Introduction
Globally, there is a concern with respect to the impacts of non-parental childcare on children’s personality and culture (Tan, 2013). The research proposal below focuses on the effects of the use of maids in rearing children in the United Arab Emirates. The need for babysitters in the UAE has risen in the last few decades. The ever-increasing number of women workers, acceptance of nuclear families, and increased residual earnings has encouraged families to employ domestic workers (Tan, 2013). For busy and affluent Emiratis families, these employees’ help is becoming a necessity in many households. Maids just like other domestic workers make the management of household chores easier. As such, they can cook, wash dishes, shop, and take care of the babies on behalf of the family. Nevertheless, there are exceptional risks associated with hiring maids in the United Arab Emirates. They can commit crimes, molest children, steal household properties, and make the host family dependent on their service.
Research questions
The study will analyse the impacts of non-parental childcare on children’s personality and culture. The research will focus on pros and cons of this phenomenon with respect to the risks of raising youngsters, misconducts committed by the maids, and the price of bringing the house helps. Through this, the article will focus on advantages and disadvantages. They are analysed with respect to risks in raising youngsters, misconducts committed by the domestic workers, the cost of employing domestic workers, and dependency on maids. In a bid to identifying these pros and cons, the proposal research paper attempts to answer four questions. The queries form the basis of the study. They include the narrow and the broad questions to determine the extent of the issue in the Emiratis society. Below are the research questions:
- What are the advantages and disadvantages of hiring a maid for children?
- What is the direct impact of maids babysitter in terms of learning the development of the children?
- What are the crimes against the child committed by maids?
- Is having more than one child the main factor that leads the Emirati families to hire more than one maid?
The independent variable in the study will be child learning in the United Arab Emirates. On the other hand, dependent variables are maids’ crimes, national identity & learning development of children. Other dependent variables are a dependency on household responsibilities, sponsorship system, and work hours. The control variables consist of all other features that affect the dependent variables. They include labour laws, immigration laws, economic incomes, poverty levels, government support, religious beliefs, and the United Arab Emirates’ culture. During the study, it will be assumed that the control variables remain unchanged throughout the research period. In the study, an inverse connection is expected between the independent and dependent variables. The above imply that positive changes in independent variables like an increase in magnitude will lead to a decrease in the dependent variable. For instance, appropriate and efficient labour laws aimed at improving domestic workers working condition will result in the reduction of the issue.
Figure 1: statistics used
Delimitations
In the research process, it will be recognized that the traditional ethos of the Emiratis will give rise to limitations on the way the information will be gathered.we anticipate to interview domestic workers via their employers. Similarly, conservative nature of some families might make the utilization of video camera unsuitable. The above delimitations will possibly affect the dependability of the study. Similarly, restrictions on resources and gaining admission to some institutions will be a difficulty. We anticipate accessing two types of schools in the United Arab Emirates. Each of these schools has diverse populations of children and educators. We expect the process of gaining access to be time-consuming and might affect the outcome of our research. The anticipated research will involve participants of various nationalities. Thus, linguistic limitations will be prominent. Linguistic issues amongst domestic workers will be expected to increase the risk of bias in the data collected. The above delimitations might affect the results of the study.
Literature review
A study of statistical for this study shows that hours helps care for more than 60% of children below the age of four in the UAE for almost 30–69 hours in a week (Walker, 2010). Either their mothers or relatives offer nearly 30% of the infants with childcare. The remaining percentage is offered childcare at nurseries or child-minder services. Maids staff the above service agencies. According to the information, Emiratis have a more reliance on maids to care for children compared to America and Europe.
Ehrenreich (2003) asserts that there are concerns related with the developmental impacts of non-parental childcare. According to Ehrenreich, the first issue concerns the mother–infant connection. Ehrenreich (2003) states mothers should evaluate if non-parental care will affect their relationships with their children. As such, they should assess if the relationship will be affected or weakened because of the day-to-day separations that are involved when domestic workers are allowed to administer childcare. The second concern focuses on the emotional and social effects on the children. Parents should evaluate if the siblings’ intellectual, language, and social development will be affected by the presence of housemaids.
Fernandez (2014) uses Vygotskian and postVygotskian theories in developing a sociocultural concept to analyze the impacts of babysitters on the children personality and culture. Vygotsky’s sociocultural model rests on the idea of arbitration. Engeström’s activity principle scrutinizes the action system in which the act occurs. Both models regard the social contact as being vital to reviewing human behaviour. He notes that house helps make the management of household chores easier (Fernandez, 2014). As such, they can cook, wash dishes, shop, and take care of the babies on behalf of the family. Nonetheless, he notes that there are exceptional risks associated with hiring maids in the United Arab Emirates.
