Gender Equality Research Articles

ABSTRACT The article examines how the Belarusian opposition-in-exile strategically adapts its messaging to secure international support from ideologically diverse actors. Utilising framing theory and a multi-method approach, it explores how the opposition tailors its discourse depending on the political contexts and audiences. Communications directed towards EU institutions emphasise liberal democratic values such as human rights, gender equality, and the rule of law. In contrast, messaging tailored for Polish stakeholders downplays progressive themes and accentuates conservative and security-focused narratives, such as religious heritage and regional stability. The findings show that this normative pragmatism, expressed through flexible frame alignment, allows the opposition to navigate conflicting normative expectations, maintain political legitimacy and relevance, and build cross-ideological alliances without alienating strategically important partners.

ABSTRACT This paper aims to critically analyze the corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts of multinational oil companies (MOCs) operating in Nigeria, with a particular emphasis on evaluating how the global memorandum of understanding (GMoU) model influences the participation of rural women in heritage tourism development within the Niger Delta. A survey involving 800 rural women from across the region was conducted. Findings from the logit model reveal that cultural and traditional norms and practices often prevent rural women from actively engaging in the GMoU programs introduced by the MOCs. This suggests that unless GMoU initiatives are specifically designed to break down systemic barriers, promote equal access, and support the full participation of women – including in cultural and heritage tourism – progress toward gender equality and cultural transformation in the region may remain limited. Consequently, this could hinder poverty reduction efforts and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in sub-Saharan Africa. The study highlights the potential for the private sector to help address cultural and logistical obstacles faced by rural women and to foster gender inclusion and broader economic access through CSR initiatives in Africa.

This article explores how Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has influenced public attitudes toward gender roles, particularly in the context of (gendered) military duty. On the basis of analysis of representative national surveys of leading sociological centers in Ukraine and other data from open sources, the author explores whether there are signs of the militarization of Ukrainian society at the level of (gendered) sociocultural expectations, with an emphasis on public attitudes toward three issues: the military and its role in society including in postwar reconstruction; the roles of men during war; and the roles of women during war. The findings reveal a complex and often contradictory set of gendered attitudes. While legislative norms reinforce a binary of gender roles of men who are “defenders” and women “are defended”, societal attitudes are more fluid: many men resist the prescribed “defender” role, and women’s participation in the military is increasingly accepted. The article contributes to debates on militarization and gender equality by showing that, in the Ukrainian context, war has led to erosion of patriarchal gender norms at sociocultural level rather than to their reinforcement.

Purpose: This study examines the intricate nexus between gender, women’s land rights, and climate resilience in South Sudan, aiming to identify legal and policy frameworks that can advance the Land Equality Agenda amidst ongoing conflicts and environmental challenges. Methodology: The research employs a qualitative approach, analyzing legal documents, policy frameworks, and institutional reports, supplemented by a review of scholarly literature and policy analysis. It also incorporates insights from key stakeholders through interviews and workshop reports, providing a comprehensive understanding of the legal, social, and environmental dynamics at play. Findings: Key findings indicate that although the Transitional Constitution and Land Act recognize women’s land rights, customary laws and social norms heavily restrict women’s access and inheritance, exacerbating vulnerabilities to climate-related disasters. Climate change acts as a threat multiplier, intensifying resource scarcity, displacement, and conflict, disproportionately affecting women and marginalized groups. Institutional weaknesses, political inertia, and limited resources hinder effective implementation of reforms, while persistent cultural norms impede progress toward gender equality in land governance. Unique Contribution to Theory, Policy and Practice: Based on these findings, the study recommends comprehensive legal reforms to explicitly recognize women’s land rights, enforcement of gender quotas in land governance institutions, and strengthening customary justice systems to align with national laws. It advocates for integrated climate and land policies that prioritize women’s empowerment, capacity-building initiatives, and community-based awareness campaigns.

