Egyptian Parents’ Ethnotheories About Moral “Tarbeya” (Upbringing) and the Role of Religion

• In Event: Poster Session 03
  In Poster Session: PS 03 Topic - Moral Development

Abstract

Parents’ cultural beliefs, or ethnotheories, about their children’s development and needs play an important role in shaping parental behaviors and practices. In this study, we explore how parents in Egypt think about their children’s moral education and how they guide them through it. Egyptian culture is infused with religious beliefs and symbols, and the spoken dialect of Arabic is full of phrases rooted in religious faith. Ideas about morality often go hand in hand with religion. This will be discussed in tandem with the literature on children’s moral reasoning as it relates to their religious and spiritual development. Our data are based on semi-structured interviews conducted primarily in Arabic with 20 highly educated parents (11 mothers and 9 fathers; child age range 1-15, average 6.4) living in Cairo, Egypt. The interviews covered various topics on parenting and family life, with one particular question addressing parents’ approach to moral education. Parents spontaneously brought up religion and follow-up questions revealed a distinctive view that both separates and intertwines morality and religion. Interviews were transcribed in the original language and coded using Dedoose qualitative analysis software. Analysis revealed common themes about how parents attempt to teach their children about morality, and how they view the role of religion. Although these parents tend to value religion (that is, Islam) in its own right and see it as ultimately protective of morality, they are often reluctant to closely link the two when talking to their young children. Religion tends to be salient in the children’s environment, but they believe a premature link to morality may be counterproductive. Given the child’s lack of readiness for more complicated understanding, they think it better to focus on moral behavior on its own merits, even though they themselves believe that religion provides a guide to morality.

Authors

• Huda Akef, University of Connecticut
  Presenting Author

• Charles M Super, University of Connecticut
  Non-Presenting Author