Gender Perspective In Research Research Articles

Cardiovascular Health - Why We Need An Intersectional Sex and Gender Approach

A sex and gender perspective in research involves an appreciation for the intersectionality between sex, gender, and other social factors (i.e. sexuality, socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, etc.) with the risk and development of disease. This piece argues for the greater adoption of a sex and gender perspective in cardiovascular (CV) research. The absence of a sex and gender perspective has led to an underrepresentation of women and LGBTQ+ populations in studies and an underappreciation for both the biological and psychosocial impacts of sex and gender on pathogenesis.1,2 As a result of this insufficient understanding, these populations have faced a greater disease burden, poorer outcomes, and inequitable health interventions.3 The incorporation of a sex and gender lens in CV research will serve to lessen the burden of disease on these underserved populations through developing a greater understanding of the unique differences in the risk and progression of disease. Accordingly, this opinion piece hopes to illustrate the need for a sex and gender perspective in CV research in order to urge researchers, journal publishers, and supporting bodies to include sex and gender as a priority in future research.

Gender Perspective in Research on Interventions in Children with Experiences of Parental Gender-Based Violence: Application of GPIHR Criteria.

The aim of this study was to analyse the inclusion of a gender perspective (GP) in scientific production on interventions for a reduction in psychological distress in children who have experienced parental gender-based violence (CEXPGBV). To achieve this, a review of publications was carried out in the Web of Science, EBSCOhost, ProQuest and Cochrane Library databases. A total of 3418 records were found, and 44 items of research selected. For GP analysis, the questionnaire “Gender perspective in health research” (GPIHR) was applied and relationships with the terminology of violence were analysed, as well as the definition of term used, references to violence by men or received by women and the instruments used to assess these. Generally, the assessed studies do not contain a GP, since 70% of the GPIHR items were answered negatively. Likewise, 89% of research used general terms to refer to violence without referring to gender. These results show the importance of considering instruments such as GPIHR in both the planning and development of future research in order to avoid possible gender bias.

Gender equality, diversity, and inclusion in academia: successes and failures of the initiatives promoted by the European Union

Abstract The article summarises the scientific debate on the strengths and weaknesses of the strategies adopted by the European Union to promote gender equality in academia and the adoption of a gender perspective in research. The article focuses on introducing gender mainstreaming, promoting gender equality and structural change in research performing and financing organisations, and adopting gender action/equality plans. The discussion is structured around textual analysis of relevant EU acts, scientific literature, reports of EU funded research projects, communication and support actions. The authors discuss the critics of the various initiative and advance some considerations about what could support individuals and groups interested in promoting positive changes towards gender equality, diversity and inclusion in the academic field. The article relevance is linked to the innovation promoted by Horizon Europe, that requires all public institutions applying for Eu funding to have a Gender equality plan, and the risks that previous mistakes can be repeated hindering the process towards gender equality as in the recent past.

Psychometric Properties of the Spanish Version of the O’Kelly Women’s Beliefs Scale

In recent years, there has been increasing interest in gender perspectives in research. In this regard, the study of gender beliefs represents a growing field which has received considerable attention due to their significant societal and psychological impact. One important challenge faced by Spanish rational emotive behavioral therapy (REBT) clinicians is the dearth of instruments developed within an REBT framework to examine women’s traditional gender beliefs. The O’Kelly women’s beliefs scale (OWBS) has been used in many countries during the last decade to measure such beliefs. However, cross-cultural studies exploring the internal structure of the scale have yielded diverse factor structures and item distributions, arguably due to the exploratory nature of the analyses conducted. To address this issue and to explore whether an REBT-consistent structure was feasible, this study evaluated the psychometric properties of the OWBS in a Spanish sample. The participants were 1075 women aged between 18 and 83 years (mean age = 34.18, SD = 14.72). A confirmatory factor analysis revealed that an REBT-consistent 8-factor solution (4 irrational and 4 rational processes) presented an excellent absolute fit (RMSEA = .043, 90% CI RMSEA = .042, .044). The results support the use of both rational and irrational factors of the Spanish adaptation of the OWBS, as well as the consideration of the four inferences that originally guided the scale’s development based on the REBT theory.

Ellos de la calle: Nosotras de la Casa: Discurso patriarcal y las experiencias de mujeres que viven con el VIH/SIDA en Puerto Rico

This study aims to understand how patriarchal discourse could influence the processes of stigmatization of Puerto Rican women living with HIV/AIDS (WHA) and how this could negatively affect adherence to treatment in this population. This study is a secondary analysis of data from a larger project addressing behavioral manifestations of HIV/AIDS stigma. Three focus groups of WHA (n = 32) were analyzed. Verbalizations were related to: a) blame towards WHA for not using protection during intercourse, b) HIV/AIDS as a punishment for WHA as a result of other «promiscuous» women that came in contact with their partners, and c) stigma associated to infection via unclean needle sharing for intravenous drugs use due to WHA «not being in their house». Stigma towards WHA was related to the mean of infection, being more relevant those linked to patriarchal discourses that prevail in Puerto Rican society. The verbalizations point to an HIV stigmatizing discourse towards the feminine body enmeshed in patriarchal notions of how women should behave. Social stigmatization of HIV/AIDS should be reassessed from a gender perspective in research as well as interventions with WHA.

Managing agricultural intensification: The role of international research

Over the next 20–25 yr, global food demand is expected to increase by around 50%, largely due to demand in developing countries. The challenge is to increase production without damaging the natural resource base. Various technologies for integrated natural resource management (INRM) have been developed, but adoption has been poor, for various reasons—technical, socio-economic, and institutional. To date a great deal of past work has focused at the plot and farm level, with little farmer involvement in developing the research agenda. Work needs to be extrapolated to more sites, with greater farmer involvement in the research process, in order to answer the key question: ‘Under what conditions will rural households be encouraged to reinvest in their agroecosystems?’ Encouraging such investment involves several challenges: improving returns from such investments; creating market access for smallholder farmers; improving research–extension–farmer linkages; developing enabling policies on soil, water and biodiversity; integration of livestock–wildlife–crop systems; development of drought mitigation strategies; capacity building; better information flow; and a clearer gender perspective in research and training. A large body of successful INRM research is available from many countries in the West and in Latin America. Unfortunately much of this work is reaching sub-Saharan Africa only now, and its appropriateness to the needs of the African smallholder farmer requires verification. This paper shares some of the experiences of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), International Agricultural Research Centers (IARCs) in Africa, particularly the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT). Reference is made to some specific technologies and some limited successes with small-scale farmers in Africa.