A Study of the Lived Experience and the Perception of Women from Participation in Civic Associations

Civil associations, as the foundations of democratic social order, play a significant role in the deconstruction of social categorization. This research article attempts to assess the experience and discerning of women of participation in civil institutions. This research employs the grounded theory. Methodologically, it is based on semi-structured interview with women who have the participation experience in civil institutions. The results of this research showed that the participation of women in civil institutions is contingent on the resources in their disposal and on their lived experiences; which in turn determines the extent of participation. In the meantime, self-redefining and self-rebuilding, development of civil ethics, the expansion of social solidarity and responsibility served as facilitators, whereas social disembeddedness, the de-contextualizing and de-temporalizing of femininity, and strengthening the creation of social opportunities being interveners. The semantic reconstruction of women’s experience and understanding of social action implies the policy of the presence and sanctification of women's activism, efficiency, inner call, alleviating problems of life, and cultural subjection of femininity. Women’s social actions in civil institutions are associated with a wide range of social, personal, and cultural consequences which falls under the category of empowering-structured core.