This study examines existing Swedish population data to investigate the evolving role of men in providing informal care for older adults, challenging the persistent stereotype of men’s limited participation. Our findings consistently show that men in Sweden are active and significant participants in a wide range of caregiving tasks. This involvement is profoundly shaped by the Swedish welfare state and cultural emphasis on gender equality, rather than solely by individual caring masculinities. We argue that the high involvement of Swedish men is a normatively supported outcome of a specific welfare structure. By critically questioning frameworks like caring masculinities and feminist ethics of care, which can inadvertently exclude men’s perspectives, we call for a re-evaluation of how male caregiving is theorized and measured globally. Recognizing these gendered patterns within their societal context is crucial for developing inclusive and equitable policies that support all caregivers.

The obstacles encountered by women in the field of theological education extend beyond their historical underrepresentation and encompass the definition, formation, and structure of theological education. This is because existing theological education is biased toward men and is founded on androcentric theology, with a patriarchal culture that is dominant in African history. To effectively incorporate women’s concerns into theological education, a paradigm shift is necessary. While gender equality is acknowledged as a fundamental concept in higher education, steps have not been taken to change the way accredited theological institutions are set up to achieve this goal. This article outlines some options for institutional transformation to centre gender issues in Protestant theological education, including gender-sensitive perspectives in curriculum design, content, pedagogy, and the necessary institutional support.

Background: Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) is a significant public health issue that intersects with education, gender equality, and human rights. In many low- and middle-income countries, socio-cultural norms and a lack of resources create substantial barriers for adolescents. Objective: This review synthesizes recent evidence on the socio-cultural and educational impacts of inadequate MHM, with a specific focus on findings from Nepal, to provide context-specific and actionable recommendations. Methods: A systematic literature review was conducted using Google Scholar, Semantic Scholar, and PubMed. The search included key terms such as "menstrual hygiene management Nepal," "cultural taboos menstruation," "school absenteeism," and "menstrual knowledge." Priority was given to peer-reviewed articles published between 2018 and 2024. Results: The synthesis reveals that profound cultural stigmas and restrictions during menstruation are pervasive, leading to fear, shame, and isolation among girls. Knowledge about menstruation is often inadequate before menarche, sourced primarily from friends and mothers with limited understanding. These factors, combined with poor school WASH facilities, directly contribute to high rates of school absenteeism, with girls reporting concentration difficulties and a decline in academic performance during their periods. Conclusion: Inadequate MHM severely constrains the educational opportunities and psychosocial well-being of adolescent girls. Effective interventions must be multi-pronged, addressing deep-seated cultural taboos through comprehensive education, improving water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) infrastructure in schools, and ensuring access to affordable menstrual products.

The World Anti-Doping Code, which shapes the lived experiences of athletes, is considered ‘gender-neutral’ and is deemed to be applied equally to men and women. Applying Feminist Institutionalist theory to data from 30 interviews with women athletes, support personnel, and anti-doping experts and executives, we find that the Code produces gendered effects on women athletes. Further, we argue that ‘gender-neutral’ rules applied equally to men and women overlook the gendered history of sport, perpetuate historical and existing gender power differences, and thus implicitly reinforce entrenched gender inequity in sport. This paper explores the interaction of gender and anti-doping and their impact on the lived experiences of women athletes within the context of sport in Australia.

This literature review synthesizes scholarly work on leadership evolution and cultural adaptation of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in East Africa, a region now constituting 44% of the global denominational membership. Employing a conceptual framework grounded in transformational leadership, contextual theology, and feminist ecclesiology, the review critically analyzes the transition for missionary-led governance to indigenous leadership models. It examines how the integration of local customs, language, and youth engagement has been pivotal to the church’s growth, while also creating tensions with doctrinal purity. A central finding is the persistent limitation of women’s leadership roles due to patriarchal norms and theological conservatism, despite advocacy and training initiatives. While these adaptive strategies have propelled growth, they also create tension with doctrine and underscore a significant gap between grassroots empowerment and formal policy. The review identifies literature limitations, including geographic bias and lack of longitudinal data. It concludes that the church’s future sustainability in East Africa hinges on developing more inclusive, contextually sensitive models that actively promote gender equity and deeper cultural integration, areas which also present key directions for future research.

