Fear of Achievement Among Young Women in Urban Pakistan: A Phenomenological Analysis of Fear of Achievement (FOA)

Abstract

Abstract The purpose of this research is to explore the antecedents of young women’s fear of achievement (FOA) in Karachi, Pakistan. Based on the empirical literature, a semi-structured interview guideline was developed for conducting focus groups until a data-rich saturation level was achieved. To this end, eight focus groups were conducted with 61 females (mean age = 22.5 years). Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was used to interpret lived and subjective experiences of women’s fear of becoming high achievers. The results of this research indicated that women had a low sense of achievement in response to successful experiences, and high fear of success in terms of their future ventures. Women expressed gender discrimination in how they were socialized, pressured by religious and patriarchal norms, and their beliefs and experiences of success and achievements. These findings can be explained by gendered socialization practices in Pakistan, culturally embedded religious and patriarchal norms, objectification of women, silencing, and early marriages. Overall, females are provided with different sets of expectations for achievement in the feminine-communal orientations and are distant from success-related competence orientations. The paper also discusses possible implications of our findings for young Pakistani women and proposes the need for scholarship and concerted efforts to resolve the factors that instigate the FOA among women.