Gender Lens Research Articles

Unpacking women’s work during the COVID-19 pandemic in India: a feminist analysis of mainstream print media

ABSTRACT This paper explores mainstream print media depictions of women’s work during COVID-19 and associated lockdowns in India. Specifically, it aims to understand perceptions of educated upper- and middle-class women regarding remote working arrangements during the pandemic. It delineates two broad themes that emerge from an analysis of selected articles in four national dailies; first, many women regarded these arrangements as mutually beneficial for women employees as well as their workplaces, and its counternarrative characterised by women having to juggle paid and care work with little support from the family, market or state. The paper then unpacks the arrangement of work from home that emerges in the media analysis and offers a critique of the simplistic and binary understanding of flexibility, choice, and agency sustained by the neoliberal and postfeminist framing of pandemic work arrangements. Our analysis provides a feminist critique of these dominant perceptions that invisibilise the complexity and heterogeneity embedded within women’s experiences. Finally, the paper reiterates the urgent need to consider the structural factors that undermine gender equality across work and home; and pushes for a rethink of neoliberal and postfeminist notions of ‘flexibility’, ‘choice’ and ‘agency’ through the intersecting lenses of gender, labour, care work, and time.

A Critical Review of Servant Leadership Through the Lens of Gender and Race-Ethnicity

A Critical Review of Servant Leadership Through the Lens of Gender and Race-Ethnicity

The Gig Economy Through a Gender Lens: A Review of Women’s Experiences of Gig Work

The Gig Economy Through a Gender Lens: A Review of Women’s Experiences of Gig Work

The Interplay of Public/Private and Agent/Victim Dualism in Sustainable Living Practice: Indonesia’s Case

An examination of sustainable living practices through the lens of ecofeminism is the subject of this article. In this article, sustainable living practices refers to the actual implementation of environmentalism ideas in everyday situation. The selection of this subject is deemed significant due to the prevailing trend in environmental literature to associate it as pro-environmental behaviour that, unlike environmental activism, exclusively with the uppermiddle class, thereby rendering it feeble, apolitical, and inconsequential. This study aims to evaluate the correlation between pro-environmental behaviour and environmental action and activism by examining sustainable living practices through the lens of gender. Departing from Ecofeminism, it attempts to incorporate insights from relevant literature to enhance the discussion. Availing from exploratory field observations, this study uses Indonesia as a case studies. The study found that, in addition to the availability of social media and spiritualfactors, there are educational orientation that, related to cultural and religious aspects, bridges private/public elements as well as agents/victims division in Ecofeminism discourse. The transformation of the movement’s character from individualist to collectivist is influenced by global political dynamics, as well as showing the moral and spiritual orientation of this movement. Keywords: sustainable living practice, ecofeminism, environmental care, pro-environmental behaviour, environmental activism

Misdiagnosis, Missed Diagnosis, and Delayed Diagnosis of Lupus: A Qualitative Study of Rheumatologists.

Diagnostic errors in outpatient settings lead to significant consequences, especially in rare diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). A recent vignette-based experimental study revealed that demographic factors influenced rheumatologists' diagnoses of SLE, raising concerns about potential diagnostic biases. We conducted a qualitative study to contextualize these results to generate insights about diagnostic challenges and biases, and root causes. We conducted 41 semistructured interviews among US rheumatologists. Transcripts were independently coded by at least two coders using a hybrid deductive-inductive approach and thematic analysis. A team of four researchers reviewed and defined themes collectively, and also resolved any discrepancies. Participants were 66% women, and 49% had more than10 years of postfellowship experience. Five major themes were generated, including receiving training through the lens of race or sex, the role of the documented epidemiology of SLE, pattern recognition and test-taking strategies, patient vignettes as an imperfect proxy for patient interactions, and varied consequences to patients from diagnostic bias. Participants noted that the consequences of diagnostic bias could include progressed disease from delayed diagnosis, unnecessary and inappropriate treatment due to missed diagnosis or misdiagnosis, and increased cost and harm. This study underscores the unique challenges of diagnosing SLE, with complex factors contributing to diagnosis bias and delays. Interventions during medical education could prevent downstream diagnostic biases. Future research should explore interventions to mitigate diagnostic bias and refine vignettes to better mirror real-world clinical scenarios. Understanding diagnostic bias in SLE is crucial for improving patient outcomes and refining medical training practices.

