of data gathered.
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CHAPTER 3
Results and Discussions
SOTP # 1: What are the major contributions of women to the society as a:
a. Politician
b. Bureaucrat
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c. Community Volunteer
Research Question No. 1.a. The major contributions of women to the society
as politicians reflect on their “motherly” leadership style and representation
of Filipino women.
A woman political leader tends to conduct herself as a mother to her
people. (see T1#93-94) When a woman rule, she serves her people as that of a
mother to her children. In the study of Merchant (2012), female leaders tend to
assume more of a caretaker role because of their stereotypical role as a caretaker
to their children in the household. However, rather than taking this stereotype
negatively, women tend to use it as a strategy to enhance their public imagery.
Using familiar role as a mother in public serving, women were able to connect
directly to the people of their respective locales. (Adler, 1996, p. 149) This
relationship-oriented leadership style results to a more participative leadership, as
exemplified in the town of Magallanes, Cavite. (see T1#79-82) This is the very
manifestation of the argument of cultural feminists that female attributes
demonstrated in leadership positions could make a positive difference in the
society. Additionally, this paves the way for women to contribute in preserving
Filipino values of strong family ties. Because of women’s motherly leadership
style, they tend to protect every family within the community as part of their
agenda. Because of this, a society becomes inculcated of the importance of
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preserving the family as the basic foundation of society.
(see T1#101-104)
Additionally, women transform the traditional style of leadership demonstrated by
men. Women are very specific and particularistic in every program they execute
in their respective communities. While men respond straightforward to issues,
women tend to be hands-on and keen into details in resolving issues faced by the
people in her community. (see T2#219-221) They conduct a results-oriented
approach in ruling and assure that every services delivered to the public will be
executed with precision. A woman political leader also set a good example to her
administration by exemplifying diligence and meticulousness in her work ethics.
Moreover, women take into account environmental cleanliness. Because women
stereotypically take charge of household duties, they tend to bring that attitude
with them when it comes to crafting policies for environmental cleanliness and
preservation. (see T1#131-135&T2#245-246) Hence, women contribute to a
cleaner and greener environment.
Women as political leaders represent majority of Filipino women,
especially in the grassroots level. Women in elected seats were more active than
men to respond to women’s issues through implementing programs especially for
the benefits of women in the society. (see T1#77-87) This is coherent with the
study of Konyuncu L. and Subas (2016) which posits that representation leads to
better expression of women's interests in the political sphere. A study of Heath
and Taylor-Robinson (2003) found out that women in developing countries
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appear to place greater legislative priority on women’s, children’s and family
issues than men.
Research Question No. 1.b. The major contributions of women to the society
as bureaucrats made a significant impact towards building an efficient and
commendable public service. One of these observable contributions were in
terms of management. As most of our participants would reiterate, women by
nature are mother figures. By women being naturally mother figures it means that
women does not focus on a single matter or body of objectives and familiar
systems but they do as well accommodate whatever comes in their way through
all avenues possible and get into every detail of it on their own if necessary to be
able to respond to the calling immediately. One more thing reflected in our
participants' responses, being women themselves in public service, is that women
are people-oriented and they are more hands-on in management and exemplifies
precision in managing government activities. (see T4#352-356) It was observed
that they were more responsive and engaging to people and their concerns. As
further elaborated by one of our participants, women's competency is known to be
the result of both their hearts and their minds. "It’s because when you want to
connect with the people, your heart and your mind should work together to make
a difference". (see T5#551-553) In John Cookson's Why Women Makes Better
Politicians, former president of Ireland, Mary Robinson attributes this difference
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to the fact that women are more collaborative. "Women are actually more inclined
towards that more modern leadership, which is collaborative problem-solving,
enabling, consultative, not just trying to assert a kind of hierarchical power." Men
may also employ this sort of leadership, but it is distinctly feminine, she says.
