Empowered or Muted? Exploring the Intersection of Workplace Culture and Gender Expectations for Women in the Corporate Sector in Peshawar, Pakistan

Abstract

This paper explores how workplace culture intersects with gender expectations and shapes the experiences of working women in the corporate sector in Peshawar, tackling hurdles and growth opportunities side by side, making women feel either empowered or muted. However, due to lack of qualitative data and the factors influencing women’s experiences in male-dominated cities (i.e., Peshawar) are uncharted. The focal objective of this study was to explore and study the intersection of workplace culture and gender expectations on working women in addition to the core factors that impacted the perspectives and experiences of working women in the corporate sector. Data were accumulated from 13 female employees in the form of purposive sampling via interviews, and analysis was done in light of the interpretivist paradigm by applying qualitative approach. The thematic analysis was scrutinized according to the framework of muted group theory, women empowerment and Genderlect, highlighting the factors that were shared by respondents. The analysis revealed that women working in the corporate sector in Peshawar felt empowered just by having the work and opportunities to excel, while felt muted whenever they were overlooked or interrupted owing to societal and cultural constraints, they preferred muteness rather than voicing to maintain interpersonal dynamics at the workplace. The findings recommended that working women should voice their opinions and should focus on their education, security, and well-being. Furthermore, organizations and workplaces should implement policies and practices concerning gender equality and women’s empowerment.