The link between work-life balance, the concept of ‘maternal bodies’ and maternity leave has been underexplored in the management literature, particularly from the stance of continuing breastfeeding and pumping at work activity post-maternity leave. Moreover, previous studies have mainly been conducted from Western perspectives; this study explores the topic from an Asian Muslim context, particularly Brunei. This study provides empirical evidence on the impact of ‘social support’ factors on professional women’s perception of work-life balance post-maternity leave. The study was carried out using qualitative methods, including primary research using interviews and projective drawings, and secondary research was done on societal policies and context.
The main finding of this study is that the concept of the maternal body, particularly breastfeeding and pumping at work, is an essential aspect of the professional women returning to work post-maternity leave. This study contributes empirically by showing how these professional women integrate their pumping at work with the help of the ‘social support’ systems, which include a ‘pumping buddy’ and technological advancements in the breast pumps. In addition, this study also contributes theoretically by introducing an extension to the maternal body concept namely the post-modern Islamic/Muslim Maternal Body derived from the Brunei context.
Furthermore, projective methods such as drawing have been used to research subjects that are difficult to express or narrate. This study adopted projective visual methods and drawing; however, it did not give a deeper understanding of what work-life balance meant to these women. The illustrations were just overviews of traditional depictions of family composition and balancing scales. Some participants used metaphors, but they were not discussed further. Nonetheless, this study shows that some things, like breastfeeding and pumping, are difficult to draw.
