This study explored how female public-school teachers (K-12) in the Cayman Islands experienced and managed work-life balance within the intersecting contexts of gender, culture, and institutional demands. Guided by phenomenological principles and framed through role theory, the study examined how participants defined work-life balance, the challenges they encountered, and the strategies they employed to sustain equilibrium between their professional and personal responsibilities. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with female teachers across the public education system, allowing their lived experiences to inform the analysis. Findings revealed that work-life balance was perceived as a continuous process of negotiation rather than a static state. Participants reported excessive workloads, administrative pressures, and cultural expectations of women as major challenges compounded by the interconnected nature of small-island communities. Despite these barriers, teachers demonstrated resilience through adaptive strategies, including boundary-setting, prioritization, reliance on faith, and seeking support from family, colleagues, and institutional resources. This study contributes to the global and Caribbean discourse on teacher well-being by highlighting how female teachers in small-island contexts navigated complex role expectations. This underscored the need for systemic reforms that address workload, promote flexibility, and strengthen well-being initiatives. Ultimately, the study enhanced the understanding of how cultural, gendered, and structural factors collectively shaped work-life balance for female teachers in the Cayman Islands, offering valuable insights for policy, practice, and future scholarship.
","abstract_html":"<p>This study explored how female public-school teachers (K-12) in the Cayman Islands experienced and managed work-life balance within the intersecting contexts of gender, culture, and institutional demands. Guided by phenomenological principles and framed through role theory, the study examined how participants defined work-life balance, the challenges they encountered, and the strategies they employed to sustain equilibrium between their professional and personal responsibilities. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with female teachers across the public education system, allowing their lived experiences to inform the analysis. Findings revealed that work-life balance was perceived as a continuous process of negotiation rather than a static state. Participants reported excessive workloads, administrative pressures, and cultural expectations of women as major challenges compounded by the interconnected nature of small-island communities. Despite these barriers, teachers demonstrated resilience through adaptive strategies, including boundary-setting, prioritization, reliance on faith, and seeking support from family, colleagues, and institutional resources. This study contributes to the global and Caribbean discourse on teacher well-being by highlighting how female teachers in small-island contexts navigated complex role expectations. This underscored the need for systemic reforms that address workload, promote flexibility, and strengthen well-being initiatives. Ultimately, the study enhanced the understanding of how cultural, gendered, and structural factors collectively shaped work-life balance for female teachers in the Cayman Islands, offering valuable insights for policy, practice, and future scholarship.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Chambers, Kimone P"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Doctor of Education (EdD)","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Education","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Alyson Manion","Patrick Hutchinson"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":null,"date_issued":"","date_published":null,"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:21:42Z","subjects":["work-life balance","female teachers","Cayman Islands","role theory","teacher well-being","Education"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://dune.une.edu/edu_diss/64","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Alyson Manion","Patrick Hutchinson"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Chambers, Kimone P"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Education"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Education (EdD)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["work-life balance","female teachers","Cayman Islands","role theory","teacher well-being","Education"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://dune.une.edu/edu_diss/64"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This study explored how female public-school teachers (K-12) in the Cayman Islands experienced and managed work-life balance within the intersecting contexts of gender, culture, and institutional demands. Guided by phenomenological principles and framed through role theory, the study examined how participants defined work-life balance, the challenges they encountered, and the strategies they employed to sustain equilibrium between their professional and personal responsibilities. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with female teachers across the public education system, allowing their lived experiences to inform the analysis. Findings revealed that work-life balance was perceived as a continuous process of negotiation rather than a static state. Participants reported excessive workloads, administrative pressures, and cultural expectations of women as major challenges compounded by the interconnected nature of small-island communities. Despite these barriers, teachers demonstrated resilience through adaptive strategies, including boundary-setting, prioritization, reliance on faith, and seeking support from family, colleagues, and institutional resources. This study contributes to the global and Caribbean discourse on teacher well-being by highlighting how female teachers in small-island contexts navigated complex role expectations. This underscored the need for systemic reforms that address workload, promote flexibility, and strengthen well-being initiatives. Ultimately, the study enhanced the understanding of how cultural, gendered, and structural factors collectively shaped work-life balance for female teachers in the Cayman Islands, offering valuable insights for policy, practice, and future scholarship.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Exploring The Lived Experiences Of Work-Life Balance Among Female Public School Teachers (K-12) In The Cayman Islands"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Alyson Manion","Patrick Hutchinson"],"dc:creator":["Chambers, Kimone P"],"dc:description.abstract":["This study explored how female public-school teachers (K-12) in the Cayman Islands experienced and managed work-life balance within the intersecting contexts of gender, culture, and institutional demands. Guided by phenomenological principles and framed through role theory, the study examined how participants defined work-life balance, the challenges they encountered, and the strategies they employed to sustain equilibrium between their professional and personal responsibilities. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with female teachers across the public education system, allowing their lived experiences to inform the analysis. Findings revealed that work-life balance was perceived as a continuous process of negotiation rather than a static state. Participants reported excessive workloads, administrative pressures, and cultural expectations of women as major challenges compounded by the interconnected nature of small-island communities. Despite these barriers, teachers demonstrated resilience through adaptive strategies, including boundary-setting, prioritization, reliance on faith, and seeking support from family, colleagues, and institutional resources. This study contributes to the global and Caribbean discourse on teacher well-being by highlighting how female teachers in small-island contexts navigated complex role expectations. This underscored the need for systemic reforms that address workload, promote flexibility, and strengthen well-being initiatives. Ultimately, the study enhanced the understanding of how cultural, gendered, and structural factors collectively shaped work-life balance for female teachers in the Cayman Islands, offering valuable insights for policy, practice, and future scholarship.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://dune.une.edu/edu_diss/64"],"dc:subject":["work-life balance","female teachers","Cayman Islands","role theory","teacher well-being","Education"],"dc:title":["Exploring The Lived Experiences Of Work-Life Balance Among Female Public School Teachers (K-12) In The Cayman Islands"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Education"],"thesis:degree_level":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Education (EdD)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:21:42Z"}