Unequal Gender Research Articles

Freedom within a cage: how patriarchal gender norms limit women’s use of mobile phones in rural central India

IntroductionIndia has one of the highest gender gaps in mobile phone access in the world. As employment opportunities, health messaging (mHealth), access to government entitlements, banking, civic participation and social...

“The Club Management Ignores Us”: Gender-Power Relations in Women’s Football in Turkey

This research aims to explore the gender–power relations and gendered experiences of the players in a women’s football team in Turkey. An ethnographic method and a feminist perspective were used to allow a deeper understanding of their experiences. Based on participant observation and interviews conducted with 14 players, three coaches, and one staff member, the data were analyzed via thematic analysis. The identified themes are (a) institutionalized gender discrimination and (b) compulsory femininity: being ladylike. The findings indicate that unequal gender relations in the club, influenced by institutionalized gender discrimination, determine the position of the women’s team within the club. Accordingly, compulsory femininity is continuously generated in the field. Consequently, the women’s football team remained at the periphery (and finally outside) of the men’s club.

Men Find Trophies Where Women Find Insults: Sharing Nude Images of Others as Collective Rituals of Sexual Pursuit and Rejection

As sexting has become more common, so has the sharing of nude and semi-nude images of others. While women and men may both engage in this practice, when they do so they often participate in distinct gendered rituals. Drawing on 55 in-depth interviews with college students, I examine how the symbolic meanings attached to men and women’s nude images in the context of intimate heterosexual interactions shape collective rituals of sexual pursuit and sexual rejection. I find that men share images of women with their peers to demonstrate sexual prowess and receive praise, whereas women share images of men with their peers to cope with unwelcome sexual advances and receive support. These gendered rituals are linked to the perceived desirability of men’s and women’s nude images. While rituals of domination appear among men and reproduce unequal gender relations, rituals of commiseration appear among women to resist unequal gender relations.

High Time to Break Up the Boys’ Club: The Gendered Politics of Spoken Word and Open Mic Spaces in Trinidad and Tobago

The increased visibility of spoken word in media, public campaigns, and literary festivals demands critical attention to the social organisation of the art form, movement, and space. This paper explores the gendered politics of spoken word and open mic spaces in Trinidad and Tobago since 2000. Based on semi-structured interviews with spoken word poets and open mic organisers, this article discusses the unequal gender power relations between male and female spoken word poets in open mic events. I argue that unredressed gender stereotypes and male privilege contextually marginalise female spoken word poets and maintain the posture of “power” for male spoken word poets and organisers in the movement.

Female Leadership in the Local Governments: Reconstruction of Traditional Gender Identity of Women in Rural Bangladesh

The local government bodies of Bangladesh have always been dominated and controlled by men––the traditional power holders. Bangladeshi rural women are mostly confined to household chores and engaged in subsistence agricultural activities due to the patriarchal social system and a rigid gender division of labour. Moreover, women’s lives are controlled by cultural and religious gender norms which limit their mobility in public spaces and political participation. Hence, women’s participation in local government has always been a symbol of tokenism up until the introduction of a direct election system for women. Given this context, this study explores how Bangladeshi rural women have proved themselves to be the change-makers in the rural society and what influencing factors supported them in reconstructing their traditional gender identities despite social and structural constraints. The study was conducted through a qualitative inquiry by adopting a case study approach. Data and information for the study were collected through 12 in-depth (IDI) interviews of elected female Union Parishads (lowest local administrative unit) (UP) chairpersons, UP members and Upazila (subdistrict local administration council) female vice chairpersons along with four focus group discussions and five key informant interviews from four selected districts of Bangladesh. This study concluded that these female leaders are enormously motivated and committed to reshaping their traditional gender identity and altering unequal gender power relations that predominantly factor in the rural social fabric of Bangladesh.

