Female Role Models Research Articles

Scope for change.

Scope for change.

Teaching Edith Wharton’s Major Novels and Short Fiction

Teaching Edith Wharton’s Major Novels and Short Fiction

Gender Gap or Gender Differences? Gender and Political Participation in Canada

Unequal participation in certain types of political engagement creates unequal influence on political and civil matters (Boulianne, 2022). Studies find that men and women tend to do a similar amount of political participation, with women engaging in more private and flexible forms, and men participating in more direct and collective forms (Bode, 2017; Coffé & Bolzendahl, 2010; Van Duyn et al., 2019; Pfanzelt & Spies, 2019). However, more data is needed when considering Canadian trends, especially when it comes to the causes of these trends. In this study, I conduct statistical analysis of secondary data from a February 2021 Canadian survey (n=1,568) designed by Dr. Shelley Boulianne. I determine which forms of political participation have gendered participation gaps and whether or not these are related to conflict avoidance tendencies and having political female role models. I find few gender differences in political participation. Some small gender differences persist in online forms of political participation, such as signing petitions online and commenting on news sites. Men were more likely post comments on news sites, compared to women; women more likely to sign online petitions, compared to men. As such, political participation moves online, the gender gap may be reproducing itself in online spaces.

Fictional politainment: Exposure to international television drama and attitude toward female politicians

We examine the relationship between media use motivations and attitudes toward female politicians by proposing a conceptual model explaining the role of key mediating variables such as identification, narrative transportation, enjoyment, and political self-efficacy in influencing the attitude of the viewers of international TV drama towards female role models (politicians). We investigated the direct and indirect effects between media use motivations and attitudes toward female politicians by recruiting 359 students from two large public universities in the Southeastern United States. The hypothesized model supported the evidence presented in extant scholarship, suggesting that a meaningful entertainment experience could foster an appreciation of the fictional televisual entertainment and positively change attitudes toward female lead characters playing the role of a viable and competent politician. This study resonates with politicians, academics, and activists’ concerns that a positive media portrayal could promote the acceptability of female leaders in powerful positions. Our study clarifies the direct and indirect effects between media use motivations and attitudes toward female politicians and the role of crucial mediating variables such as identification, narrative transportation, enjoyment, and political self-efficacy in influencing the attitude of the viewers of international TV drama towards female politicians.

Spillover effects of quota or parity laws: The case of Ecuador women mayors

AbstractThis article considers whether quota or parity laws designed to improve the representation of women in plurinominal elections have a spillover effect to uninominal elections. It tests empirically the effects of quota and parity legislations implemented in Ecuador for plurinominal elections on the proportion of women elected as mayors. Based on an unpublished database, our results show that, after the implementation of such legislation, the probability of a woman being elected as mayor almost doubles (ceteris paribus). We also find evidence that a possible causal chain effect of the documented spillover effects is the increasing importance of female role models, motivated by institutional changes shaped by the new legislation.

Guides to Heavenly Mother

Guides to Heavenly Mother

A Haredi Myth of Female Leadership: Rebbetzin Batsheva Kanievsky

Rebbetzin Batsheva Kanievsky (1932–2011) served as a spiritual guide for many; her prominence and influence were a unique phenomenon in the Haredi (Jewish ultra-Orthodox) community in which she grew up, where women, lacking Talmudic knowledge or other sources of authority, are generally found only at the margins of the public sphere. Her multi-faceted activity was focused on offering blessings and advice. She also innovated a few segulot (magical techniques) and religious rituals. Her leadership is characterized, on the one hand, by the preservation and even strengthening of the existing Lithuanian Haredi ethos, particularly in the context of the wife’s complete self-abnegation for her husband’s Torah study. On the other hand, it fostered emotional and experiential elements that are closer to the ethos of the Hasidic and Sephardi communities and are associated with folk piety and a quasi-magical orientation. Rebbetzin Kanievsky thus created a type of female religious leadership that can be characterized as anti-leadership, in which she embodied the Haredi conception of ideal womanhood. Consequently, she was not perceived as a threat to Haredi values but rather as their promoter. However, this model of leadership enabled her to break, almost despite herself, the limitations of the gender hierarchy of the Haredi community and serve as an almost singular female role model in that community’s pantheon.

