Nontraditional Gender Roles Research Articles

Prevalence and predictors of men's involvement in pregnancy care in Modakeke, Southwest Nigeria.

Maternal mortality in developing countries remains a major public health concern and lack of men's support for their spouse during pregnancy contributes to this adverse outcome. This study examined the level and determinants of men's involvement in pregnancy care in Modakeke, Southwest Nigeria. A community-based cross-sectional, mixed-methods study involving quantitative and qualitative data. A multistage sampling strategy was used to select the study participants. The study involved 414 male respondents interviewed using a structured interviewer-administered questionnaire. The interview was complemented with one focus group discussion facilitated using an unstructured interview guide. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential analytical techniques while qualitative data were explored using thematic content analysis. Findings revealed a 55% level of involvement in pregnancy care among the participants. However, involvement rates were higher among those who were younger, married, from monogamous family, with secondary or tertiary education, low-income earners, and holding positive perception about nontraditional gender roles. Multivariate logistic regression estimates indicated significantly lower odds of involvement among unmarried men than the married but increased odds among those who had secondary or higher education relative to the uneducated, and among those whose partners received antenatal care from multiple providers compared to from health facilities only. Furthermore, significantly reduced odds of involvement were associated with holding nonpositive perceptions towards accompanying spouse to antenatal care clinic and being involved in general pregnancy care as opposed to holding positive perception. Perceived challenges undermining male involvement as highlighted during focus group discussion include time constraints due to job demands, prohibitive sociocultural norms, rebuke and unconducive health facility environment. The level of involvement in pregnancy care is suboptimal among the study participants with considerable sociodemographic, socioeconomic and sociocultural dimensions. Enhancing men's involvement in pregnancy care requires community-based awareness-raising interventions that emphasize crosscutting benefits of male partner's participation in pregnancy-related care and address known sociocultural barriers impeding active involvement.

Non-traditional Gender Role Parents on the LGBTQ+ Community in Chengdu, China: A Cultural and Psychosocial Examination

The impact of non-traditional gender role parenting on the LGBTQ+ community in the Chengdu area, especially in an urban environment like Chengdu, which is known for its openness and multiculturalism is worthy of academic attention. The study was conducted primarily through both quantitative and qualitative methods: online surveys and census data were used for quantitative analysis, while in-depth interviews and focus group discussions were used for qualitative analysis. This study proposes four main hypotheses: 1) there are more parents with non-traditional gender roles relative to traditional gender roles in Chengdu; 2) children from families with non-traditional gender roles are more likely to be open about their sexual minority identities; 3) non-traditional gender role family environments may be more encouraging of children's exploration and acceptance of gender perceptions of their sexual orientations; and 4) Chengdu's social and cultural environments, specifically perceptions related to gender roles, are associated with the flourishing of the LGBTQ+ community in the city. Preliminary results show that the relative activity and openness of the LGBTQ+ community in Chengdu is significantly higher than in other regions, which is related to the higher proportion of non-traditional gender role households in Chengdu. This study emphasizes that although sexual orientation is considered an intrinsic and inherent characteristic, family environment and socio-cultural factors also play an important role, especially in a more diverse and open urban context such as Chengdu. This provides a valuable perspective for further research on the cultural and social acceptance of sexual minorities within China.

Women and Finance-Specific Human Capital: Impact of Gender Role Attitudes

The benefits and costs of investing in finance-specific human capital are affected by subjective attitudes about the expected improvement in consumption from higher-quality financial decisions and the expected psychic costs of investing. This study investigates how gender role attitudes of women predict their acquisition of finance-specific human capital. Results indicate that women with the most traditional gender role attitudes are less financially literate than women with non-traditional gender role attitudes and men. Gender role attitudes formed early in life explain differences in financial literacy between men and women observed in prior studies. Multivariate analyses that control for attained human capital suggest that traditional gender role attitudes affect finance-specific human capital investment and investment in formal education. Women with traditional gender role attitudes are the least knowledgeable and have the lowest confidence in applying their financial knowledge.