This research situates urban planning as a social well-being determinant, highlighting that cities function as social habitats that shape individuals’ quality of life, as well as being physical spaces. The study emphasises the dangers of inadequate urban management, particularly when it is based on biased or incomplete information. This has the potential to exacerbate inequality and undermine the benefits of urbanisation. The present study focuses on the intersection of gender, social roles, and access to basic infrastructure, including childcare centres, elderly facilities, healthcare services, pedestrian paths, street lighting, and green areas. By addressing this critical urban issue, namely the uneven distribution of opportunities for well-being, the study contributes to the existing body of knowledge in this field. The Capability Approach, developed primarily by Amartya Sen and Martha Nussbaum, provides a theoretical framework for evaluating individuals’ freedom to pursue the lives they value. Theories of subjective well-being (SWB) are rooted in psychological and economic traditions that assess individuals’ life satisfaction, happiness, and emotional equilibrium The present study proposes a methodological framework that integrates the Capability Approach with Subjective Well-Being theory. This approach facilitates a more comprehensive measurement of citizens’ well-being, transcending the limitations of traditional gender dichotomies. The study identifies the manner in which infrastructural design affects individual capabilities and demonstrates the manner in which urban policies can foster gender equality and inclusive socio-economic development. It is therefore evident that the research provides urban planners and policymakers with actionable insights by demonstrating that equitable infrastructure provision is a cornerstone of sustainable, socially just urban development.

Establishing the policy of equal rights and opportunities in the military sector requires women to have better access to professional military education (PME); it also means developing PME to incorporate awareness of gender issues in the armed forces. Ukraine’s implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325, “Women, Peace, and Security,” provides women and men equal access to educational institutions at all levels in the security and defense sector and the inclusion of a gender component in education. Solving the issue of protecting military personnel from sexual harassment is another step on the path to creating a professional army. Education is an important factor as well, as it can raise the awareness in both men and women soldiers of the importance of gender equality and improve their ability to recognize sexual harassment, counteract it, and deal with its consequences. This study addresses the intersection of two sectors: education and the military. It is based on the results of a representative public opinion survey on women’s access to military education, an anonymous online survey, and secondary data analysis. It underlines the importance of a gender-sensitive approach to women’s access to PME, which itself plays an important role in the implementation of gender equality in the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), helping to break down stereotypes and biases that have historically limited women’s roles in the military.

In this article, the authors reflect on the power of participatory feminist research in supporting gendered knowledges and cultures of equality through a community-based education project working with women construction workers in Sylhet, northern Bangladesh. We consider the impacts of their involvement in feminist qualitative research conducted as part of the Global Gender & Cultures of Equality (GlobalGRACE) project, an international research, education and capacity building project funded through the UK government’s Global Challenges Research Fund (2017–2022). We then explore what happened next, between 2022 and 2025, after the official project ended. GlobalGRACE aimed to enhance women’s wellbeing, support self-esteem and confidence building, and promote gender equality with women construction workers from socio-economically marginalised communities. Here we reflect on the ways participant women were able to bring their agency and situated gendered knowledges through their participation to create exhibitions of films and photography, build a Manifesto of Workers Rights, and emerge beyond the project as entrepreneurs, developing a lasting social enterprise supporting over 2800 women. Travelling through the GlobalGRACE project, we thus consider participant women’s experiences as they made this journey from day-labourers on building sites to creating Protity, a women’s social enterprise supporting one another to become independent entrepreneurs running their own small businesses in Sylhet, Bangladesh.