Pornography Use and Perceived Gender Norms Among Young Adolescents in Urban Poor Environments: A Cross-site Study

PurposeThe purpose of the study is to assess the prevalence of pornography use and its association with a range of perceived gender norms among adolescents aged 10–14 years across five urban poor settings globally. MethodsThe study includes 9,250 adolescents aged 10–14 years from Belgium, China, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ecuador, and Indonesia, as part of the Global Early Adolescent Study. We examined the percentage of pornography use by sex and site and conducted multivariate logistic regressions to examine the relation between gender norm perceptions and pornography use, adjusting for individual, family, peer, and media exposures. ResultsEver-use of pornography ranged from 14.5% in Ecuador to 33.0% in Belgium and was more common among boys than girls. Overall, boys who perceived greater permissiveness about romantic relations, adolescents who engaged in such relations, and adolescents who assumed that their friends were sexually active had greater pornography exposure. Pornography use did not systematically correlate with unequal gender norms. Such correlations only exist among boys in two Asian sites, where a supportive school environment, more caregiver awareness, and/or neighborhood cohesion were related to less pornography use. ConclusionsPornography use is a gendered experience that begins in early adolescence. Although factors of pornography use vary across the social context, the exposure to pornography has become a normative part of adolescent sexuality development. Young people, especially those from where sexuality remains taboo, need the ability to critically process information and avoid potential risks associated with pornographic gendered and sexual stereotypes, calling for comprehensive sexuality education programs to help them build the knowledge and confidence they need.

Gender Equality but Never-Ending Inequity in FATA, Pakistan

Purpose: Conventional wisdom in women development generally supports the link between acceptance of unequal gender norms, which is reflective of their work participation rate, and income gaps. While this link is intuitive in the literature, the presumed impact beyond merely women empowerment, including women's socio-economic development, while lacking sufficient evidence for the case of FATA (Pakistan). This inhand study devolves on the factors which may have promising impact towards women empowerment, consisting upon a sample data of 962 female from secondary data sources i.e. PDHS 2017-18.
 Design/Methodology/Approach: Survey based data of PDHS 2017-18 was used in this study. Moreover, Binomial Logistic Regression is applied as an econometric technique.
 Findings: The disaggregated results confirm that women in FATA are less benefited as compared to men, particularly when it comes to financial status; affecting their household decision making and adding miseries to their socio-economic conditions. Not only that, the persistent gender gap in this region also shares a prominent link with their age, education, exposure to media, fertility preference and employment status.
 Implications/Originality/Value: Lastly, the study scientifically concludes that access to education and employment is the only enabling factor to women's empowerment and achievement towards their socio-economic goals. On the same hand, above much depends on the attitude of the people towards gender equality, which may require intensive social reforms to change their behaviors.

Unequal Gender Norms Are Related to Symptoms of Depression Among Young Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional, Cross-Cultural Study

PurposeThis study was undertaken among 10- to 14-year-old girls and boys in disadvantaged areas of Shanghai, China; Cuenca, Ecuador; Flanders, Belgium; and Denpasar and Semarang, Indonesia. It aimed to assess whether gender norms are related to depressive symptomatology, and to examine whether sex differences in depressive symptoms can be explained by differences in gender norm perceptions. MethodsWe examined the distributions of depressive symptoms and two gender norms scales, gender stereotypical traits (GST), and sexual double standard (SDS), across sites and by sex. We next assessed crude and adjusted associations between each of the gender norms scales and depressive symptoms. Finally, we conducted path analysis to examine the mediating role of gender perceptions in sex differences in depressive symptoms. ResultsGirls reported more depressive symptoms than boys in all sites except Denpasar. SDS perceptions were more unequal among girls in most sites, while GST perceptions were more unequal among boys in all sites except Semarang. Gender-equal SDS and GST perceptions were associated with fewer depressive symptoms, while unequal perceptions were related to more symptoms. Gendered perceptions about traits and relationships appeared to partially mediate relationships between sex and depressive symptoms in Shanghai, Cuenca, and Semarang. ConclusionsUnequal gender norm perceptions were linked to poor mental health among boys and girls, suggesting that gender norms may play a role in psychological wellbeing for adolescents of both sexes. Gender norm perceptions appear to play a role in mental health sex disparities we observed across sites.

