Ultra-Orthodox Students Managing Cultural Duality: The Shift from Compartmentalization to a Both/and Stance / "אני לומדת למבחן ולא לחיים" — האומנם? ממידור לחיבור בהתמודדותן של סטודנטיות חרדיות עם שניות תרבותית

• Published in: Tarbut demoḳraṭit Vol. 17; pp. 203 - 240
• Main Authors: דויטש, נורית נוביס, רובין, אסנת, Novis-Deutsch, Nurit, Rubin, Osnat
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: אוניברסיטת בר-אילן, הפקולטה למשפטים 01-01-2017
• Subjects: Articles / מאמרים; Community identity; Cross cultural psychology; Cultural identity; Identity crises; Identity statuses; Jewish history; Personal identity; Personality psychology; Political identity; Social identity
• ISSN: 1565-0316

The past 15 years have seen a rise of two trends in the ultra-Orthodox world in Israel: modern ultra-Orthodox Judaism and the enrollment of ultra-Orthodox students in academic programs. To analyze possible links between the two phenomena we conducted a qualitative study of 61 ultra-Orthodox female students in various academic institutions. The students described their motivations for enrolling, their experiences during their studies, their management of challenges, and their views on the ultra-Orthodox involvement in academic institutions. A mixed-methods analysis of the data found that academic studies presented those students with multiple practical challenges, identity issues, and value conflicts, but also that most students found ways to successfully cope with these challenges. The narratives of managing these challenges were characterized by a both/and cognitive stance, which is typical of individuals with bicultural identities, and may be associated with modern ultra-Orthodox Judaism. Our findings lead to policy recommendations that include training professors who teach ultra-Orthodox students in managing intercultural encounters and devoting attention to value conflicts that arise from such encounters.