Fernandez (2014) asserts that extensive use maids prior the age of one may be linked to reduced obedience, increased violence, and perhaps even greater social instability in the kindergarten children (Fernandez, 2014). He cited many studies done in the USA. The investigations identified that children, under non-maternal childcare for approximately over 18 hours in a week, had more chances of developing an apprehensive connection to their mother compared with children who get childcare from their mothers.
Another study by The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development established some forecasters with respect to lower quality care and higher quality care (Walker, 2010). The lower predictors are as follows:
- An increased likelihood of insecure mother–child affection
- A reduced amount of harmonious mother-child relations
- More problem conducts, reduced cognitive ability, lesser language skill, and minor school inclination scores
On the other hand, a higher quality care forecasters represent more hours mothers spent on childcare. The predictors are as follows:
- A smaller amount harmonious mother–child interaction;
- Reduced problem-related behaviours
- Reduced chances of insecure connection between infants and mothers
Tan (2013) claims that domestic workers come in handy during emergency cases. Through the help of their maids, working mothers can spend more time at their workplaces while maids assist in childcare. Tan (2013) suggests that parents can delegate household chores to their maids while they spend more time with their siblings. Because maids can assist their employers in many household chores, the parents can utilize their spare time to enhance their parent-child relationship. By spending more time with their siblings, the parents can also be relieved of their work-related stress.
Tavel (2014) believes that in spite of the many advantages of employing a maid, parents should note that there are many disadvantages associated with domestic workers. He asserts that a major disadvantage linked with employing a domestic helper is that juveniles’ growth of independence may be compromised. As such, dependence on the care of children through maids may hinder the youngsters’ ability to take care of themselves. Tavel (2014) suggests that an additional drawback of employing a maid is that there are possible threats of the damage to property and personal care. As such, many domestic workers in UAE are immigrants. Therefore, they are strangers to their employees. The above increases the likelihood that the babysitters may steal from their employers. Additionally, employing a domestic worker intensifies the threats on children’s safety. Maids may mistreat the boss’s children so as to vent his or her annoyance. He claims that there are pros and cons of employing a domestic worker. He urges parents to consider these factors before hiring a domestic worker.
Varia (2010) asserts that though many benefits can be enjoyed by parents who employ maids, the limited understanding of their impacts on the children personality and culture in UAE has created controversies. Varia (2010) claims that many pieces of literature just mentioned the advantages and disadvantages of employing domestic workers without offering appropriate mean of effectively utilizing their assistance. The key contributors to research in this topic are maids, employment bureau, immigration offices, newspapers, and parents.
Methodology section
Methods used
The proposed study will be a mixed methods research employing qualitative approaches to data collection and data analysis. In addition, the study will use a case approach to determine the study population. For instance, a qualitative method will offer an objective of gaining an in-depth understanding of the impacts of babysitters on the children personality and culture in UAE. The method will also seek to provide insights into the issue of maids phenomenon in UAE. Moreover, the purpose of qualitative research is to reveal the prevalence of trends in the existing opinions or thoughts about a phenomenon.
Research design
A research design is a methodical plan to investigate a research problem. For this type of study, field or survey research design is going to be utilized. As such, field research encompasses of compilations of data outside of a lab, stores, or formal set up. The means and processes used in the fieldwork differ across researches. With respect to this study, the required information will be obtained through face-to-face interviewing and questionnaires. The questions will be directed at participants in their natural environments. Our fieldwork will entail a variety of distinct or inconsistent methods. The methods will include casual meetings, direct inspection, and group discussions.
Data collection methods
As indicated above, the data will be collected through field research. The method will entail acquiring data from secure and reliable crime institutions, document publications, newspapers employment agencies, interviews, and questionnaires. Criminal justice institutions will provide the researchers with crucial information such as the present and the past crime reports related to maids in UAE. Documents and publications will also offer data about crime rates. For one year, three newspapers published in the last five years will be reviewed monthly. The sources are very efficient since they are not biased. The interview sessions will require participants to question the employment agencies in person to collect their personal views. During the interview, the contributors will be asked to detail their outlooks with respect to how maids are sourced and employed in UAE. The questions used during the interviews will be open-ended. Equally, questionnaires will be used to collect private information from the parents and maids who are among the participants.
