LE3 .A278 2014

2014

Abramson, Zelda

Acadia University

Bachelor of Arts

Honours

Sociology

Sociology

This study explores the social bonds and sense of community defined by gender in a maritime air force base. More specifically, through four semi-structured interviews, I examine whether: 1) female social bonds in the Air Force are similar to those of male bonds, and; 2) do women and men experience the sense of community building and social support network in the same way. The theoretical frameworks that shape my research are Erving Goffman’s (1964) stigma-theory followed by Rosabeth Moss Kanter’s (1977) tokenism. I argue that friendship and sense of community is an essential component to understanding gender integration in the Canadian Air Force. I pay particular attention to two key themes emerging from my results: experiences of friendship, and degrees of social bonding and friendship. Within each of these themes additional sub-themes were identified: age/generational differences, power dynamics in social interactions related to military ranking, gendering of labour in maritime air force culture, and spectrum of function and endurance in Air Force friendship. Despite continuous progression of gender integration, my research revealed varying degrees of verbal or non-verbal negative attitudes towards enlisted women. These findings underscore that there is still much work to be done in the Canadian air force to achieve full gender integration.

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https://scholar.acadiau.ca/islandora/object/theses:1161