•  
  •  
 

Abstract

The population of single women, though still a minority in Indonesian society, has seen a significant increase in the last decade. This demographic trend is often attributed to shifts in lifestyle and higher levels of women’s education. This study analyzes the perspectives of unmarried women, focusing on the factors contributing to singlehood within the Bugis culture in Indonesia. Utilizing a qualitative phenomenological approach, this research involved seventeen single women aged thirty-five to fifty, which is beyond the average marriage age in Bugis culture. Informants were selected through snowball sampling. Data were collected through in-depth interviews to explore the narratives and views of these single women regarding their reasons for remaining unmarried. The findings reveal that these seventeen women have a desire to marry and lead an ideal family life. However, factors such as family economic conditions requiring them to be the main breadwinners, difficulties finding a suitable partner, caste and social status, traumatic experiences, and feelings of insufficient physical attractiveness were identified as significant barriers to achieving this desire. Singlehood among these Bugis women is not a lifestyle choice or part of an organized feminist revolution, but rather it is the result of the socio-economic and cultural conditions that impede their goals to marry.

Download

Share

COinS