This has significantly resulted into more women being appreciated by the mass as
time goes by. Another impact of women in public service according to our
bureaucrats, were its contribution towards building a more diverse management
system and workforce through the growing number of active women in all three
fields of politics, bureaucracy and community volunteerism. (see T3#290-293)
"Achieving greater equality between men and women is the key to making
progress on all development goals (of the government)". (see T3#293-295) One
of the many good things in having the equal participation of both genders in the
workplace is an inclusive and creative responses and ideas in all levels of the
issue. Say for example, in combining both natural gender traits in one activity,
while men are naturally focus and persistent, women on the other hand are
detailed and vigilant of changes and mistakes. The combination might actually be
a power force in achieving something greater. Journal of Conflict Resolution co
author: Mark Boyer in his 2001 gender study also revealed that "as more women
become actively involved in political decision-making, both the process and the
types of interactions may change. Diversity in gender will thus bring with it
diversity in viewpoints". Clearly, the growth of the number of women being
active in all three levels of noble activities has resulted into a significant
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campaign towards championing equality or gender diversity most specifically in
public service. (see T3#299-304) It is important to also realize that appreciating
and supporting women participation in public service means supporting equal
representation of society in the given fields.
Research Question No. 1.c. The major contributions of women to the society
as community volunteers show encouragement and representation to women
and most efficiently help the government on delivering public services.
Women community volunteers inspire and motivate people to engage in
volunteerism or encourage people to contribute, whether big or small, to the
society. (see T6#749-751) They serve as role models especially to the younger
generations to follow their footsteps and to not limit themselves. Volunteers
inspire people to burst out their inner desire of caring and serving for the country
and do volunteerism from their hearts. Women community volunteers also
influence policymakers or serve as machinery for policymakers to address
problems of women in the grassroots level. By volunteering, women are easily
recognized by people in the position in the government and through this; female
volunteers are able to voice out women who are incapable to do so or those who
are in the grassroots level. (see T4#369-372) Their priority is to make programs
that are designed for women and to bring their problems into the public forum.
Volunteerism empowers women through their participation and increased
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opportunities in socio-economic engagements. By engaging in local level
decision-makings, women leverage themselves and through this they are
empowered because this is where they enlarge their spaces where they can voice
out themselves. Hence, volunteerism potentially contributes to women
empowerment and advanced gender equality (United Nations Volunteers [UNV],
2015). Lastly, women community volunteers efficiently deliver public services
through coordination with the government’s agendas. Volunteers actually make
the job of the people in positions in the government easier because volunteers and
the government have common agenda; they voluntarily do what are also assigned
to people in positions in the government. (see T6#728-731) As stated by
Stephenson (2017), volunteers contribute to public service by enhancing and
improving services of staffs of the government.
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SOTP # 2. How do these three roles of women as public servants concur in
delivering services to the public?
Research Question No. 2: The ways in which the three roles of women as
public servants concur in delivering services to the public are enumerated in
the diagram below.
Women Politicians
Passionate towards
public serving
Naturally meticulous
and exemplifies
precision in every
task and mission
Women Bureaucrats
People-oriented and
results-oriented
Establish an open
environment
Women Community
Volunteers
Inspired by other
women in their fields
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The most noticeable characteristic that women possess in the three public
service roles is their passion and enthusiasm in their respective fields. All women
agreed that it is the heart that drives them to accomplish their mission and deliver
public services in the most efficient ways. Politician participants of this study
expressed their passion in public serving through carrying their motherly
attributes into the public and treating their people as if they were their children in
a vast household. Bureaucrats, on the other hand, agreed that in performing such
roles in the government workforce, a civil servant must be kind-hearted and
public-spirited to establish teamwork in the government service and connect with
the people effectively. Community volunteers also agreed to the same notion that
the passion towards volunteerism must be strong enough to be able to make a
difference to the society and for future generations to be encouraged to embark on
altruistic works courageously. Second, female public servants are innately
meticulous they are all keen into details and does not allow what only approves
but what is the best as it is made up of her people’s time, her people’s money, her
people’s hardwork. In short, nothing shall go to waste. Third, female public
servants are people-oriented and results-oriented when it comes to their duties.
People feel much more comfortable when addressing their concerns to women
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leaders
whether they are politicians, bureaucrats and community volunteers.
This is because women in all fields are naturally hands-on to every concerns and
reliable when it comes to accomplishing the mission that were entrusted to them.
They also see to it that every program was delivered as planned and the outcomes
would produce substantial difference in the lives of the people. Fourth, women
politicians establish an open environment. As women, they feel all the possible
concerns around, so they don’t built walls but tries to establish instead a
community that where people can easily approach and express because that is the
best way to perform their role, to hear its purpose and the areas where it needs
response. Fifth, women look up to their fellow women in their respective fields.