MOTERS SOCIALINIAI VAIDMENYS BALTIŠKOJE IR SKANDINAVIŠKOJE ŠEIMOS KRONIKOJE (K. SABALIAUSKAITĖS IR K. THORVALL KŪRINIUOSE)

The subject of this research is feminine gender roles in Kristina Sabaliauskaitė’s Silva rerum and Kerstin Thorvall’s The Story of Signe. The aim of the thesis is to identify the most common traditional and non-traditional gender roles of women in historical literary narratives by two women writers. The study identifies six gender roles of women: four traditional (mother and wife, daughter and care-giver/housewife), and two non-traditional (adventurer and competitor). The research shows that in historical literary narratives, despite the space-time of the novels, the main semantic axis remains the traditional gender roles of women. The failure to fulfil traditional gender roles determines the emergence of non-traditional gender roles, and a negative impact on the state of women in the novels.

Ask a Political Scientist: A Conversation with Katherine J. Cramer about Listening as a Way of Democratic and Scholarly Life

Ask a Political Scientist: A Conversation with Katherine J. Cramer about Listening as a Way of Democratic and Scholarly Life

Cultural Differences in the Construction of Gender: A Thematic Analysis of Gender Representations in American, Spanish, and Czech Children’s Literature

Abstract Children’s literature provides a critical method of socialization and familiarization with gender roles, providing examples, boundaries, and limitations for gender identity construction. While extensive research has been done on how children’s literature depicts both traditional and non-traditional gender roles, very little research has been published on the cultural differences between literary representations. The aim of the present paper is to describe the representations of social roles of men and women in American, Czech, and Spanish children’s books published between 2010 and 2020. Three best-selling children’s picture books from each year from each respective culture were selected and analyzed, culminating in a thematic analysis of ninety-nine books. Using inductive thematic analysis, the study found all three cultures to be conservative in their depictions of gender roles, with Czech books as the most likely to feature traditional gender roles. Spanish books are more, and American books are the most subversive in their depiction of gender roles, containing an increasing number of non-traditional elements over an examined time period.

The relationship between Chinese college students' mate preferences and their parents' education level.

Parents have an influence on the formation of their children's mate preferences. This research conducted two studies to test the relationship between parents' education level and the gender role characteristics (masculinity and femininity) of ideal mate for college students, and the moderating role of urban-rural residence on this relationship. In study 1, 1,033 participants (627 females) reported their explicit attitude toward gender role characteristics for an ideal mate via the Chinese Sex Role Inventory-50. In study 2, we recruited 130 participants (66 females) and used an implicit association test to measure their implicit attitude. Regression-based analyses showed that the higher education level of parents was significantly associated with female students' mate preferences with high-femininity but low-masculinity traits. For male students, the higher education level of parents was associated with their explicit (not implicit) preferences of mates with high-masculinity but low-femininity traits. The significant moderating effect of urban-rural residence was observed in explicit preference, with the different patterns in gender groups. In conclusion, parents with higher educational attainment might bring up children who are more likely to embrace a partner with non-traditional gender roles (e.g., androgynous individuals, feminine men or masculine women).

Mapping the susceptible areas from violence against women and children

This research aimed to (1) arrange the violence vulnerability indicator area and (2) map the potential areas from violence against children and women. This mix-method research used a sequential exploratory design. The researchers took the qualitative data by interviewing 32 Integrated Service Center officers in Semarang during a FGD. The quantitative research involved 648 people from 16 districts in Semarang taken randomly. The data collecting instruments included an interview guidance, gender-role orientation scale, and parenting scale. The obtained secondary data were from the Central Statistical Bureau in Semarang, the Marital Age data from the Ministry of Religion Semarang, and the data on violence against children and women from the Woman and Child Protection Agency, DP3A, Semarang. The results from the FGD were (1) poverty, incomplete family, low educational access, reported violence rate, patrilineal culture, number of children, and early marital as the factors of violence prevalence, and (2) The indicators of vulnerable areas from violence included poverty, population density, slum, unemployment, drug abuse, socio-economic gap, early marriage, patrilineal culture, and ignorant families. Then, in the second data phase, the researchers found 27.9% of traditional gender role orientation and 72.1% of non-traditional gender role orientation. For parenting patterns, a percentage of 6.5% population applied permissive parenting patterns, 14.8% applied authoritarian parenting patterns, and 78.7% applied democratic parenting patterns. The results found the potential areas with the highest violence were Pedurungan and Eastern Semarang districts. Then, the Southern Semarang and Tugu districts were the areas with the lowest violence prevalence rates. Keywords: Violence against women and children, mapping regions

Merging Motherhood and Medicine: A Qualitative Study Exploring Barriers and Enablers to Motherhood Among Australian Female Doctors

