Journal Screenshot

International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences

Open Access Journal

ISSN: 2222-6990

Psychological Well-being of Working Women in Malaysia: Married or Single is Better?

Nur Salimah binti Alias, Intan Hashimah Mohd Hashim, Mohd Haizzan Yahaya

http://dx.doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v12-i1/12239

Open access

Empowering women’s psychological well-being is not about hindering problem for women but to help women becoming someone who can adapt and respond in life’s challenges regardless of their marital status. This study aims to compare difference in level of psychological well-being among working women based on their marital status. A survey was conducted to 295 married and 205 single working women from public universities in Malaysia. The Ryff’s Psychological well-being scales (42 items) was used as the instrument. The data was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Studies (SPSS) version 23. Findings shows that in general, married working women have better psychological well-being than single working women. The significant difference show in self-acceptance and purpose in life dimensions with single working women score lower than married working. The findings of this study wider perspective of the psychological well-being of women by including factors of marital status to be considered. The results of this study have implications for government in providing a more friendly approach for single community in social and family development. Indirectly, a more balanced approach fosters a healthy community that can help individuals reach their full potential, regardless of marital status.

(KRI), K. R. I. (2018). The state of households 2018: Different realities (3rd Edition (ed.)). Khazanah Research Institute.
Abdul Razak, A. R., Mahpul, I. N., & Aziz, A. (2019). Women subjective well-Being in Malaysia: Findings from fifth malaysian population and family survey (MPFS-5). International Journal for Studies on Children, Women, Elderly And Disabled, 8(October), 61–72. http://familyrepository.lppkn.gov.my/779/1/Women Subjective Well-Being in Malaysia Findings from MPFS 5.pdf
Abdullah, N. H., Wahab, E., Shamsuddin, A., & Noor, H. M. (2012). Perceptions on career barriers among working women. OIDA International Journal of Sustainable Development, 4(7), 93–100.
Alwi, A. H., & Lourdunathan, P. (2020). Challenges and well-being of single women living in Malaysia. Journal of Behavioral Science, 15(1), 1–18.
Aziz, N. N. A., Abu Yazid, Z. N., Tarmuji, N. H., & Samsudin, M. A. (2016). The fourfold taxonomy of work-family balance and well-being: The moderating effect of coping strategy. E-Academia Journal UiTMT, 5(1), 1–12.
Azmawati, A. A., Hashim, I. H. M., & Endut, N. (2015). “Don’t marry, be happy!” – how single women in Malaysia view marriage. SHS Web of Conferences, 18(2004), 03001. https://doi.org/10.1051/shsconf/20151803001
Cochran, W. G. (1977). Stratified Random Sampling, Further Aspects of Stratified Sampling. In Sampling techniques. https://archive.org/details/Cochran1977SamplingTechniques_201703/page/n7
Cohen, J. (1992). A Power Primer. Psychological Bulletin, 112(1), 155–159.
https://doi.org/10.1038/141613a0
Creswell, J. W. (2009). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods approaches (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications, Inc.
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2008). Hedonia, eudaimonia, and well-being: An introduction. Journal of Happiness Studies, 9(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-006-9018-1
Diener, E. D., Gohm, C. L., Suh, E., & Oishi, S. (2000). Marital Status and subjective well-being across cultures. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 31(4), 419–436.
DOSM, D. S. M. (2010). Population distribution and basic demographic characteristics 2010. Department of Statistics Malaysia. https://www.mycensus.gov.my/index.php/census-product/publication/census-2010/659-population-distribution-and-basic-demographic-characteristics-2010
DOSM, D. S. M. (2019). Labour force survey report, Malaysia, 2019. Department of Statistics Malaysia.
DOSM, D. S. M. (2021). Statistics on women empowerment in selected domains, Malaysia, 2021. Department of Statistics Malaysia, 1–5.
Dush, C. M. K., & Amato, P. R. (2005). Consequences of relationship status and quality for subjective well-being. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 22(5), 607–627. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407505056438
Faudziah, Y., & Mustafar, F. W. (2017). Cabaran bujang lewat usia: Stigma terhadap wanita berkerjaya. Jurnal Sains Sosial, 2, 117–129.
Fink, A. (2003). The survey handbook (2nd ed.). SAGE Publications, Inc. https://doi.org/https://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781412986328