Women’s excellence and drive is also inspired by other women. Everyone look up
to someone being women who know other excellent women in their fields. And
the more women lead and work for public sector the more it raises the campaign
and belief in women, their rights, their abilities, their privileges and the treatment
they deserve (e.g laws, doctrines, cultural notions) Lastly, women public servants
get pumped by doubters. The more people doubt the ability of women to do their
role in public service, the more women strive to prove them wrong and it does not
just prove the doubters but also maintain their services well.
SOTP #3. What are the common challenges that women in public service
encounter?
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Research Question No. 3. The common challenges that women in public
service encounter are time management, gender stereotyping, and
establishing influence.
There are many challenges a female politician may encounter in the
performance of their role. Given the nature of politics, most female politicians are
not just public servants but are mothers too. In this case, a female politician would
have to juggle while thriving in excellence and commitment in public service and
motherhood although the given situation is not anew with female politicians. (see
T1#31-34) Magallanes, Cavite Municipal Mayor, Hon. J. Bautista would share the
same challenge as a female politician and a mother. Being the first female mayor
of the municipality of Magallanes, a millennial and a new mother, she recalled
one of her struggles as to how she would be able to manage her time for her
family specifically for her infant while keeping up with the demands of her job in
the executive office. She added, with her given situation, it was also inevitable for
some people to doubt her ability and performance in public service which she has
been trying to prove wrong.
Beside the existing idea of gender gaps and differences in public service,
female politicians also share an internal and personal challenge in the
performance of their role. That is having to prove to themselves that they are
really capable and deserving of their position despite societal judgments and
impressions to female politicians. (see T2#183-187) Municipality of Silang,
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Cavite mayor, Hon. Emilia Poblete shares that female politicians nowadays are
still confronted with the idea that “we have to prove ourselves” to all the men
dominating the political structure where they were included.
Although the Philippines rose four places to rank 13 (0.416) in the political
empowerment indicator in the 2017 Global Gender Index, participants of the
research has still something to conclude with the issue of gender bullying in the
Philippine politics. One of the female politicians who participated in the research
explained that it is easier to bully women in politics compare to men. (see
T2#189-191) In a strong political competition in a government, gender bullying or
intimidation is an apparent case which perhaps maintains the bias view on gender
performance in public service.
In the bureaucracy, women continually experience gender biases in the
workplace. Balancing household duties and public serving is the major challenge
for women holding administrative positions. (see T3#273-277) Because of this,
they would have to prove that they were capable enough in the government
workforce sector. While women politicians use stereotyping to their advantage,
women bureaucrats see stereotyping as a negative norm when it comes to public
service. Venturing into a field wherein male species took dominance of is a huge
challenge for women to advance their careers in the government because of
persistent stereotyping and discrimination. (see T5#461-464) This is coherent to
the study of Azmi, Ismail and Basir (2012) wherein it was found that female
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bureaucrats in Indonesia believe that there are barriers to further career
advancement as most senior and decision making roles are being entrusted to men
and that cultural and patriarchal value systems hugely contribute to such barrier.
In community volunteerism, being a female community volunteer, the first
challenge to arise is money. Volunteers actually use their own money to push
their advocacy and vision. A volunteer find it hard to continue their vision and
advocacy if, practically, they lack money for support of their programs and
missions. (see T6#602-606) Another one that Ms. Abegail Mesa mentioned is the
challenge of finding and recruiting people who will support her advocacy and
vision as a community volunteer. As Halley (2015) stated, recruiting volunteers
and retention is the biggest issue in volunteerism. It is a big challenge to find
consistent and active volunteers that are willing to engage to tasks and
assignments to accomplish things to be done, also, managing conflicting ideas
among volunteers is an issue too. The challenge revolves around the question of
“What makes them stay?” Nowadays, people only want to join if they will
benefit. Given the fact that volunteerism is a selfless act, it is also a challenge for
a female community volunteer to recruit people without expecting a return of
income and also, people who engage with volunteering feel to give up easily
especially when they see that they are the only ones continuing the advocacy. It is
quite hard to convince people to join with volunteerism and very devastating for a
female community volunteer to see and feel that no one wants to join her with
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volunteerism. Related to this is the challenge of avoiding people with hidden
agendas. Some might show lots of interests with your advocacy in volunteerism
but along with them are their hidden agendas and that kills the vision. Another
challenge for a female community volunteers is the process of addressing
women’s problems to influence policymakers to push for legislation that can
serve the majority of Filipino women. (see T7#820-824) Ms. Emmi De Jesus
stated that, with Gabriela, it is a challenge for them to bring forth laws addressing
the issues the majority of Filipino women. The process of influencing
policymakers to make laws regarding a community volunteer’s advocacy is not
too easy.