Background: Despite the increasing ‘feminisation’ of the Australian medical workforce, female doctors remain under-represented in leadership positions, many specialty areas, and renumeration levels. A key factor implicated in this disparity is the unequal impact of parenthood on mothers. Australian research on this issue is lacking. Aim: To identify the barriers and enablers experienced by Australian female doctors, when combining motherhood with a medical career. Method: Semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with 18 female Australian physician mothers, during March and May 2020. Interview data were examined using thematic analysis to extract key themes. Results: Six key barriers and seven key enablers were identified. Barriers (B1-6) largely reflected structural and cultural issues operating within health services and the wider medical profession, specifically the (B1) experience of working in medicine; (B2) demands of postgraduate specialty training; (B3) attitudes towards mothers in medicine; (B4) gender inequality; (B5) insufficient entitlements and support; and (B6) competing priorities, conflicting roles. Enablers (E1-7) were predominantly personal and interpersonal supports relating to (E1) supportive partnerships; (E2) non-traditional gender roles; (E3) capacity to outsource; (E4) doctors supporting doctors; (E5) flexible work arrangements; (E6) increasing acceptance and support; and (E7) capacity to combine career and family. Conclusion: This was the first Australian qualitative study to explore motherhood experiences among female doctors. The results indicate that Australian physician-mothers encounter considerable structural and cultural barriers during all stages of motherhood. To facilitate motherhood in medicine, further research is needed to inform policy development and support provisions within Australian health systems.

Women’s non-traditional gender role attitudes and acceptance of men’s color makeup in South Korea

ABSTRACT The use of colour makeup among young adult men has gradually increased in South Korea over the years. The trend casts a couple of research questions. What are women’s responses to men’s colour makeup? Are women’s attitudes towards gender roles and gender equality related to their acceptance of men’s colour makeup? To answer these questions, women over 17 years old in South Korea (N = 1,044) were surveyed, and a series of ordinal regression analyses were conducted. The results show that South Korean women who favour gender equality and non-traditional gender roles are likely to support men’s colour makeup. The results suggest that women’s support of non-traditional gender roles leads to the acceptance of the non-stereotypical appearance of men, including colour makeup.

The Other Caregivers: Informal Non-Spousal Male Caregivers for Persons With Dementia

Informal caregivers for persons with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) have become an integral part of the long-term health care system. They are relied on to provided day-to-day care that is challenging, complex, and often spans several years. Most of the research on informal caregivers for persons with ADRD have focused on spousal caregiving, mother-daughter dyads, and daughters. There is sparse literature on informal non-spousal male caregivers for persons with ADRD. The objective of this research was to obtain an understanding of the experiences of informal non-spousal male caregivers for persons with ADRD. This descriptive qualitative pilot study consisted of in-depth one-on-one interviews with three informal non-spousal male caregivers for persons with ADRD. Four themes emerged through data analysis: 1) the male perspective and experience of caregiving, 2) relationship dynamics, 3) caregiving challenges, and 4) finding meaning within caregiving. Conclusion: Similar to other caregivers, informal non-spousal male caregivers assisted with transportation, managing medical appointments, as well as bathing and personal care. Differences with other caregivers, specifically female caregivers, emerged in terms of descriptions of traditional versus non-traditional gender roles. The implications of this study are that public policies, support services and medical professionals need to understand and be able to address the different experiences and needs of informal non-spousal male caregivers.

Courage and equality – Women doctors’ thriving at work

Orientation: The article explores doctors’ thriving in the profession of medicine in order to heed the call to explore thriving in various work contexts. This study does so from the viewpoint of women medical doctors.Research purpose: To present the theoretical development and empirically expanded framework for women doctors’ thriving at work.Motivation for the study: Although women doctors remain underrepresented, there are signs of the feminisation of medicine. Women’s ability to thrive at work may be detrimentally affected by their societal expectations that are distinct from those of men. Frameworks about thriving at work do not currently distinguish between women and men.Research method: Development of a gender-specific framework from the literature followed by qualitative data collection with two semi-structured appreciative inquiry focus groups to confirm and expand on the framework. The nominal group technique employed to encourage open sharing. Participants were seven women and six men from various medical and surgical speciality fields. Collaborative analysis of data by participants using thematic analysis.Main findings: Gender quality and non-discrimination, support, non-traditional gender roles, career trajectories and self-empowerment were factors that women attributed to their thriving at workManagerial/practical implications: Managers can improve the structuring and planning of women doctor’s work conditions and improve on gender-specific management practices towards a thriving community of medical doctors.Contribution: A framework of women doctors’ thriving at work was empirically confirmed and includes gender-specific elements to facilitate women doctors’ thriving in healthcare.

