Social stigmatization and gender inequality in education: evidence from rural Pakistan

Gender inequality in higher education remains a concern in rural Pakistan, where women’s education opportunities are shaped by social expectations concerning mobility, family responsibilities, and appropriate gender roles. This study examined how social stigmatization associated with staying at home and performing domestic roles is experienced by rural females and how public and self-stigma relate to their participation in higher education. A qualitative descriptive phenomenological design was employed. Data were collected by semi-structured interviews from 30 participants in rural Pakistan, including eight female students and nine female family members, and 13 male family and community members. Thematic analysis identified four interrelated themes: restricted mobility and chaperonage, conditional educational and career aspirations, internalized domestic identity, and protectionist concerns surrounding coeducation. The findings indicate that female education was generally valued, but support was often conditional on family approval, proximity to home, supervision, and conformity with socially accepted roles as daughters, wives, and mothers. Public stigma was reflected in shared expectations that restricted women’s mobility, educational location, and career choices. While self-stigma through self-censorship became apparent when some female students anticipated these judgments and adjusted their educational aspirations accordingly. These findings suggest that educational inequality in the setting examined is associated not only with material and institutional barriers but also with social judgments and their internalization. By applying a stigma perspective, the study provides a context-specific account of how public stigma, self-stigma, and self-censorship may interact with gendered expectations to narrow higher education opportunities for rural females.