Is Same-Gender Mentorship Important for Division III Female College Athletes?: An Application of the Mentor Role Theory

In the last twenty years, opportunities for women in intercollegiate athletics have grown exponentially. Unfortunately, women still represent a small number of head coaches in intercollegiate athletics, creating a disparity in numbers between female college athletes and female head coaches. This disparity has led to an imbalance for female college athletes searching for female role models and mentors. This study investigated the mentoring experiences of NCAA Division III female college athletes based on their lived experiences with both male and female head coaches. Using Mentor Role Theory (MRT), a set of qualitative responses were collected and analyzed. The participants highlighted career and psychosocial functions of MRT, with responses emphasizing positive and negative experiences with their past and present head coaches. Overall, female college athletes noted the importance of both career and psychosocial functions in their experiences with both male and female coaches. However, the college athletes’ experiences with their female head coaches were predominately positive, whereas, the participants were found to hold mixed experiences (both positive and negative) with their male coaches. The authors discuss the implications of these findings for Division III athletics, mentor role theory, and the importance of the coach/athlete relationship.

Counter-stereotypical female role models and women’s occupational choices

This paper examines the relation between counter-stereotypical female role models and women’s labor supply and occupational choices. Using hand-collected data from Gallup surveys that cover more than 50 years, we create a direct measure of counter-stereotypical female role models based on the fraction of local survey respondents who state that they admire famous women in business, politics, or science. We show that admiring counter-stereotypical female role models is associated with more women participating in the labor market, working in male-dominated and STEM industries, and taking managerial positions, which eventually alleviates the gender pay gap.

Role models as a factor influencing career choice among female surgical residents in Saudi Arabia: a cross-sectional study

Background and purposeRole models in the medical field are professional and experienced persons whose actions unconsciously inspire juniors to strive to be like them. To our knowledge, no studies have examined whether having a female surgical role model has influenced women to pursue a surgical career in Saudi Arabia. Hence, we sought to evaluate whether identifying role models in surgery influences career choice and defined the ideal qualities of a surgical role model as perceived by newly qualified doctors.MethodsWe employed a cross-sectional, survey- based study design, conducted between June 2020 and January 2021, in which female surgical residents completed a questionnaire about their perceptions and influence of role models in general surgery specialty at the time they pursue a career in surgery.ResultsA total of 51 respondents completed the questionnaire. The majority of them (78.4%) had a role model and (19.6%) indicated that their role model was a female. Of those who had a role model, (67.5%) agreed that they experienced a positive influence on their surgical career choice. Clinical and operation skills were reported as the most remarkable factor to be considered in their role models. Working directly with a male surgical consultant and female surgical residents imprinted a positive influence but this did not reach a statistical significance.ConclusionThe findings of this article contribute empirically to the strong effects of the same-sex role models and highlight the curial role of surgical residents in influencing female’s career choices in general surgery as an achievable and attainable domain. Which encourage the creation of national mentorship programs and exploring more in barriers for pursuing a surgical career.

The Impact of Female Role Models Leading a Group Mentoring Program to Promote STEM Vocations among Young Girls

From an early age, girls disregard studies related to science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM), and this means that a gender gap begins during secondary education and continues to increase over time. Multiple causes have been identified for this phenomenon in the literature, and numerous initiatives are being carried out to reverse this situation. In this paper, we analyze the impact that a group mentoring initiative led by a female STEM role model had on the young people who participated and whether the impact was different based on their sex. We analyzed how these mentoring sessions affected their attitudes towards technology, mathematical self-efficacy, gender stereotypes, science and technology references, and career vocations. To this end, 303 students between the ages of 10 and 12 years old from 10 schools in Spain participated in the six sessions comprising the program and completed a series of questionnaires before and after participating. The results show that the program had an impact on the students’ attitudes towards technology, increased the number of female STEM references they knew, and improved their opinions of vocations and professions related to science and technology. The impact was greater among girls, although in aspects such as attitudes towards technology, the female participants still demonstrated lower values than boys. The program did not improve the stereotypes that the young participants had about mathematical self-efficacy, which was also always lower among girls. We conclude that the lack of STEM vocations among girls is rooted in multiple social, educational, and personal aspects that need to be addressed from a very early age and that should involve multiple agents.

