The Berkeley wives: Identity revision and development among temporary immigrant women

An increasing number of individuals and families are relocating on a tempor ary basis within and between nations to pursue employment, research, and st udy opportunities that have emerged as a result of the expansion of global markets. This phenomenon poses a number of problems relating to re-settleme nt, experienced by persons from a number of different cultures. This paper is based on case studies of six women from the Asia-Pacific and European co untries, who relocated to the USA because of their partners' research or st udy commitments at the University of California, Berkeley. While the respon dents of this study had different social, cultural ethnic, and educational backgrounds, they shared similar status as temporary immigrant women in the USA. Their common experience in Berkeley relates to their participation in public and private spheres as foreign women acid particularly to their pri mary identification with the roles of wife and/or mother. The process of id entity revision, following relocation to a new country and society involves the negotiation of a multitude of issues, including language proficiency, financial and social dependence, social and cultural norms, cultural identi ty, other stereotypes, and the ability to continue employment. For a variet y of reasons, temporary immigrant women's voices are effectively removed fr om the broader community and, as a result, their experiences are accorded l esser value and remain invisible. This paper illustrates the importance of considering the interaction of individual agency and social structures in e valuating the experiences of women, particularly in the context of temporar y immigrant women and cross-cultural research.