Gender Performance Research Articles

Unveiling Multidimensional Meanings: A Critical Analysis of Jungkook's "3D" Lyrics Using Fairclough's CDA Theory and Butler's Sexual Performativity Theory

This article offers a in depth study of the lyrics of BTS's song "3D," employing Judith Butler's theory of gender performativity and Norman Fairclough's Critical Discourse Analysis as the research’s approaches. The study investigates how the song deviates from traditional masculine narratives by integrating components of worry and compassion into its portrayal of masculinity, offering an alternative conceptual framework for understanding gender roles. The findings highlight the role of the song in both support and questioning established gender standards, so illustrating the significant influence of media on the formation of masculinity. This study is limited to single song lyrics. It is necessary for further exploration into the portrayal of gender in media through diverse methodologies and active engagement with fan perspectives. This piece holds significant academic value as it contributes to the understanding of gender portrayal in media and its impact on societal gender norms.

Māori and Pacific student’s resistance to colonial cis-heteronormative discourse within high schools in Aotearoa, New Zealand

ABSTRACT In this article, we draw on findings from two critical ethnographic studies across three high schools in Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand. While the critical ethnographies canvased a range of topics, this article draws on the empirical findings specific to exploring how relationships and sexuality education as a key learning area within Health Education, continues to privilege western, cis-heteronormative understands of relationships and sexuality. Drawing on Butler’s theory of gender performativity and Foucault’s understanding of power relations we share student narratives which demonstrate the strength of cis-heteronormativity, even as teachers and students work to disrupt these norms. Furthermore, we engage queer theory and Tongan concepts such as tauhi vā to demonstrate how the inclusion of Pacific and queer knowledges allow students to subvert dominant colonial understandings of relationships and sexuality.

Fishing businesses, women's entrepreneurship, and the performance of femininity

Although recent work has examined how masculinities are performed through fishing work at sea, less research has focused on how femininities are performed in the gendered fisheries context. By focusing on a particular group of women in fisheries – the women entrepreneur – this study examines the performances of femininities in their entrepreneurialism. It explores whether women entrepreneurs can perform gender differently and, by effect, subvert the gender order in the fisheries context. I draw on Schippers' (2002, 2007) concepts of ‘gender hegemony’, ‘gender maneuvering’ and three forms of femininities: ‘hegemonic femininity’, ‘pariah femininity’ and ‘alternative femininity’. My research found that women's performances of femininities are multiple and versatile as women adapted their gender performances to varying situated, relational and spatial contexts. All women entrepreneurs performed a type of hegemonic femininity that supported, confirmed and upheld hegemonic masculinity. Yet, through their entrepreneurial work in male-dominated fishing spaces, women also performed a form of pariah femininity which incorporated many features of hegemonic masculinity – such as getting dirty and displaying strength. In food spaces, on the other hand, women performed a type of ‘alternative femininity’, predicated on being sociable, skilled in cooking and being service minded, which was not predicated on their subordination to that of masculinity. The wider significance of these findings is that women fisheries entrepreneurs maneuver their gender by adopting versatility in their gender performances. This versatility allows them to simultaneously be ‘good’ female partners of fisher-men and tough fish workers, whilst also carving out a space for themselves in food entrepreneurship which was more liberating, enjoyable and self-fulfilling.

Riding the change: Exploring women’s navigation of risk and respectability through two-wheeler mobility in Dhaka