This study is driven by the limited research on the struggles of rural women in pursuing higher education amidst the dominance of patriarchal culture, despite the significant impact of this phenomenon on improving human resource quality and promoting gender equality at the local level. The research aims to describe and analyze the motivation, family support, and social challenges faced by women in Plakpak Village, Pegantenan District, Pamekasan Regency in accessing higher education. A qualitative approach with a case study design was employed. Ten participants were selected through purposive sampling, consisting of five women with higher education backgrounds, three parents, and two community leaders. Data were collected through observation, in-depth interviews, and documentation, and analyzed using the interactive model of Miles and Huberman, which includes data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing. The findings reveal that women's motivation to pursue higher education is driven by spiritual and moral values, such as the desire to gain knowledge, elevate family dignity, and challenge gender stereotypes. Parental support, particularly from mothers and fathers, emerged as a key factor in overcoming the constraints of patriarchal norms. However, community responses remain mixed, with both support and resistance toward women's roles in higher education. The study concludes that higher education enhances women's social status but has not yet fully eliminated gender disparities due to the persistent strength of patriarchal values. The implications highlight the importance of synergy between education, family, and community in fostering gender equality in alignment with the principles of justice in Islam.

Background: The pharmacy workforce in Vietnam is rapidly evolving, but little is known about how gender and socioeconomic factors shape career intentions and sector preferences of students. Understanding these determinants is essential for healthcare workforce planning. Objective: To investigate how gender and socioeconomic determinants influence intention of pharmacy students to pursue a career and their preferred sector in Vietnam. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 462 students from 2nd to 5th year at a Vietnamese university. Demographic data, socioeconomic background, and career intentions were analyzed using chi-squared tests, multinomial logistic regression, and binary logistic regression. Results: Of 462 respondents, 71.9% intended to pursue a pharmacy career, 2.6% reported no, while 25.5% were unsure. Gender differences were evident but did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.083). Female students were more likely to choose clinical, hospital pharmacy or regulation, whereas male students showed higher preference for community, industry and academia. Binary logistic regression revealed that urban origin (OR = 1.34, 95% CI = 1.01–1.78, p = 0.041) and family encouragement (OR = 2.53, 95% CI = 1.60–3.99, p < 0.001) significantly predicted career intention, while gender and income were non-significant. Conclusions: Family encouragement and urban upbringing influence pharmacy career pursuit, while gender may shape sectoral preferences. Policies should address gender equity and enhance support for students from rural or disadvantaged backgrounds.

Achieving gender equality and empowering all women and girls is the fifth goal of the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). According to UN Women, gender inequality index in Jordan is 47.1%[*], which means that Jordan is still only at less than halfway towards achieving full gender equality. Despite the domestic and international investment to promote gender equality in Jordan and empower women, there are still gender gaps in all spheres at all levels according to the department of general statistics. Such indicators may indicate that Jordanian citizens have reservations about achieving gender equality. The objective of this quantitative research is to: explore Jordanians’ attitudes towards gender equality in Jordan, investigate the role of religion, education, and gender in shaping these attitudes. This study assumes that some factors, such as gender, religion, and level of education affect Jordanians’ perceptions of gender equality in Jordan. The study utilized the 2021-2022 Arab Barometer dataset based on a poll of public opinion on several topics, including norms and gender-recognized orientations. The study found that Jordanian males were less supportive of gender equality than the females, and that education had a positive role in increasing gender equality attitudes. On the other hand, the results of this quantitative study showed that religiosity had no significant effect on people’s attitudes toward gender equality. Based on the findings of this study, it is recommended that efforts to promote gender equality in Jordan focus on increasing education and awareness. [*] Country Snapshot. UN Women Data Hub. URL: https://data.unwomen.org/arab-states/country/jordan (accessed: 16.03.2025).

