Becoming Professional Female Chefs in Thailand: A Case Study of Chef Bo, Bo.lan Restaurant, Bangkok
Keywords:
Female, Chef, Restaurant, Work Motivation, Thai Cuisine
Abstract
Despite females forming the majority of workers in the world’s restaurant industry, one of the largest and fastest growing sectors of the world economy, gender stereotyping of their role within it remains persistent. This may particularly be the case in relation to the industry’s highest paid position: the position of chef, where females remain most notably underrepresented. This current study is based on the case study of Chef Duangporn Songvisara (nicknamed Bo) who was awarded the distinction of 2013 Best Female Chef in Asia. Highlighted by her culinary competence, her full-service Thai restaurant, Bo.lan Essentially Thai, was recognized as one of the top-fifty restaurants in Asia. Through a qualitative research process that consisted of a personal face-to-face interview conducted with Chef Bo together with an analysis of documented sources, this case study aims to investigate the motivations necessary to become a professional chef, how a female chef balances work and personal life, and to analyze how a female chef achieves success in the restaurant business, in particular in the area Thai cuisine. Chef Bo concluded that success in a chef’s career required passion and firm goals as work motivators.
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References
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boundaries
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Anderson, B. (2012). CNN. Retrieved May 6, 2014, from http://edition.cnn.com/2012/04/10/world/europe/anne-sophie-pic/index.html
Asia's 50 Best Restaurants. (2014). Retrieved May 5, 2014, from http://www.theworlds50best.com/: http://www.theworlds50best.com/asia/en/asias-50-best-restaurants.html#t21-30
Asia's 50 Best Restaurants. (2015). Retrieved June 17, 2015, from
http://www.theworlds50best.com/: http://www.theworlds50best.com/asia/en/asias-50-best-restaurants.html#t31-40
BIBLIOGRAPHY Baker, S. E., & Edwards, R. (2012). How many qualitative interviews is enough. National Centre for Research Methods. Retrieved July 7, 2015, from National Centre for Research Methods: http://eprints.ncrm.ac.uk/2273/4/how_many_interviews.pdf
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York, N.Y: W.H. Freeman.
Baum, T. (2013). International Perspectives on Women and Work in Hotels Catering and Tourism. Geneva: International Labor Office.
Bourdieu, P. (1984). Distinctions: a social critique of the judgment of taste. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Carter, C. (2013, December 13). The Telegraph. Retrieved June 14, 2015, from The Telegraph: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/10505097/More-female-chefsshould-be-in-top-kitchens-says-Michel-Roux-Jr.html
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Chua-Eoan, H. (2013). Time magazine. Retrieved May 5, 2014, from http://time100.time.com/2013/11/07/the-13-gods-of-food/
CNNGo staff. (2011, July 21). CNN Travel . Retrieved May 7, 2014, from http://travel.cnn.com/explorations/eat/worlds-50-most-delicious-foods-067535?page=0,0
Cochrane, K. (2012, February 13). The Guardian. Retrieved May 4, 2015, from The Guardian: http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2012/feb/13/women-chefs-chop-top
Counihan, C. (1999). The Anthropology of Food and Body: Gender, meaning, and power. New York: Routledge.
Dworkin, S. L. (2012). Sample size policy for qualitative studies using in-depth interviews. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 41, 1319-1320.
Grant, A. M., & Shin, J. (2011). Work Motivation: Directing, energizing and maintaining effort (and research). (R. M. Ryan, Ed.) Oxford: Oxford University Press. Retrieved May 22, 2014, from https://mgmt.wharton.upenn.edu/profile/1323/research/?pubFilter=bookChapter
Hansford, E. (2011, July 5). The Role of Social Support Systems in the Advancement of Professional Chefs. Retrieved May 4, 2015, from Georgia State University: http://scholarworks.gsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1049&context=anthro_theses
Hartley, J. (2004). Case study research. In C. Cassell, & G. Symon (Eds.), Essential guide to qualitative methods in organizational research (pp. 323-333). London: Sage. Inness, S. A. (2001). American Women and Culinary Culture . Iowa city: University of Iowa Press.
Johansson, R. (2003). Case Study Methodology. Methodologies in Housing Research (pp. 1-14). Stockholm: Royal Institute of Technology. Retrieved April 24, 2015, from http://www.psyking.net/htmlobj-3839/case_study_methodology-_rolf_johansson_ver_2.pdf
Klangboonkrong, M. (2013). The Nation. Retrieved May 6, 2014, from http://www.nationmultimedia.com/life/Bountiful-at-Bo-lan-30200479.html
Lau, V. (2015, January 12). The world's 50 best restaurants. (L. Price, Interviewer) Retrieved May 1, 2015, from The world's 50 best restaurants: http://www.theworlds50best.com/blog/Interviews/vicky-lau-of-hong-kongs-tate-diningroom-
is-named-veuve-clicquot-asias-best-female-chef-2015.html
Locke, E. A. (1968). Towards a Theory of Task Motivation and Incentives. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 3, 367-388.
