“Difficulty mentioning the M word”: Perceptions of a woman disclosing negative menopause symptoms in the workplace

Daly, Kara; Phillips-Pike, Gemma; Clarke, Victoria; Beck, Vanessa

Abstract

Purpose
This qualitative study explores general perceptions of a woman experiencing negative menopausal symptoms in the workplace. It examines the socio-cultural understandings informing the responses of a mixed participant group, including those unlikely to have experienced menopause, to a hypothetical scenario involving a woman disclosing negative menopausal symptoms in the workplace – to either a female or male manager.
Design/methodology/approach
Using an innovative hybrid vignette-story completion technique, data were generated from 48 employees of a single UK-based organisation. Participants were presented with a vignette featuring a protagonist (Julie) experiencing negative menopausal symptoms, asked questions about their imaginings of Julie and how she might be perceived by others in the workplace, then presented with a story stem and asked to continue the story in the third person. The stem depicted Julie preparing to tell her manager about her symptoms and featured either a male or female manager, with one variation randomly presented to each participant. Responses were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.
Findings
This study reports four themes: (1) the burden of menopause; (2) managing menopause at work; (3) menopause as not belonging in the workplace; and (4) menopause as unlocking new life potential. Limitations and directions for future research are discussed.
Originality
Using the innovative hybrid vignette-story completion technique, this study contributes to the current discourse on menopause in the workplace by providing insight into how menopausal employees experiencing negative symptoms are perceived by others and the social understandings that shape these perceptions.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Apr 3, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Jun 10, 2024
• Deposit Date: Apr 29, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Jul 11, 2024
• Journal: Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management: An International Journal
• Print ISSN: 1746-5648
• Publisher: Emerald
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/QROM-07-2023-2562
• Keywords: Reflexive thematic analysis; story completion; vignette; menopause; workplace
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/11928970