This paper sheds light on the understudied phenomenon of female two-wheeler riders in Bangladesh, and their everyday negotiations of moto-mobility in patriarchal public spaces. In transportation research, female riders have traditionally been characterized as occupying the pillion seat. By conducting ethnographic observations of two-wheeler training clubs in Bangladesh (Dhaka) and qualitative interviews with female riders, the paper expands the discussion of gender and mobility beyond the usual focus on car and public transport in the Global South, which is critical for planning equitable and inclusive transport policies. Using the motility framework (access, competence and appropriation), this paper unravels the cultural, spatial and social dynamics of women's everyday moto-mobility. Through engagement in women-only training clubs which also serve as gendered social spaces, female riders actively build technical and spatial competence. They opt for safety-conscious approaches in driving behaviour, subverting traditional/masculine notions of dominance and authority. The findings also reveal how young riders subvert families and communities to acquire and ride motorbikes, but still largely conform (and adapt) to social norms to manufacture respectability (following normative sartorial choices, sex-segregated seclusion/purdah). In other words, their resistance is in proportion to how much they can assert themselves without facing negative repercussions from communities and society at large. As their presence and performances of micro-subversions rewrite spatial geographies (of risk and respectability), this has implications for reshaping the everyday transport geographies of women in urban public spaces. By presenting gender scripts as an element of appropriation in the constant negotiation of mobility, this paper contextualises motility in a non-western setting, and shows how multiple (seemingly contradictory) gender performances can feed into each other and regroup to facilitate women's access (to mobility) and rights in a gendered city.

Construction and Optimization of Sports Athlete Selection and Talent Cultivation System Based on Data Analysis

Talent cultivation is the deliberate and systematic process of identifying, nurturing, and developing individuals' innate abilities and potential across various domains. It involves providing structured opportunities, resources, and guidance to help individuals flourish and excel in their chosen fields. This process encompasses education, mentorship, training programs, and practical experiences tailored to the specific needs and interests of each individual. This paper presents a novel approach to the construction and optimization of a Sports Athlete Selection and Talent Cultivation System through the integration of data analysis techniques, with a particular emphasis on the Anthropometric Invariance Gait Recognition for Pattern (AIGRP) system. Leveraging advanced algorithms, the AIGRP system enables precise characterization of athletes' biomechanical profiles based on anthropometric measurements and gait characteristics. By analyzing data collected from athletes, including age, gender, height, weight, and specific performance metrics, such as speed, strength, and endurance, the system facilitates personalized athlete selection and talent cultivation strategies. Furthermore, the objective and data-driven nature of the AIGRP system reduces biases inherent in traditional selection methods, leading to more efficient and effective talent identification. By analyzing data collected from athletes, including age, gender, height (mean: 175 cm), weight (mean: 70 kg), and specific performance metrics, such as speed (mean: 6.5 m/s), strength (mean: 140 kg), and endurance (mean: 47 min), the system facilitates personalized athlete selection and talent cultivation strategies.

Gender Impacted Gut Microbiota and Growth Performance in the Blotched Snakehead (Channa maculata).

The blotched snakehead Channa maculata is an important economical freshwater species in East Asia. However, there has been relatively little research conducted on the correlation between gender and gut microbes. In this study, 36 of 1000 blotched snakeheads were randomly selected for growth performance measurement and gut microbiota high-throughput sequencing. Results showed that microbial diversity, composition, and metabolic functions were altered by gender and growth performance except the microbial network. In our study, Proteobacteria were the most abundant phylum, with Fusobacteria showing enrichment in males and Bacteroidetes in females. Notably, phylum Deinococcus-Thermus was identified as a significant biomarker. The Cetobacterium was the most abundant genus-level taxon. Furthermore, gut microbes specializing in the production of gut-healthy substances, such as coenzymes and vitamins, were identified as biomarkers in the fast-growing group. Our investigation highlighted the impact of gender on the composition and abundance of gut microbial biomarkers in both males and females, thereby influencing differential growth performance through the modulation of specific metabolic functions.

Tórtola Valencia, José Zamora, and the art of queer collaboration

ABSTRACT This article assembles and analyzes an archive of texts and images that attest to the interactions of the modern dancer Carmen Tórtola Valencia and the illustrator José (Pepito) Zamora between 1914 and 1917. Their relationship emerges from the archive as a collaboration whose queerness hinges on their performances of non-normative gender, rumors concerning their homosexual inclinations, and their joint efforts to increase their celebrity and nourish their creative work. Tórtola and Zamora cultivated their queer personas and drew attention to their art by associating with one another. Their queerness and creativity were a shared endeavor that issued from and fed into a series of public performances, dances, costume designs, illustrations, and novels. Studying this collaboration requires a methodological shift in relation to previous scholarship on early twentieth-century Spain, which has tended to segregate research on male homosexuality from work on female homosexuality or lesbianism. Today there is a growing need to recognize the rich interactions between individuals who occupied different positions on spectra of sex, gender, and sexuality in modern Spain. Tórtola and Zamora have been largely overlooked in existing studies of male or female homosexuality; they are more at home in an examination of queer culture.