ABSTRACT In the context of this Forum on internet-mediated masculinities, this contribution examines the 2024 Kendrick Lamar–Drake feud for its reflections on contemporary standards of authenticity, respectability, and male celebrity behaviour in public life. Two of the most commercially and critically successful North American rappers trading barbs in such a widely mediated spectacle has generated a variety of online discourses about appropriate masculine gender performance – a crucial facet of hip hop authenticity – and contested feminist ideas. The piece argues that the individualistic culture of competition normalised on social media platforms and the perceived competition for attention in the digital media economy means that the feud has benefitted both artists, regardless of any lost credibility. Although misogyny and actual harm to women and girls are raised as pertinent issues during the rap feud, allegations are weaponised as aspects of improper male behaviour rather than actual problems that need addressing. Nonetheless, there are grounds for a feminist reading of how audiences celebrated Kendrick Lamar’s win, aligned with popular conceptions of social justice, gender equality, and a desire to see male abuses of power confronted in the public sphere.

In the context of media fragmentation and declining public trust in mainstream journalism, independent podcasts in Indonesia have emerged as alternative spaces for public discourse. These digital platforms enable marginalized voices and critical narratives to reach wider audiences, offering an avenue for civic engagement and grassroots activism. This study aims to explore how independent podcasts contribute to the formation of social awareness, identify the communication strategies used by podcasters, and map patterns of listener interaction as a form of participatory citizenship. Employing a qualitative approach, the research integrates digital ethnography, semi-structured interviews, and critical discourse analysis. Data were collected from 15 independent podcast channels, 12 in-depth interviews with podcasters and active listeners, and content analysis of 30 podcast episodes discussing social, political, and environmental themes. The findings reveal that independent podcasters act as organic intellectuals who use personal storytelling, emotional resonance, and ideological framing to raise social consciousness. The most common themes include human rights, labor issues, gender equality, and environmental justice. Audience engagement extends beyond listening—listeners share content, participate in discussions, donate, and even mobilize offline action. The study recommends supporting independent podcast production through funding, training in critical media literacy, and expanding accessibility to underserved communities. Independent podcasts represent not only an emerging media form but also a democratic communication model capable of reshaping public dialogue in Indonesia.

ABSTRACT: This article delves into the relationship between intellectual property and sustainable development goals. The article will try to investigate whether there is an underrepresentation of women in patent filing and, if yes, then what the barriers and biases are within the innovation ecosystem. The article will try to explore strategies to remove the gender gap, if any, and promote gender equality in patent filing and ownership to contribute to achieving sustainable development goals, specifically Goal 5 of Sustainable Development Goals which seeks to ensure equal rights and equal opportunities for every woman in all spheres of life.

This case study examines how the Metropolitan University of Ecuador (UMET, Guayaquil campus) has advanced in the institutionalization of the Third Mission by aligning community projects with SDGs 3, 4, 5, 11, and 12. Using a descriptive-analytical design, the study combined documentary analysis of six projects (sexual and reproductive health, gender equality, values education, and recycling) with semi-structured interviews conducted with faculty members experienced in community engagement. The results highlight the active participation of students and faculty, the articulation of outreach with teaching and research, and the establishment of partnerships with schools, local governments, and organizations. Immediate outcomes included increased knowledge of sexual health, women’s empowerment and social reintegration, improvements in school coexistence, and behavioral changes in waste management. At the same time, limitations were observed regarding the long-term evaluation of social impact, the standardization of indicators, and the full curricular integration of community engagement, alongside some fragmentation across initiatives. The discussion places these findings within the international debate on universities and sustainability, emphasizing that relevance and legitimacy are reinforced when clear institutional policies, monitoring systems, and alignment with national public policies are in place. The study concludes that the Third Mission can function as a driver of social innovation and context-based professional training; it recommends strengthening governance, embedding outreach within the curriculum, and developing longitudinal metrics to assess community transformations.

The relationship between gender role attitudes and career choices among nursing students: A cross-sectional study.