Crafting gender into meaningful work: experiences of women engaging in social entrepreneurship in China

Purpose Social entrepreneurship, leveraging economic activities to achieve social benefits, offers women the opportunity to freely and actively shape the contours of their work in meaningful ways. This study aims to examine how Chinese women use job crafting in social entrepreneurship to align their gender identity, forge meaningful work and new relationships and navigate mixed gender expectations. Design/methodology/approach The study is based on 19 in-depth interviews with young women engaging in social entrepreneurship in China. Using a grounded theory approach, the study explores how women craft their gender identity into the unconventional career path of creating their social venture, focusing on the creative combination of task, relational and cognitive crafting in shaping social entrepreneurship. Findings The findings suggest that women make social entrepreneurship meaningful by actively aligning their gender experiences to delineate a relational and cognitive causal path between their social enterprise, their identity as women and their moral values. By working for a larger social cause, women may cognitively reframe their gender identity to compromise financial performance for social impact. Originality/value Current studies on social entrepreneurship in China have yet to examine its development through a gender lens. This study uses job crafting to highlight the distinctive gender meaning-making process for Chinese women to enhance their work identity and to challenge normative gender expectations. The study shows that job crafting enables women to view their social ventures as a means of gender empowerment, helping them to reconcile the paradoxical pressures of normative gender expectations and scaling up their businesses.

Visual outcome in Keratoconus with spherical rigid gas permeable contact lens

Introduction: Keratoconus is a bileteral asymetric progressive ecteria of cornea commonly associated with vernal keratoconjunctivitis and Atopic dermatitis. Rigid gas permeable (RGP) contact lens is the first choice for refractive correction in keratoconic eyes. The visual outcome in Keratoconus with spherical RGP contact lens along with the mean age of presentation, gender predominance, ethnicity, associated conditions, refractive error and corneal astigmatism was evaluated. Methods: The records of the Keratoconus patients attending cornea and contact lens clinic for last 6 years were reviewed and analyzed using SPSS-14 software. Data on laterality, race, age, gender, refractive error, visual acuity (VA), associated conditions and contact lens parameters were obtained. A total of 22 patients with 38 keratoconic eyes were included in the study. Results: The mean age of Keratoconus presentation was 18.11 ± 4.45 years. Sixteen cases (72.73 %) were bilateral; 6 (27.27 %) were unilateral. Mean uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) was 0.86 ± 0.40 Log MAR. Mean spectacle visual acuity was 0.54 ± 0.38 Log MAR. Mean visual acuity with spherical RGP contact lenses was 0.08 ± 0.14 Log MAR. The difference between mean spectacle visual acuity and mean VA with spherical RGP contact lens was statistically significant (p < 0.001). Conclusion: In all stages of Keratoconus, improvement in visual acuity with spherical RGP contact lens was highly significant.

Understanding food safety challenges through a gender and social lens in low‐ and middle‐income countries

AbstractFood safety is crucial for ensuring the quality and safety of the global food supply. However, the gender and social dimensions of food safety are often overlooked and undervalued. Women, who are primary caretakers in households, play a vital role in food preparation, storage, and consumption. Gender inequality can result in limited access to resources and information needed for safe food handling and storage, increasing women's vulnerability to foodborne illnesses. Cultural practices, education, and income levels also impact food safety. These factors can contribute to disparities in food safety and increase the risk of foodborne illnesses among certain populations. Promoting gender equality, cultural sensitivity, and addressing income inequality are essential to ensure safe and secure food for all. Addressing these issues can lead to a more equitable and sustainable food system.

Gender and Security in International Relations: Understanding Narrative Approach to Security

The article critically analyses the concept of security in the discipline of International Relations. With the focus on war and states, the idea of security has become oblivious of how force and organised violence along with security policies affect bodies. With the aim to demystify certain foundational assumption of the security discourse, the article uses gender as a categorical variable while analysing security. By applying gender lens to the idea of security, it tries to understand the growing militarisation of security in the discourse of security. The article proposes that a gender lens be used to understand and evaluate the security policies so that the comprehensive impact of ‘security policies’ on ‘bodies’ (individuals) can be comprehensively understood. In this context, the article notes importance of ‘a narrative approach to security’ to have a more comprehensive understanding of the implications of security policies.