A safe space in a strange place: A case study of the safety mechanisms of CrossFit culture

AbstractBased on a 1‐year ethnographic case study of a Copenhagen‐based CrossFit gym we demonstrate how an organized training place is made physically, psychologically, and socially safe. This we show empirically by analyzing how the local multi‐sited CrossFit gym ‘CHALK’ maintains its safe space through three organizing mechanisms: (1) coach‐led learning progression and practice of the physical craft of CrossFit exercise, intended to prevent injury; (2) a dynamic relation between ‘Rx’ and ’scaling’, that is, setting universal standards for an exercise (Rx) and adjusting to individual levels of competence (scaling), actively preventing the high intensity workout from becoming high risk and from setting idealized norms that only few can live up to, but feel compelled to pursue nonetheless; (3) an egalitarian culture whose practice enables members to participate regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, socio‐economic class, sexual orientation, and prior exercise experience. Our ethnomethodological approach further allows us to discuss how certain signifiers of difference are recognized but either do not become salient or do not matter in respect to the functional training. Rather, we find and argue for the possibility to engage in ‘tomboy‐ish behavior’ that challenges gender and other identity performances in CHALK. In identifying necessary and sufficient conditions for establishing safe space, the article contributes to extant literature, showing how safe space can emerge as an effect of everyday practice, in contrast to being intentional and declared.

Prevalence of Generalized Anxiety Disorder among University Students in Saudi Arabia

Background: Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is a psychological illness characterized by excessive worry and physical symptoms such as sweating and fast heartbeat. Understanding the prevalence of GAD among university students is crucial for addressing mental health challenges in this population. Objective: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of generalized anxiety disorder among university students in Saudi Arabia and also to assess levels of depression and stress among them. Methods: A systematic review following PRISMA guidelines was conducted. A comprehensive search was performed in major databases using specific keywords related to anxiety, students, and Saudi Arabia. Studies conducted between 2020-2024, in English, and with free accessible articles were included. Data extraction and synthesis were carried out to analyze relevant findings. Results: The systematic search yielded 41 study papers, with 8 meeting eligibility criteria. Various studies reported high levels of anxiety, depression, and stress among university students in Saudi Arabia, with female students showing higher prevalence rates. Factors such as age, gender, and academic performance were associated with increased anxiety and depressive symptoms. Conclusion: The study revealed a high prevalence of generalized anxiety disorder, depression, and stress among university students in Saudi Arabia, emphasizing the need for interventions and support systems. Early detection and management of anxiety disorders are essential for mitigating the economic and social burden associated with these conditions, especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Addressing mental health challenges among university students is crucial for promoting overall well-being and academic success.

CEO Gender and Family Business Performance: The Moderating Role of Socio-Emotional Wealth

Family businesses are businesses that are managed and/or owned by a family. Like in any other company, the CEO is the manager and is responsible for achieving good performance. But unlike in non-family businesses, women are more represented in leadership positions and are more likely to work their way up. There is considerable disagreement in the literature about whether female CEOs outperform male CEOs. While some studies confirm this, other studies refute it, and other studies find no connection at all. In this study, we therefore investigate whether female CEOs perform better than male CEOs within family businesses. However, given the target group, it is essential not to ignore the influence of socio-emotional wealth (SEW) on this relationship, since family businesses distinguish themselves from other organizational forms with this characteristic. SEW includes the non-financial aspects of a business, such as a desire to maintain family control and family values that are incorporated into the corporate culture. According to SEW theory, family businesses focus more on maintaining SEW than pursuing purely economic prosperity. This can ensure that not all decisions are made with profit maximization in mind. To empirically test our hypotheses, we use a sample of 238 Belgian family businesses. Our results do not show any statistically significant results for the impact of the CEO’s gender on firm performance. What is significant, though, is the positive moderating effect of SEW on the relationship between CEO gender and performance in family businesses. The more SEW retention within a family business, the better the performance will be in the case of a female CEO.