**DEADLINE EXTENDED** Nominate a female pharmacy professional for our Women to Watch 2022 list

The Pharmaceutical Journal is once again launching a nationwide search to find women in the pharmacy profession who are achieving great things and deserve greater recognition. We want to identify female role models within the pharmacy profession who can inspire others, as well as encourage the future generation of female pharmacy professionals to be brave […]

Gender balance and impact of role models in secondary science education

Exposure to inspirational and relatable role models is crucial towards fostering engagement of learners with scientific disciplines. However, the representation of scientists in popular culture is still far from being adequately gender- and race-inclusive. This study evaluated the gender balance and impact of scientific role models using a two-pronged experimental approach. The gender balance was investigated in search engines, online databases, and school curricula. A survey was used to investigate English secondary students’ awareness of role models and intentions to pursue further scientific studies. Our findings revealed a widespread female underrepresentation amongst scientific role models in all the analysed online sources and in high school curricula provided by the three main English exam boards. The survey (n = 356) revealed that students were considerably more likely to identify famous male than female scientists. While awareness of female role models was significantly associated with students’ gender, this was not the case for male role models. A statistically significant correlation was also observed between the number of identified role models and intentions to pursue scientific studies in Key Stage 4 girls. This study reinforces the urgency of ensuring school curricula and online resources provide a more modern and inclusive representation of scientists.

GIRLS' EDUCATION POLICY IN SUDAN: CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS

Girls' education in the 21st Century, is not only a women's issue it is a development issue. Girls' education is `positively correlated with increased economic productivity, more robust labor markets, higher earnings, and improved societal health and well-being. Nevertheless, Sudan has witnessed low development of girls' education because of the country's traditions. Parents tended to look upon girls' education with suspicion, if not fear, that it would corrupt the morals of their daughters. Moreover, preference was given to sons, who, by education, could advance in society to the pride and profit of their family. Therefore, this study aimed to assess girls' education policy in Sudan. In doing so, this study followed a descriptive qualitative approach to the type of library research in which the data collection technique was carried out based on literature data. The study confirmed that there are several barriers to girls' education in Sudan including economic factors (i.e. cost of educational materials, girls are needed at home to contribute to the household economy), cultural factors (early marriages, tradition, and customs), and school factors (motivation as the lack of female role models). The researcher suggests that the authorities should enforce laws against the marriage of young girls. In addition, schools should be built in such a way that they are close to villages, allowing girls to attend. Furthermore, the nomads should be given lectures to be aware of the necessity of girls' education

GIRLS' EDUCATION POLICY IN SUDAN: CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS

Girls' education in the 21st Century, is not only a women's issue it is a development issue. Girls' education is `positively correlated with increased economic productivity, more robust labour markets, higher earnings, and improved societal health and well-being. Therefore, this study aimed to assess girls' education policy in Sudan. In doing so, this study followed a descriptive qualitative approach to the type of library research in which the data collection technique was carried out based on literature data. The study confirmed that there are several barriers to girls' education in Sudan including economic factors (i.e. poverty, cost of educational materials, girls are needed at home to contribute to the household economy), cultural factors (early marriages, tradition, and customs), and school factors (motivation as the lack of female role models). The researcher suggests that the authorities should enforce laws against the marriage of young girls. In addition, schools should be built in such a way that they are close to villages, allowing girls to attend. Furthermore, the nomads should be given lectures to be aware of the necessity of girls' education.

Who gets to be the hero(ine)? Analysing female and male role models in Japanese textbooks of English as a foreign language

Research on textbooks of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in Japan has pointed out issues in gender and ethnic representation. Sustained efforts to achieve equal representation of both subjects have led to more balanced contents, but the problem has not yet been overcome. The aim of this paper is to address how the ‘role model’ genre found in Japanese EFL high school textbooks perpetuates negative stereotypes and ideologies through consistent misrepresentation. The findings point to an under-representation of female, foreign and diverse characters, often relegated to submissive archetypes (such as nature and environmental concerns) as opposed to the athletes, winners and successful individuals portrayed by active Japanese male characters.