La construction du sentiment moral dans les romans contemporains pour la jeunesse Le Chagrin du roi mort et Le Combat d’hiver de Jean-Claude Mourlevat

In the past, literature for children and adolescents reflected society’s belief that young readers were not supposed to think for themselves. Stories were vehicles to provide direct, simple moral lessons. Those moralistic books reinforced gender and good / evil tropes, leaving little room for interpretation, moral grey areas and non-traditional gender roles. In this paper, we examine two contemporary books, Le Combat d’hiver (2006) et Le Chagrin du roi mort (2009), as examples of how youth literature has evolved. In both books, readers are presented with complex characters, plots and themes that encourage personal reflection. Morals are not something to be taught but rather felt.

Evidence for a Comprehensive Sexuality Education Intervention that Enhances Chinese Adolescents’ Sexual Knowledge and Gender Awareness and Empowers Young Women

While Chinese adolescents become more sexually active, their sexual attitudes are profoundly influenced by traditional gender and sexual norms. The tensions between the rapid transition in youth sexuality and lags in sex education call for a paradigm shift of sexuality education in China. The present study examined the effectiveness of a school-based empowerment comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) intervention in changing adolescents’ sexual knowledge, gender and sexual attitudes, and sexual self-efficacy. We used data from a quasi-experimental intervention study with self-administered pretest and posttest surveys conducted among 1131 10th grade high school students in Lanzhou, northwest China. Whereas 583 participants in two intervention schools attended 12 45-min CSE sessions focusing on gender, rights, and critical thinking skills across 4–7 months, 548 participants in two comparison schools received no or limited conventional sex education. After controlling for differences in sociodemographics and in the influence of family, peers, and internet use between the two groups, female and male adolescents exhibited significantly more accurate sexual knowledge, stronger endorsement of nontraditional gender roles, and greater rejection of sexual double standards immediately after the intervention. Additionally, young women reported significantly higher sexual self-efficacy following the intervention. The findings suggest that the school-based empowerment CSE intervention is helpful in creating an environment in which both young men and young women benefit in sexual knowledge and gender awareness and young women increase their sexual decision-making skills, thereby lending support to the theory and practice of an empowerment CSE approach.

The relationship between gender and work-to-family conflict among Chinese managers: testing a moderated mediation model

This study of 390 full-time Chinese managers examined the relationship between gender and work-to-family conflict. Guided by identity theory, we found that work centrality and family centrality mediated the relationship between gender and work-to-family conflict. The findings indicate men follow a work centrality pathway that results in increased work-to-family conflict and women follow a family centrality pathway that also results in higher levels of work-to-family conflict. Gender role attitudes moderated the relationship between gender and work centrality, and the indirect relationship between gender and work-to-family conflict through work centrality was stronger for managers with traditional gender role attitudes than those with non-traditional gender role attitudes. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

The Front Runner Patricii Nell Warren. Coming out, czyli zwycięstwo i koniec tragedii

Before coming out of the closet and publishing a series of successful gay novels, Patricia Nell Warren was known as Patricia Kilina, wife of a Ukrainian émigré writer George Tarnawsky. Her early poetry, written in Ukrainian, includes numerous references to non-traditional gender roles which she further explored in her anglophone novels. The Front Runner (1974) was published when Warren had already divorced her husband and came out of the closet. It was met with commercial success and became the first contemporary American bestseller about gay love. In this paper, I focus on the mixed reader-response of The Front Runner in the LGBTQ+ community, as well as the role of homophobia and misogyny in Patricia Nell Warren’s novel. I argue that The Front Runner provides readers with a thought-provoking literary representation of the changing social attitudes towards non-binary gender roles and non-heterosexuality right after Stonewall and before the AIDS epidemic.