Exposure to E-Cigarette Marketing and Susceptibility to Future Vaping among Black and Latino Adolescents in the United States.

Evidence suggests an association between exposure to electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) marketing and e-cigarette use (vaping) among adolescents. However, there is limited evidence on exposure to e-cigarette marketing and susceptibility to future vaping, especially among Black and Latino adolescents. This study aimed to examine associations between exposure to e-cigarette marketing and susceptibility to future vaping among Black and Latino adolescents in the United States (US). Participants (N = 362; equal representation between Black and Latino adolescents) completed a baseline assessment (available in English and Spanish) including sociodemographic characteristics (e.g., racial/ethnic group, age, gender, sexual orientation, etc.), exposure to e-cigarette marketing, and susceptibility to future vaping. Exposure to e-cigarette marketing was recoded and organized into two categories (high exposure = 2 to 3; low exposure = 0 to 1). Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel tests were used to evaluate the association between exposure to e-cigarette marketing and susceptibility to future vaping, stratified by racial/ethnic group. Multiple logistic regressions assessed the association between exposure to e-cigarette marketing and susceptibility to future vaping, controlling for gender, sexual orientation, grade, and academic performance within each racial/ethnic group. Black adolescents reported significantly higher frequencies of exposure to e-cigarette marketing (p = 0.005). A significant interaction was found between exposure to e-cigarette marketing and racial/ethnic group (X2 (1) = 6.294, p = 0.012). Among Black adolescents, high exposure to e-cigarette marketing (vs. low exposure) was associated with a higher probability of susceptibility to future vaping (OR: 2.399, 95% CI 1.147-5.021, p = 0.020). For Latino adolescents, exposure to e-cigarette marketing was not associated with susceptibility to future vaping (OR: 0.503, 95% CI 0.245-1.03, p = 0.062). Future studies should evaluate how and where adolescents are exposed to e-cigarette marketing. Prevention efforts must include the implementation of effective counter-marketing campaigns and the reduction of exposure to e-cigarette marketing among Black and Latino adolescents.

Gender Deconstruction in Ursula K. Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness

This article explores Ursula K. Le Guin’s science fiction, The Left Hand of Darkness, which has had a significant impact on current gender discourse by challenging traditional binary conceptions of gender. Set in the fictional world of Gethen, inhabited by Gethenians with ambisexual traits, Le Guin questions the rigidity of gender categories and considers alternative understandings of gender. This study applies feminist and queer theories to analyse how gender is fluid and shaped by society, challenging widespread heteronormative concepts. More specifically, Judith Butler’s concept of Gender Performativity has been taken as the theoretical framework of this study. The research aims to answer two main questions: How does the novel’s narrative challenge traditional views on gender roles, and what broader cultural implications does this uncover? The findings mainly focus on how any person like Genly starts to think beyond his fixed and rigid heteronormative concepts of gender identity and what leads to his realisation of the necessity of embracing diverse gender identities in human society to ensure harmony and equality. This is significant because Genly’s journey through the novel highlights today’s critical issue: securing the rights and acceptance of individuals marginalised and stigmatised for not conforming to traditional gender norms. Overall, the study aims to advance our understanding of gender dynamics beyond the binary through the transformative power of literary and theoretical discussions.

Lent and Easter in the Philippines:Catholic Religious Practices in the Discourse of Gender Performativity.

Filipinos consider Holy Week as the holiest of days of Lent and Easter. During this time, the country is shrouded with centuries-old rituals and practices that persist in contemporary times. Using the framework of gender performativity, this study examines three forms of pamamanata (devotion): pagsasanto (taking care of a religious image), penitensya (penance), and salubong (Easter procession). The aim is to identify pamamanata practices that align with the feminine, masculine, gay, and those bordering between masculine and feminine tropes. The study maximized data from the author’s fieldwork and ethnographic materials written by academics. This study found that the three pamamanata traditions are gendered practices and that these are affected by the agencies of the family, community, and religion.