Grover, S., & Helliwell, J. F. (2017). How’s life at home? New evidence on marriage and the set point for happiness. In Journal of Happiness Studies.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-017-9941-3
Hassan, N. A., & Velleymalay, S. K. (2017). Wanita bekerja dan kahwin lewat?: Satu kajian. Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 15(5), 128–144.
Hsu, T., & Barrett, A. E. (2020). The association between marital status and psychological well-being?: Variation across negative and positive dimensions. Journal of Family Issues, 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1177/0192513X20910184
Ibrahim, R., & Hassan, Z. (2009). Understanding singlehood from the experiences of never-married malaymuslim women in Malaysia: Some preliminary findings. European Journal of Social Sciences, 8(3), 395–405.
Jones, G. W. (2010). Changing marriage patterns in Asia. In ARI Working Paper,Series No. 131. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315148458
Krejcie, R. V., & Morgan, D. W. (1970). Determining Sample Size for Research Activities. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 30, 607–610.
Lewis, K. G., & Moon, S. (1997). Always single and single again women: A qualitative study. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-0606.1997.tb00238.x
Ministry of Education (MOE). (2019). Statistik pendidikan tinggi 2019: Kementerian Pengajian tinggi.
Noor, N. M. (2006). Malaysian women’s state of well-being: Empirical validation of a conceptual model. Journal of Social Psychology, 146(1), 95–115.
https://doi.org/10.3200/SOCP.146.1.95-115
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2001). On happiness and human potentials: A review of research on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 141–166. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.141
Ryff, C. D. (1989). Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57(6), 1069–1081. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.57.6.1069
Ryff, C. D. (2014). Psychological well-being revisited: Advances in the science and practice of eudaimonia. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 83(1), 10–28.
https://doi.org/10.1159/000353263
Ryff, C. D., & Keyes, C. L. M. (1995). The structure of psychological well-Being revisited. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 69(4), 719–727. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.69.4.719
Ryff, C. D., & Singer, B. (1996). Psychological well-being: Meaning, measurement, and implications for psychotherapy research. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 65(1), 14–23. https://doi.org/10.1159/000289026
Ryff, C. D., & Singer, B. H. (2008). Know thyself and become what you are: A eudaimonic approach to psychological well-being. Journal of Happiness Studies, 9(1), 13–39. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-006-9019-0
Saili, J., & Saili, A. R. (2018). At odds: Perceived stigma of single professional Malay women. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 8(14), 79–90.
Sandfield, A., & Percy, C. (2003). Accounting for single status: Heterosexism and ageism in heterosexual women’s talk about marriage. Feminism and Psychology, 13(4), 475–488. https://doi.org/10.1177/09593535030134013
Schweigert, W. (1994). Research methods & statistics for psychology. Brooks/Cole.
Soons, J. P. M., & Liefbroer, A. C. (2008). Together is better? Effects of relationship status and resources on young adults’ well-being. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 25(4), 603–624. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407508093789
Soons, J. P. M., Liefbroer, A. C., & Kalmijn, M. (2009). The long-term consequences of relationship formation for subjective well-being. Journal of Marriage and Family, 71(5), 1254–1270. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2009.00667.x
Uecker, J. E. (2012). Marriage and mental health among young adults. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 53(1), 67–83. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022146511419206
Waterman, A. S. (1993). Two conceptions of happiness: Contrasts of personal expressiveness (eudaimonia) and hedonic enjoyment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 64(4), 678–691. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.64.4.678
Zainudin, H. A. (2010). Research Methodology for Business and Social Science. University Publication Centre (UPENA), UiTM.

In-Text Citation: (Alias et al., 2022)
To Cite this Article: Alias, N. S. binti, Hashim, I. H. M., & Yahaya, M. H. (2022). Psychological Well-being of Working Women in Malaysia: Married or Single is Better? International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 12(1), 2501–2511.