“The home that dwells in us”: a social constructionist perspective of the displaced narrative identities, work ethic and spirituality of Palestinian-Australians

This study sought to explore the influence, manifestation and embodiment of the Palestinian catastrophe (“Nakba”) on Palestinian-Australians through the exploration of their personal narratives. Through their narratives, it sought to explore how their identities are constructed, in particular, their displaced identities and how that may influence or play a role in the sense making of their own work ethic and sense of spirituality in their work contexts. This study adopted a qualitative approach underpinned in the social constructivist interpretive philosophical foundation. Fourteen in depth semi-structured narrative interviews were conducted that explored the manifestation and embodiment of the displacement of Palestinians within the work context of participants from varying ages, professional backgrounds, industries and migratory patterns. This allowed participants to provide rich insights into the construction of their stories that included reflections on their past, present, and future. Through a thematic alanalysis of the narratives, it was found that “Processes of identity” surfaced that included the lack of the sense of belonging, the presence of hidden vs. visible identities, and a racism and discrimination dimension. Childhood values were also strongly discussed in the narratives that suggested the manifestation of displacement, which included the value of education and the notion of hard work. The manifestation of displacement was also discussed in their discussion of “who am I at work?” which included how they express their identity at work, how displacement allows them to bring a more “humanizing the workplace” and how displacement is related to their sense of spirituality. The cohesive interplay of these overarching and subthemes suggest that displacement is strongly manifested and embodied in the identity construction of the individuals, which play a role in how they make sense of their work ethic and spirituality in the workplace. This thesis provides an in depth contextual exploration of the narratives of Palestinian Australians in relation to their identities, work ethic and spirituality that has not previously been studied.