Gender, Animals, and Gaskell’s Cousin Phillis

The so-called animal turn in the humanities has given rise to an increased interest in the ways in which representations of animals shape human cultures. In Victorian studies, scholars have attended to the significance of domestic pets and other animals in the production of Victorian ideologies and subjectivities. Recent studies often point out the role animals played in the formation of Victorian domesticity. While these studies in general assign a key role to animal figures in the mediation of traditional domesticity, this essay explores the opposite phenomenon taking place in the Victorian novelist Elizabeth Gaskell’s Cousin Phillis, a novella in which pets and farm animals are prominent. In this work, the eponymous protagonist, a young woman living on a farm, falls in love with a cosmopolitan engineer. Rather than portraying Phillis as an ethereal angelic creature who would be typical of the ideal Victorian woman, Gaskell ascribes to her a passionate nature, though hidden behind a constrained façade. Phillis is partly able to express her deep-set emotions, including her interest in the cosmopolitan engineer, when interacting with animals. This non-traditional gender role becomes possible through the representation of birds and the family dog. Animals enable the imagination of a femininity that resists restrictive gender codes. The traditional association of animals with women has sometimes worked to denigrate the latter, but as Gaskell shows that this link also has an emancipatory potential.

Kulturowe uwarunkowania przemian modelu męskiej roli płciowej. Ocena tradycyjnego i nietradycyjnego modelu męskości w perspektywie odzwierciedlonej kobiet oraz innych mężczyzn

Critical gender studies indicate the dysfunctionality of the traditional masculinity model, both in the emotional and health spheres. However, the implementation of the non-traditional model by men enables a deeper involvement in fatherhood, emotional development and partnership (instead of domination). Numerous studies indicate that men take on non-traditional gender roles because of the assessment of others, not just their own beliefs. The aim of the present study among young Polish men (N = 351) was to verify their evaluation of the traditional and non-traditional masculinity model. The assessment is expressed here through individual declarations, as well as an idea of the assessment given to a presented model by women and other men. The results indicate higher preferences of the non-traditional male model than the traditional one. Participants estimate that the non-traditional model is rated higher by women and traditional by other men. Awareness of women’s assessment (perceived reflected-appraisals) is a factor encouraging the imitation of a given masculinity model.

Reactions Arising from Work-to-Family Conflict: Examining the Mediating Role of Work-to-Family Guilt

The purpose of this study is to examine how an individual reacts to work-to-family conflict at work and family domains. Using survey data comprising of HR managers and professionals (N = 171), we found that work-to-family guilt mediates the relationship between work-to-family conflict and job satisfaction, and intrinsic motivation moderates the relationship. We also found that for men with non-traditional gender role attitudes, work-to-family guilt mediates the relationship between work-to-family conflict and reparative behaviors to family members, and intrinsic motivation moderates the relationship. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Mental illness prevention in post-ACS men: A partcipatory action research

Abstract Background The prevalence of social determinants of health (i.e. rurality, low education and poverty) among men put them at an elevated risk for comorbid cardiac disease and mental illness. While, men are particularly vulnerable to mental illnesses (i.e. depression, anxiety) after an acute coronary syndrome (ACS), they are typically averse to seeking medical care, especially for mental health issues. Targeting interventions to at-risk population groups is a well documented approach. However, little in the literature presents how to prevent mental illness in cardiac men. This study aims to develop, implement and pilot a psychoeducational program tailored for post-ACS men. Methods A mixed method including a scoping review, a qualitative study and a quasi-experimental pilot study. Results In total, 42 articles were retrieved to extract key components of cardiac men-sensitive psychoeducation programs. We led 22 focus groups and 14 semi-structured interviews (119 men in total). The mean age was 51.2 years [45-77]. We integrated the gathered data gathered from the scoping review and the qualitative study to develop a psychoeducational program (3 group sessions). The pilot study involved 48 men who completed the baseline, the 3-month and the 6-month data collections. We observed 80% of compliance. Findings show a significant improvement in PHQ-9, GAD-7, IES-R, CSI and EQ-5D scales. We also observed changes in the CMNI-22, a measure of attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors associated with both traditional and non-traditional masculine gender roles. Men appreciated the time flexibility (sessions were scheduled based on participants’ availability) and the responsiveness of the sessions (content was discussed based on their needs and interests). Life partners were invited and 65% attended to all sessions. Conclusions The program was a success and we expect to transform it into a peer-led intervention to improve its delivery in the community and its accessibility for rural and remote areas. Key messages At-risk population-sensitive approaches are key for compliance and effectiveness. Group sessions are effective approaches to improve men’s mental heatlh literacy.