Socialising feminism and diversity: the use of gender in young female readers' literary attachments and exclusions

AbstractThis article discusses young women's reading practices and the social uses of literature for enabling gender equality that are present in those practices. Through a digital ethnography study where six young women collaborated as participants, I asked the data: How is literature, precisely its capacity to be used, conceived by young women readers in the search for gender equality? These women's reading engagements are tightly woven with a gender perspective. What are these readers embracing, and what are they rejecting by assuming a gender lens? By tracing these attachments and exclusions, I describe how books affect readers' perspectives and practices on their identities, their choice of authors, the cultural value of books, the social representations of books and reading as education. Participants' close and distant connections between the book and their desire for gender equality allow me to discuss the literature's pedagogical instrumentality and uselessness for achieving gender‐inclusive literacy. Finally, I argue that a plural and non‐functional approach to literature could offer young people heterogeneous and more creative forms to approach the challenge of gender equality.

Territorial control by non-state armed groups and gendered access to healthcare in conflict using a new complex adaptive systems framework

The growing prevalence and influence of non-state armed groups (NSAGs) in armed conflict requires a deeper understanding of how their territorial control and contestation affect sub-national healthcare availability and outcomes, particularly with regards to gender dynamics. However, there are gaps in existing research in understanding how NSAG governance influences health care outcomes. Furthermore, a disconnect exists between the literature on international humanitarian interventions, NSAG governance and national health systems. Each perspective tends to prioritise a specific health service provider—whether NSAGs, State actors, or international humanitarian organisations—and often treats populations as homogenous. To address these gaps, we propose a complex adaptive system framework centred on the influence of territorial control for health services in intra-state conflict settings, with a gender lens. This systems framework accounts for the influence of all parties significant for health service delivery. It recognises that those governing the localised health system may differ from those physically delivering health services. Our framework enables empirical examination of health service delivery and outcomes. We apply the framework to three conflict-affected settings (Colombia, Iraq, Mali) using publicly available data and offer recommendations for policymakers and practitioners targeting health service provision in intra-state conflict contexts.

Equality in higher education opportunities: Practitioners’ perspectives from global, rural, post-colonial disability

This paper gathers practitioner perspectives on tuition-free online courses and their potential to improve equality in higher education. Through an intersectional lens of race, gender, income, and indigeneity, this paper focuses on the experience of people living with disabilities (PLWD) as a further marginalized sub-population within diverse marginalized populations. Of note, disability-knowledge held by PLWD and by their family members can position them as sensitive and effective healthcare or disability-care providers. At the same time, society often does not grant an easy pathway to this education and licensure. The existing landscape of massive open online courses (MOOCs) may present tuition-free learning, but accreditation can rest upon payment and other complex structures. Even after PLWDs gather financial resources for official accreditation, prospective employers have the autonomy to determine whether this learning is valid. In a global context, low-income families may experience internal competition for financing between PLWD and non-disabled siblings. Securing a future in which payment models and disability-needs are accommodated for in MOOCs can alter multiple life trajectories in the families of PLWD and ensure that the intersectionally marginalized may equally benefit from open education.

The Spiritual Turn and “Feminization”: Turning a Gender Lens on Spirituality

Abstract Although women and men identify as “spiritual” in similar numbers, far more women participate in the holistic milieu. We seek to solve this “gender puzzle” by fleshing out the gender scripts the holistic milieu fosters, and their varying relationships to the wider gender order. Surveying existing scholarship, we show that, for women, participation serves to naturalize a script of postfeminist femininity that combines gender essentialism with politically liberal commitments, is consonant with “difference” feminism, and holds an accommodationist relationship to the wider gender order. By contrast, for men, participation in the holistic milieu naturalizes a script of feminine masculinity (or male femininity) that, while also shaped by postfeminist culture, is comparatively counter-hegemonic, embodying a more radical challenge to the current gender order. This theoretical perspective enables us to explain not only why more women than men participate in the holistic milieu, but also why some women opt out, while some men opt in. Furthermore, it illuminates the pivotal place of gender in ongoing trends in the religious, and increasingly spiritual, landscape.

