Work-life Conflict Causes Challenges for Women

Serving in Emergency Response Roles

Problem Statement

The family make-up and dynamic has changed significantly over the past twenty decades and women are serving as head of households. Medvednotes 40% of U.S women, a 30% increase from 1960,are primary earners in households with children (as cited in Wang, Parker & Taylor, 2013).

Additionally, more women are in previously predominantly male occupations such as Emergency Medical Services (EMS), firefighting, police force and now in emergency management roles.

When women in these head of household roles are in these essential personnel or responder roles, finding a balance between the requirement to be on scene and ensuring their families are safe is proving to be a difficult challenge.

Men find it difficult to need to respond to and after a disaster. A woman serving as head of their household will have more of a challenge with those same excuses and reasons as their male counterparts.

Women in roles that require their presence during emergencies or disasters are finding that their support needs are different than their male counterparts, adding to, having to battle the attitudes of those that are less understanding of the new family dynamic.

Agocs, Langan& Sanders (2015) argues that police mothers, based on the little research that does exists, navigate "challenges because of social expectations that inevitably come into play once their "mother" identity is known" (Agocs, Langan& Sanders (2015, P. 266).

Women are expected to choose between work and family. Research will show that support from employers could benefit from a little more compassion of the new family dynamic.(Something needs to go here).

Provide a one- to two-paragraph statement that is the result of a review of research findings and current practice and that contains the following information:

1. A logical argument for the need to address an identified gap in the research literature that has current relevance to the discipline and area of practice. Keep in mind that a gap in the research is not, in and of itself, a reason to conduct research. Make sure to clarify the problem that led you to the gap.

2. Preliminary evidence that provides justification that this problem is meaningful to the discipline or professional field. Provide three to five key citations that support the relevance and currency of the problem. These references need not all be from peer- reviewed journals but should be from reputable sources, such as national agency databases or scholarly books, and should ideally be from the past 5 years.

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to investigate the challenges women employed in emergency response roles are facing by serving as the sole caregiver and financial supporter of the family during events that require their response.

This information is valuable to policy development and administrative activities that require emergency planning with regards to families of women personnel that will be first responders. This position is the concern that stress or worry could lead to mistakes while on duty during emergencies or disasters and if those mistakes or stress could be mitigated by employer understanding and proper planning.

Present a concise, one-paragraph statement on the overall purpose or intention of the study, which serves as the connection between the problem being addressed and the focus of the study.

In qualitative studies, describe the need for increased understanding about the issue to be studied, based on the identified gap or problem.

Significance

This study will contribute to the filling of the gap existing in literature about the need to prepare for head of household women to not choose between their obligated duties to the public and to their families
Provide one or two paragraphs, informed by the topic in the problem statement, that describe the following:

1. How this study will contribute to filling the gap identified in the problem statement: What original contribution will this study make?

2. How this research will support professional practice or allow practical application: Answer the So what? question.

3. How the claim aligns with the problem statement to reflect the potential relevance of this study to society: How might the potential findings lead to positive social change?

Background

Research indicates that during hurricane Katrina, first responders whose families were affected experienced stress and anxiety due to playing the role of the first responder and the role of a senior (?) family member.

Families of first responders are critical during evacuation and emergency response efforts because they may face various complexities that may also deter the first responder from effectively responding to emergency work due to development of anxiety.

In another study, Smith 2013 illustrates that it is well acknowledged that first responders may face the difficulty of separation of the emotions that arise out of their jobs from personal life issues.

Provide a representative list of scholarship and findings that support and clarify the main assertions in the problem statement, highlighting their relationship to the topic, for example, "this variable was studied with a similar sample by Smith (2013) and Johnson (2014)" or "Jones's (2012) examination of industry leaders showed similar trends in the same key segments." Some of these resources may have already been mentioned in the first sections of the prospectus and can be included here, also.

Framework

In one paragraph, describe the theoretical/conceptual framework in the scholarly literature that will ground the study. Base this description on the problem, purpose, and background of your study. This theoretical or conceptual framework informs, and is informed by, the research question(s) and helps to identify research design decisions, such as the method of inquiry and data collection and analysis.

Research Questions

Research Questions: In qualitative study inquirers state research questions, not objectives (i.e. specific goals for the research) or hypotheses (i.e. predictions that involve variables and statistical tests). (C., 2003, p.105)

RQ 1

RQ 2

RQ 3

List the question or a series of related questions that are informed by the study purpose, which will lead to the development of what needs to be done in this study and how it will be accomplished. A research question informs the research design by providing a foundation for

• generation of hypotheses in quantitative studies,

• questions necessary to build the design structure for qualitative studies, and a

• process by which different methods will work together in mixed-methods studies.

Nature of the Study

Using one of the following terms as a subheading; provide a concise paragraph that discusses the approach that will be used to address the research question(s) and how this approach aligns with the problem statement. The subheadings and examples of study design are as follows:

Qualitative-for ethnography, case study, grounded theory, narrative inquiry, phenomenological research, policy analysis, or other qualitative traditions

Possible Types and Sources of Data

Provide a list of possible types and sources of data that could be used to address the proposed research question(s), such as test scores from college students, employee surveys, observations of a phenomenon, interviews with practitioners, historical documents from state records, deidentified medical records, or information from a federal database. Sources of information that support and clarify the problem belong in the Background section.

Methodology

The most logical research trajectory would be grounded theory, offering an explanation to concerns affecting women that work in emergency response roles while acting as head of their household.The appropriate methodology for this study will be use of interviews.

The rationale for interviews is to draw in-depthanalysis and information on the opinions, feelings, and perceptions women responders with regards to the safety of their families. Feelings about how an employer reacts or responds to essential personnel is becoming all too real in the hiring decision making process.

Possible Analytical Strategies

Offer some possible ways to organize and analyze the results obtained by the research strategies detailed previously. A few examples of possible analytical strategies include multiple regression, content analysis, and meta-analysis. Keep in mind that data analysis approaches are generally decided after the research question and data collection approach are settled, so your strategy here may evolve and change as you develop your proposal.

Other Information

Include any other relevant information, such as challenges or barriers that may need to be  addressed when conducting this study.

References

On a new page, list your references formatted in the correct style (sixth edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association)