Mass individualism: The snowman effect

This study critically evaluates contemporary menswear, with a particular focus on the ‘snowman effect’ and mass individualism, to understand the complex dynamics between performativity, gender and socio-styles. It is inspired by the story of ‘Frosty the Snowman’, which illustrates how garments, initially mass-produced, are given life and identity through personalization. This transformation metaphorically represents the fashion industry’s complex relationship between individual expression and societal norms. The article addresses the issue of overconsumption, arguing that it leads to uniform fashion styles despite an abundance of clothing options, thereby increasing the demand for more authentic and personalized fashion. The core of this research examines ‘mass individualism’ within the global fashion industry, exploring its potential to offer sustainable choices while highlighting the challenges and opportunities it presents to major fashion brands. It argues for a shift away from traditional marketing, emphasizing the need for tailored services that meet consumers’ desires for authenticity and individuality. The article also examines the historical constraints on menswear, the evolution of socio-styles and the impact of ‘fit’ on the appropriateness of clothing. It also examines consumer habits and the growing trend towards customization in men’s fashion, particularly in terms of performative individuality and social norms. Finally, the study emphasizes the importance of recognizing the contemporary consumer’s desire for uniqueness and suggests mass customization as a vital strategy for revitalizing the menswear sector, reflecting the changing relationship between fashion, gender performance and socio-styles in contemporary society.

Male Teachers’ Narratives: Experiences of Teaching in Early Childhood Education

Globally, women are over-represented in teaching in the early years of primary school, or the Foundation Phase, as it is known in South Africa (SA). We explore how male teachers in SA may experience challenges in teaching in primary schools that are complicit in reproducing men as managers. Men tend to be positioned within dominant notions of masculinity, which produce masculine power in school management, while primary teaching is characterised as ‘women’s work’. Teachers of both genders are complicit in safeguarding the primary school as a nurturing, female domain while reproducing gendered binaries and unequal power relations. Through semi-structured interviews and a focus group discussion, we explore the experiences of five male early childhood development (ECD) teachers from five rural primary schools in diverse settings in Free State, SA. Males have challenges in ECD as they are not allowed to teach but are encouraged to be involved in management, where they may sit on different school committees such as those related to sport and discipline, and also take care of the school premises. There is a need to create alternate masculinities beyond rigid notions of appropriate gender performances and address social challenges such as the paucity of male teachers, children being exposed to only one gender, and gender transformation in SA. In this way, the challenges facing male ECD teachers, who are not being entirely accepted in this field, will be eliminated.

Fashioning fairy fellows: Androgynous performativity in the Savoy Shakespeare Productions 1912–14

For a few seasons in London theatres before the outbreak of the First World War, modernizations of historical costume embodied androgyny in both Sergei Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes and Harley Granville Barker’s Savoy Shakespeare Productions. In Twelfth Night of 1912 and A Midsummer Night’s Dream of 1914, cross-dressing, folkloric and magical characterization through costume performed a gender fluidity at the heart of both scenarios. In Prefaces to Shakespeare (1927–46), Barker positions Oberon’s intersex hybridity as ‘travesty’. The Savoy Productions reimagined the androgyny of the fairy characters supplanting the feminization and infantilization favoured in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century productions with the casting and costuming of Dennis Neilson Terry as Oberon and Donald Calthrop as Puck. Neglected archival evidence of Norman Wilkinson’s drawings originally bequeathed to the Courtauld Institute and now in the V & A London reveal how his historical and ‘Post-Impressionist’ costume designs enrich understandings of these productions glimpsed in publicity photographs and reviews. These traces capture how the embodied interpretation of Barker’s players performed a folkloric androgyny through gesture, movement and costume. Cross-dressing in modernized Elizabethan ‘menswear’ in Twelfth Night and the exotic golden and sylvan ‘fairies’ of The Dream reveal how costume amplified the performance of complexly fluid and androgynous gender on the Edwardian stage.