Retelling of Indian Mythological Stories Through Gender and Multi-Cultural Perspective and Analysis of Retelling

The research delves into exploring Indian mythology through gender and multicultural perspectives, employing a multidisciplinary approach to analyse contemporary retellings of myths. It evaluates how these retellings reinterpret traditional narratives, characters, and themes from diverse cultural and gender viewpoints. Data collection involves secondary analysis of literary works and primary data through interviews, using a purposive sampling method. The study aims to uncover socio-cultural, psychological, and ideological implications within these retellings. By examining diverse perspectives, the research argues that such reimaginations enrich cultural heritage and foster a more inclusive society. This exploration serves as a springboard for further discussions on storytelling’s significance in shaping societal norms. In conclusion, analysing retellings of Indian mythology through gender and multicultural lenses challenges traditional narratives, fostering inclusivity, and shaping a progressive understanding of our shared cultural heritage.

"Delving İnto The Dichotomy Of Mother Earth and Fatherland in 'The Wanderground' and 'The Cleft”

This study examines the relationship between women and nature in Doris Lessing's The Cleft and Sally Miller Gearhart's The Wanderground through using gender and ecofeminist lenses. Women's oppression is analogous to nature's oppression. Therefore, this article shows how a patriarchal (or male-dominated) society treats both nature and women and how society's standards unfairly dominate both. Both writers Sally Miller Gearhart and Doris Lessing argue that women and the environment, including (animals) are crucial to ecofeminism studies and practice; women may solve gender issues only by utilizing natural materials. The present piece portrays the female characters in both works acquiring an understanding of the underlying reasons behind every instance of misery they encounter in their lives. As a result, women attempt to escape the machismo society and create a nature-filled utopia (devoid of males). Although some women continue to live with men, they always opt for separation. Finally, this work shows how Gearhart's utopia is the outcome and redemption of The Cleft’s dystopia.

Interpreting Workplace Bullying in Higher Education Institutions in India: Through the Lens of Gender

This article attempts to explore the prevalence, forms and responses to workplace bullying through a gendered lens using the theory of gendered organisation and gender role socialisation theory. The study is conducted among faculty in higher education institutions in India, and the article also discusses the context of new managerialism prevalent in higher education institutions. Adopting, interpretive phenomenological analysis, data are collected from 13 respondents using semi-structured in-depth interviews. The data reveal that workplace bullying in higher education institutions is gendered. The five major themes identified are the prevalence of bullying, gender differences in types of bullying, gender and leadership position, gender and responses to bullying and gender roles and reasons for bullying. The article contributes at micro level, the influence of gender in academics on the level of bullying, the types of bullying techniques preferred by them, and the variation in their behavioural reactions. This study broadens the perspective of workplace bullying in higher education institutions through the concepts of gender, culture and new managerialism.

Gamification towards and alongside equity, diversity and inclusion: Looking back to move forward

Given the urgent need for environments that enable everyone in fulfilling their fullest potential, many new media innovations have focused on equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) actions. Gamification is one of these innovations, becoming a promising avenue to engage people towards effective social change. Yet, the intersection between EDI and gamification is incipient and fragmented, preventing a comprehensive understanding of current findings and future advancements in this field. This literature review systematically investigates the meanings, methods and effects of gamification in EDI actions (i.e. gamification towards EDI), and the design of equitable, diverse and inclusive gamification (i.e. gamification alongside EDI). Results elucidate how gamification improves performance, enriches experiences and fosters change, while analysing its design through gender, age and disability lenses. Future work calls for broader and deeper gamified EDI interventions informed by social sciences, diverse people-oriented design and empirical demonstration of sustainable social change.

Women, peace and insecurity: The risks of peacebuilding in everyday life for women in Sri Lanka and Nepal.