The influence of career panels on student perceptions, attitudes, and intentions toward the information systems profession

ABSTRACTExposure to role models has been recommended as a way to attract and retain students in Information Systems (IS) programs. One way to accomplish this exposure in IS classrooms is with career panels of alumni professionals who offer a realistic perspective of various IS‐related roles and can frankly answer questions from students. For this study, we developed a comprehensive survey instrument based on published literature in order to examine the perceptions and attitudes of business students pre‐ and post‐ exposure to career panels and to validate that career panels indeed positively influence student perceptions and attitudes about IS. Female role models have also been espoused as a way to mitigate negative stereotypes, such as the IS field being a masculine domain or that a desirable work‐life balance is difficult to achieve. Our experimental design varied the gender mix of professionals between all‐male, all‐female, and mixed panels. We found that perceptions affect attitudes, and attitudes, in turn, influence intention to study IS. We also found that these role models positively influence perceptions of IS and that mixed panels influence perceptions more than all‐female and all‐male panels. In addition, we found that female students do not respond differently than male students to all‐female panels.

Female mentors positively contribute to undergraduate STEM research experiences.

The positive influence of undergraduate research and mentoring on student success in STEM fields has been well-established. However, the role that the gender of a research mentor may play in the undergraduate research experience warrants further investigation. This is an especially critical issue to address, since the lack of female role models in STEM fields is acknowledged as an impediment to the success and progress of women pursuing STEM-careers. To evaluate how the gender of undergraduate research mentors influences the research experience of students, we collected and analyzed surveys from undergraduates and alumni who had completed undergraduate research at the University of Nebraska at Kearney. We found that even though students did not select mentors based on gender, there were differences in how students perceived their mentors, depending on the gender of their mentors. Interestingly, students with female mentors were more likely than students with male mentors to report that their research experience had prepared them for a career in science. Further, our gender-pairing analyses revealed that students who expressed that the gender of their mentor had contributed to their relationship with their mentor were more likely to have a female mentor. Our data indicate that female mentors favorably influence the undergraduate research experience of both male and female students. Finally, our study reinforces the conclusions of previous studies demonstrating that undergraduate research and mentoring are beneficial for students. Overall, our findings support that, for students to fully benefit from their undergraduate research experience, undergraduate research opportunities for students should include an equitable representation of female mentors.

Applying Machine Learning to Health Care: Improving access for all [WIE From Around the World

Growing up in India, Dr. Jayashree Kalpathy-Cramer listened to her mother talk about her work as a physics professor who taught electronics, and it piqued her interest in engineering. She calls this a position of both privilege and good fortune, in that having a female role model so highly educated was not the norm. While at the time, the concept of education in India was seen as a ticket to a good life for anyone, Kalpathy-Cramer was in many ways a first-generation woman in her family to not have to fight for the opportunity.

Ah!Nana’s Fairytale Punk-Comics: From the Comtesse de Ségur’s “Histoire de Blondine, Bonne-Biche et Beau-Minon” to Nicole Claveloux’s “Histoire de Blondasse, de Belle-Biche et Gros Chachat”

Abstract During its brief existence from 1976 to 1978 the French underground feminist magazine Ah!Nana represented a powerful medium to discuss various topics related to women, sexuality, and discrimination. One of its main goals was to challenge traditional (literary) female role models, including housewives, submissive mothers, and “damsels in distress.” Through the adaptation of fairy tales, a genre particularly suited through its imaginative worlds to challenge preconceptions and norms, Ah!Nana deconstructed and questioned binary gender roles and heteronormativity. This article analyzes cartoon artist Nicole Claveloux’s queer adaptation of the nineteenth-century fairy tale “Histoire de Blondine, Bonne-Biche et Beau-Minon” (Blondine, the Good Doe, and the Gallant Cat) by the Comtesse de Ségur. Claveloux addresses her queer parody to an adult audience, and conveys a new perspective on gender, sexuality, and humanness that is in line with Ah!Nana’s promotion of second-wave feminist standpoints and punk culture. She advocates the exploration of new sexual pleasures, and the disruption of bourgeoisie values, including binary gender roles.