The role of social and emotional skills on adolescents’ life satisfaction and academic performance

The COVID-19 pandemic, which emerged in 2019, has had a significant impact on the mental health of adolescents, leading to symptoms such as anxiety and depression, and a decrease in their overall life satisfaction. In the educational context, social and emotional competencies have gained increasing importance due to their potential to enhance various aspects of academic, personal, and professional life. This study aimed to assess the socioemotional competencies of 1,270 secondary school students and explore their connection with life satisfaction and academic achievement. For this purpose, the Social and Emotional Learning Scale, the Spanish adaptation of the Life Satisfaction Scale, and an ad-hoc questionnaire that collected the sociodemographic variables of gender, age, and academic performance, were administered. The Mann-Whitney U test for two independent samples, the Kruskal-Wallis H test for independent samples, and the Spearman’s correlation analysis were conducted to examine the relationships between the variables. In summary, the study revealed statistically significant differences social and emotional competencies based on gender, but there were no discernible differences based on age. Furthermore, the results indicated a positive relationship between life satisfaction, social and emotional competencies, and academic performance. The findings of this study hold significant importance as they contribute to our understanding of the factors impacting the well-being of adolescents. Hence, in the current post-pandemic era, there is an even greater urgency to design and implement high-quality interventions centered around social and emotional learning in education, particularly from an early age.

Not Just Rapids: Navigating Gendered Performance in the Whitewater Rafting Industry

Summary Ideal archetypes of outdoor guides often conjure images of strong men with beards and flannel. While guiding industries are, in fact, man-dominated, many women have been successful in gaining and maintaining employment in outdoor professions. Feminist scholars have outlined concepts of gender performances. Within guiding industries, many women have been adapted by performing masculinity. This case study stems from a larger project examining gender dynamics and issues of harassment within the whitewater raft guiding community. We outline the specific ways in which a dominant masculinity is described by interviewees and the subsequent practices they adopt. Specifically, we discuss how women have enacted masculinity through toughness, assertive communication, and sexual humor. We highlight how these expectations are exclusionary and can be opposed. Through these examples and related literature, we re-envision work cultures that no longer require the additional labor of navigating masculinist environments in order to be accepted and successful. Information © CAB International 2024

Who is taking dance electives, when, and for how long? Adolescents’ dance participation and persistence in middle and high school

ABSTRACT Inclusive and equitable dance education practices remain an important issue in United States public school settings. We explore adolescents’ participation in public school dance electives through the examination of an ethnically diverse, longitudinal sample of students living in Miami, Florida (N = 24,368), as they progress through secondary school between the 2009–2010 and 2015–2016 academic years. We describe participation rates in dance electives and give results from linear probability regression models showing the characteristics (demographics, school readiness skills, prior school suspension, attendance, and academic achievement) of adolescents who enroll and persist in dance electives between middle and high school. We found that 14% of students enrolled in a dance elective during middle school and only 2% of students did so in high school. The highest levels of uptake in dance electives occurred in 7th and 9th grade. Most adolescents enrolled in a dance elective for only one academic year. Ethnicity, gender, disability status, and prior academic performance were significant predictors of initially selecting into a dance elective in middle school, and for persisting in a dance elective in high school. These results prompt further discussion of the integration of inclusive dance pedagogy in public school contexts.

Doing gender in death care: How women are finding their place in Italian funeral directing services

AbstractGendered norms in society can strongly influence the presence of men or women in professional contexts. This study examined the perceptions of 13 women working in the funeral directing services in order to better understand how they perform gender roles to play in a field that has long been considered male‐dominated. The findings suggest that women face many challenges to play a professional role in funeral directing and that they rely on their ability to perform care work to be recognized as better professionals. The issue of physical strength—a characteristic element of funeral work—seems to be an issue that still arouses contrasting positions among women. Another finding was that women also perform gender roles through their professional appearance, which they recognize as an important aspect of their professionalism. This work brings new insight into this specific and under‐researched area and provides new understanding on how women use gender performativity to achieve professionalism in the death care; in particular, it shows that women do gender in different ways to achieve the same entitlement to be good funeral professionals as men.