Truth telling processes, initiatives to prosecute war-time perpetrators, and ex-combatant reintegration are examples of common peacebuilding practices after war. Yet, little is known of how women are affected by peacebuilding initiatives such as these, or how they perceive these initiatives for peace. For many women, peace after war does not bring peace to everyday life; research shows that domestic violence increases during and after war. In addition, some peacebuilding measures have been found to increase risk and insecurity, not least for women. To better understand the interconnections between gender and post-conflict attitudes to peacebuilding, we asked 2,041 women and men in Sri Lanka and Nepal of their views on post-war peace initiatives. In line with our expectations, we find that women are more skeptical than men towards peacebuilding measures that involve increased risk in everyday life, such as truth-telling and coexisting with former adversaries and warring groups reintegrating in local communities. There are no gender differences pertaining to peacebuilding initiatives that take place far away at the national level, for example, concerning accountability or, in the case of Nepal, the peace agreement. Our findings suggest that international peacebuilding practice is blind to the everyday insecurities of women after war. That a basic gendered lens is missing from most peacebuilding designs is both alarming and deeply troubling, but identifying this critical aspect provides the opportunity for imperative change. By shedding light on the challenges women face after war, we hope this article contributes to finding ways to mitigate unknown and unintended side-effects of peacebuilding efforts, and thereby to the development of better, evidence-based peacebuilding practice-of benefit to both men and women.

Knowledge of gendered needs among the planners and policy makers for prevention of NCDs in Bangladesh: a qualitative exploration

BackgroundGlobally, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are increasingly the primary cause of mortality and morbidity among women. Like many developing countries, Bangladesh also faces a growing burden of NCDs. The “Multisectoral Action Plan for Prevention and Control of Non-communicable Diseases, 2018–2025” signifies Bangladesh’s commitment to comprehensively combating the rising burden of NCDs. This study investigates the perceptions of those involved in developing the action plan and if/how a gender lens was incorporated into its implementation.MethodsIn-depth interviews were conducted with 25 key individuals involved in a high-level committee to develop and implement Bangladesh’s multisectoral action plan to address the burden of NCDs. Data were collected between July and November 2021, and thematic analysis was conducted.ResultsThe findings revealed that interviewees believed the multisectoral action plan adopted a population-wide approach without considering gender-specific needs. This study presents the explanations for this inattention under five themes: (1) A population-level approach to NCD prevention; (2) Understanding women’s health beyond reproductive health; (3) Absence of gender-specific programs; (4) Lack of consideration of gender constraints on physical activity; and (5) Lack of collaborative efforts to address NCDs beyond the health ministry.ConclusionIn conclusion, governments in countries like Bangladesh can develop more effective strategies to reduce the disease burden of NCDs among women by recognizing and addressing the gendered nature of preventive health. This can be achieved by promoting gender-responsive research, programs, and policy initiatives that consider women’s specific health concerns, ultimately leading to better health outcomes for all.

Value chain analysis of a women‐dominated wild‐caught mud crab fishery

AbstractA value chain analysis (VCA) is a cost‐effective tool to guide targeted value chain development interventions to address social wellbeing and environmental performance. Examining value chains through a gender lens can help design and implement interventions that enhance opportunities for women in the fisheries and address gender inequalities in the sector. We conducted a VCA in 2015 of the wild‐caught mud crab (Scylla serrata) fishery in Bua Province, Fiji. We found five main players involved in the selling of mud crabs – fishers, traders, retail shops, restaurants and exporters. The value chain was dominated by Indigenous (iTaukei) women fishers (88.1% of fishers) and characterised by low technological input, targeted largely for domestic markets or consumption, and with limited value‐adding activities. Although most women harvested mud crabs on a part‐time basis, it was an important source of income for most with 30% relying on it as their main livelihood. Despite being a lucrative commodity, there are several bottlenecks in the fishery – the relative informality of relationships amongst players in the value chain, the independent livelihood‐driven harvest behaviours of fishers, and opportunistic sale of products. As a result, the fishery did not meet the demands of the domestic market. Our study concluded the gendered‐skewness in the fishery increases the vulnerability of the chain to declines in economic productivity because of its reliance on irregular suppliers, and gender‐based constraints. However, the low frequency and intensity of harvesting and use of low technological harvesting methods meant the fishery was not over‐exploited and likely sustainable.