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CHAPTER 4
Summary and Conclusions
The study aimed to know the major contributions of politicians,
bureaucrats and community volunteers to the society, how these three roles of
women concur in delivering services to the public and the common challenges
those women in public service encounter. The study used basic qualitative
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research (BQR) method as its research design and the theory of Cultural
Feminism which mostly based in the value of “female essence” and/or “female
nature” which attempts to revalidate women attributes which gives greater
emphasis on greater cooperation, closer relationships, peace and deep
understanding. The primary locations where the study took place varied according
to where the interviewees are situated. This study focused on exploring the
perceptions, experiences, and challenges faced by women who serve in some
level of leadership capacity. Participants for the study were chosen based on their
roles as politicians, bureaucrats and community volunteers serving in the region
of Cavite as well as in the national sphere. Participants were women public
servants serving in incumbent positions at the time when this study was
conducted. These participants were selected through purposive sampling and
convenience sampling, respectively. The researchers utilized a self-designed
semi-structured questionnaire for the interview participants. The questionnaire
was validated by the corresponding panelists as well as the thesis adviser. This
study conducted interviews as its primary source of data and related literatures as
its secondary source of data. The method for data analysis used for this study is
the interim analysis and related literatures were utilized for corroboration and
validation of data gathered. The study revealed that the major contributions of
women to the society (1) as politicians reflect on their “motherly” leadership style
and representation of Filipino women, (2) as bureaucrats, they make a significant
impact towards building an efficient and commendable public service and (3) as
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community volunteers, they show encouragement and representation to women
and most efficiently help the government on delivering public services. It also
revealed that the ways in which the three roles of women as public servants
concur in delivering services to the public are; (1) women politicians, women
bureaucrats and women community volunteers are all passionate towards public
serving, naturally meticulous and exemplifies precision in every task and mission,
people-oriented and results-oriented. They all establish an open environment, they
are inspired by other women in their fields and they are all faced by people’s
doubt on their abilities as women. Lastly, it also revealed in the study that the
common challenges that women in public service encounter are time
management, gender stereotyping, and establishing influence.
As a conclusion, women in public service have contributed a lot towards
the societ. Embracing their female attributes is a key factor in responding to their
callings and proving that they are capable enough to serve the public. By being
particularistic in nature, women fill the gap that men seem to overlook at--providing services that would reach out every single individual in the community
by means of prioritizing issues that affect those in the ground level. Women
politicians seem to take advantage of gender stereotyping, whereas bureaucrats
were still affected negatively by such practice. Women in community
volunteerism on the other hand, experience no discrimination so far while at
work, which is why women volunteers are rising to prominence as emerging
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voices. Women volunteers serve as mechanism to doors to further women’s
participation in the society.
It was also revealed that despite the existing
stereotypes and challenges that women face in the performance of their roles as
public servants, it does not hinder their passion and enthusiasm in delivering
public services. Furthermore, there are avenues that the three roles converge with
one another and the most significant of these is that they all concur in delivering
services that would be wide-reaching and would produce long-term impacts for
the benefit of the future generations.
CHAPTER 5
Recommendations
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The researchers strongly recommend that the government will continue to
extend its support for women in the performance of their role in public service.
This particularly calls for an action towards political gender prejudice or bullying,
acts supporting women in pursuing roles or careers in public service and more
opportunities that will pave way for an active women participation in the society.
The researchers also suggest that the government critically asses and closely
monitor the number of women who are in the field of public service particularly
in politics and bureaucracy to assess the impact and efficiency of the current
available support for the women in the country and figure the possible root cause
of the gap beside the tangible factors common employment factors such as
compensation, distance and the likes.
The researchers also call for the society to help support every women and
men in the performance of their role in the public service through perceiving an
individual’s capabilities, competency and capacity to commit regardless of their
gender. The researchers also encourage women to take initiative and actively
participate in public service and take advantage of the opportunities and support
provided by the government and the system that we have for women in the
society.
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