Locke, E. A. (1975). Personal Attitudes and Motivation. Annual Review of Psychology, 26, 457-480.
Locke, E. A., & Latham, G. P. (2009). Has goal setting gone wild, or have its attackers abandoned good scholarship? Academy of Management Perspectives, 23, 17-23.
Lusher, A. (2009). The Telegraph. Retrieved May 5, 2014, from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/foodanddrinknews/4277424/Record-10-women-chefs-win-Michelin-stars.html
Lyons, K. (2014, May 7). The Daily mail. Retrieved May 10, 2015, from The Daily mail: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2622022/Three-female-chefs-mentioned-Worlds-Best-50-Restaurants.html
Morse, J. M. (2000). Determining sample size. Qualitative Health Research , 10, 3-5. Moskin, J. (2014). Dining & Wine. Retrieved May 5, 2014, from http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/22/dining/a-change-in-the-kitchen.html?_r=0
Mullins, L. J. (2001). Hospitality Management and Organizational Behavior (14th ed.). Essex: Pearson Education Limited.
Mullins, L. J. (2010). Management & Organizational Behavior (9th ed.). Essex: Pearson Education Limited.
Ortner, S. B. (1974). Is female to male as nature is to culture? women, culture, and society. Stanford: Stanford Press.
Parsa, H. G., Self, J. T., Njite, D., & King, T. (2005). Why restaurants fail. Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, 46(3), 304-322.
Parsa, H. G., Self, J., Sydnor-Busso, S., & Yoon, H. J. (2011). Why restaurants fail? Part IIThe impact of affiliation, location, and size on restaurant failures: results from a survival analysis. Journal of Foodservice Business Research, 14, 360-379.
Parsa, H. G., van der Rest, J.-P. I., Smith, S. R., Parsa, R. A., & Bujisic, M. (2015). Why restaurants fail? Part IV: The relationship between restaurant failures and demographic factors. Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, 56(1), 80-90.
Pimmasri, R. (2015, January 22). Prachachat. Retrieved June 19, 2015, from http://m.prachachat.net/: http://m.prachachat.net/news_detail.php?newsid=1421927688
Popham, P. (2009, December 10). The Independent. Retrieved May 23, 2014, from http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/carlo-petrini-the-slowfood-gourmet-who-started-a-revolution-1837223.html
Rosaldo, M. (1980). The use and abuse of anthropology: reflections on feminism and crosscultural understanding. Signs, 5(3), 389-417.
See, J. (2015, June 4). bk.asia-city. Retrieved June 12, 2015, from http://bk.asia-city.com/:
http://bk.asia-city.com/travel/news/chefs-bolan-thai-airways-menu
Shardlow, E. (2011, April 23). The National. Retrieved from January 8, 2015, The National: http://www.thenational.ae/lifestyle/food/the-evolving-role-of-the-female-chef-in-theprofessional-kitchen
Songvisava, D. (2014, February 3). Chef Bo Songvisava is breaking boundaries. (M. Pineda, Interviewer) Retrieved from January 19, 2015, FoodService Consultant: http://www.foodserviceconsultant.org/region/asia-pacific/chef-bo-songvisava-isbreaking-
boundaries
Stabiner, K. (2013, August 24). The New York Times. Retrieved May 23, 2014, from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/25/booming/for-a-chef-41-years-in-the-kitchen-takesits- toll.html?pagewanted=all
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2014). Gender Equality. Retrieved May 23, 2014, from
http://www.oecd.org/gender/data/balancingpaidworkunpaidworkandleisure.htm
The Restaurant Opportunities Centers United. (2012). Tipped Over the Edge: Gender Inequity in the Restaurant Industry . New York : www.rocunited.org.
Tripadvisor. (2014). Retrieved May 23, 2014, from http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g293916-d1593132-Reviews-Bo_Lan-Bangkok.html
Van Eerde, W., & Thierry, H. (1996). Vroom's expectancy models and work-related criteria: A meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 81, 575-586.
Vora, S. (2015, March 24). The New York Times. Retrieved May 5, 2015, from The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/29/travel/lanshu-chen-dining-well-whileon- the-road.html?_r=0
Vroom, V. H. (1964). Work and Motivation. New York: Wiley.
Weiss, R. S. (1994). Learning from strangers. The art and method of qualitative interview studies. New York: The Free Press.
Yin, R. K. (1981). The case study crisis: some answers. Administrative Science Quarterly, 26(1), 58-65.
Yin, R. K. (2003). Case study research, design and method (3rd ed., Vol. 15). Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Zikmund, W. G., Babin, B. J., Carr, J. C., & Griffin, M. (2013). Business Research Methods (9th ed.). South-Western, Cengage Learning.
Published
2016-04-29
How to Cite
Agmapisarn, C. (2016). Becoming Professional Female Chefs in Thailand: A Case Study of Chef Bo, Bo.lan Restaurant, Bangkok. Social Science Asia, 2(2), 23-29. Retrieved from https://socialscienceasia.nrct.go.th/index.php/SSAsia/article/view/58
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