Sampling methods
The research will entail two units of analysis. The units are the individuals and the institutions such as employment agencies General Directorate of Residency & Foreigners Affairs. The population targeted by the research comprises of Emirati parents, maids, and law enforcement agencies. The research will comprise of 100 individuals from the UAE. The individuals will comprise of maids, parents, and the law enforcers. On the other hand, the sampling frame will comprise of the list of all the individuals sampled. The individuals would be randomly selected. The scale of measurement will be an ordinal scale. The sampling criterion strengthens the study as it enables the researcher to reach the targeted participants.
After the data are collected from the field, they will be compiled into an Excel Spread Sheet. Later SSPS software will be used to make tables, charts, or distribution plots. After that, the data will be analysed for accuracy. The outcomes of the research will be categorized in agreement with the research questions and their affiliated suppositions.
Potential and empirical obstacles
During the research process, many potential problems that are likely to affect the progress and outcomes will affect the researchers. For instance, access and communicate with maids identified as the study population will be a major challenge. Many domestic workers in the region are immigrants. Therefore, the researchers will expect issues with respect to language barriers. Equally, the process of convincing employment agencies to be part of the study is expected to be difficult. For example, most agencies do not like to be involved in procedures that tend to question or investigate their work practices. Secondly, the process of recruiting parents to be participants in the study is expected to be relatively long because most of these individuals have tight schedules due to the nature of their work.
Just like any other research, investigators will be faced with ethical issues during their studies. Therefore, they have to be watchful when tackling ethical dilemmas encountered in the field. The problem of consent has been recognized as one of the issues likely to affect the progress of the proposed research. In particular, the issue of examining agency managers based on their knowledge of domestic workers welfare is a critical issue. As such, the leaders managers tend to conceal information on their corporate strategies and practices because they fear to reveal corporate strategies or trade secrets.
To tackle the above and other expected ethical issues, the researchers will seek advice from the psychologists and research experts on how to tackle sensitive research concerns. In this regard, before the data collection process is undertaken in our research, permission for the study will be requested from the financial organizations and the Institute of Research Board. Equally, the research will follow the directives of the required code of ethics. As such, the research will cause no harm to the participants, safeguard the participants’ privacy, and be voluntary. During the research, participants should be informed of what is required of them before the start of the project. They should also be notified of the length of the project, benefits accrued from the project, possible risk associated with the research, and who to consult.
Human resources needed
Being a researcher, I will be required to take the leading role in all steps of the proposed study from proposal development through data collection to the completion of the research and presentation of results. I will act as the principal coordinator in carrying out the research. I will also take the leading role of approaching the organizations identified as well as interviewing the organizational managers. I will also provide the guidelines on ethical and legal aspects of the study. Four other participants will be required in this project. Listed below are individual responsibilities towards the achievement of the project’s objectives.
- Participant 1: the contributor will be mandated to plan the overall approach. The student will determine how the research will be conducted and strategize how the study will achieve its objectives.
- Student 2: this person will acquire the participants required for the research. Because successful research process necessitates effective participants, this individual will be required to locate the sample participants by networking with relevant authorities.
- Participant 3: the partaker will carry out interviews on the target population. The individual will require more training to understand his or her roles. Notably, the success of the project heavily relies on this person because data collection is a key facet of an investigation.
- Participant 4: the contributor will source for the best analysis software. Currently, there are several companies offering analysis software. The participant will search for the most appropriate software that will ensure that the project attains its objectives.
Timetable
A timeline will be utilized during the research process to achieve the desired goals within the allotted time. Highlighted below is a timeline for the proposed project. The timeline will be appropriate when determining if a follow-up on the research is appropriate. The timeline of the proposal specifies the time when the project will begin, the duration, and holiday breaks in between the specific tasks.
Budget
External financiers will fund the research. It is assumed the major expenses will be towards personnel, fare, and tools used in data collection. It is estimated that the project will cost $ 2000.
References
Ehrenreich, B. (2003). Print. Global Woman. New York: Metropolitan Books.
Fernandez, B. (2014). Migrant Domestic Workers in the Middle East. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
Tan, P. (2013). Impact Of Foreign Maids On Female Labor Force Participation In Malaysia. Asian Economic Journal 27(2), 163-183.
Tavel, H. (2014). Tricked and Trapped Human Trafficking in the Middle East. Geneva: International Labour Off.
Varia, N. (2010). Slow Reform: Protection of Migrant Domestic Workers in Asia and the Middle East.New York, NY: Human Rights Watch.
Walker, J. (2010). Oman, UAE & Arabian Peninsula. Footscray, Vic.: Lonely Planet.