Body Satisfaction in Early Adolescence: A Multisite Comparison

PurposeThis study assesses the relationship between unequal gender perceptions, socioecological factors, and body satisfaction among early adolescents in six urban poor settings in four countries. MethodsA cross-sectional study, part of the Global Early Adolescent Study, was conducted in Shanghai, China; Cuenca, Ecuador; Kinshasa, DRC; and three cities in Indonesia: Denpasar, Semarang, and Bandar Lampung. Bivariate and multiple linear regressions were conducted to assess the relationships between body satisfaction, perceptions of gender norms, and socioecological factors. A final sample of 7840 respondents aged between 10 and 14 years were included in the analysis. ResultsAdolescents who endorsed more traditional sex roles and traits were more likely to be satisfied with their bodies in Kinshasa and Indonesia, while only endorsement of GST was associated with body satisfaction in Shanghai. Individual factors related to body satisfaction varied by site and included perceived health status, perception of body weight, height, and growth rate. Family and neighborhood factors related to increased body satisfaction varied by site and sex and included closeness to parents, parental communication, discussing bodily changes with anyone, parental awareness, and perception of neighborhood. ConclusionThe results highlight the association between gender norms and social factors at individual, family, and neighborhood levels with body satisfaction. While associations differ significantly by site and sex, namely in perception of body weight and height, there exists commonalities that suggest body satisfaction, gender norms, and social context are intertwined.

Cuidando a los niños y niñas, cuidando el territorio. Una mirada etnográfica sobre comunidades rurales mapuche y ava-guaraní en Argentina

In recent years, care-related social studies have been growing strongly. Focusing on this process, it seems relevant to suggest that care involves broader processes, which allows us to think not only about its relationship to child-rearing, but also to the environment and the rest of the beings that live in it. Based on two ethnographic research projects carried out with Mapuche (Neuquen) and Ava-Guarani (Salta) rural communities in Argentina, we will analyze the ways in which the forms of care are related to disputes over indigenous territories and access to natural resources. Boys and girls actively participate in household care tasks, as well as having wide margins of autonomy in rural territories. Thus, on the one hand, our observations on indigenous child care allow us to discuss childhood and family definitions that underlie child care hegemonic perspectives. On the other hand, ethnographic research on family strategies for organizing child care in these contexts shows their relationship to unequal land distribution, working conditions and gender inequalities. Finally, this article discusses the ways in which child care is linked to the territorial situation of indigenous people.

Adolescent condom use in Southern Africa: narrative systematic review and conceptual model of multilevel barriers and facilitators

BackgroundAdolescent HIV and pregnancy rates in Southern Africa are amongst the highest in the world. Despite decades of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) programming targeting adolescents, recent trends suggest there is a continued need for interventions targeting condom use for this age group.MethodsThis review synthesises evidence from qualitative studies that describe the determinants of condom use among adolescents in Southern Africa. We conducted systematic searches in four databases. Data were extracted, appraised for quality and analysed using a ‘best-fit’ framework synthesis approach.ResultsWe coded deductively findings from 23 original studies using an a priori framework and subsequently conducted thematic analysis. Synthesised findings produced six key themes relating to: 1) pervasive unequal gender norms and restrictive masculinities favouring male sexual decision-making and stigmatising condom use in committed relationships; 2) other social norms reflecting negative constructions of adolescent sexuality and non-traditional family planning; 3) economic and political barriers including poverty and a lack of policy support for condom use; 4) service-level barriers including a lack of youth-friendly SRH services and comprehensive sex education in schools; 5) interpersonal barriers and facilitators including unequal power dynamics in sexual partnerships, peer influences and encouraging condoning condom use, and inadequate communication about SRH from parents/caregivers; and 6) negative attitudes and beliefs about condoms and condom use among adolescents. A conceptual model was generated to describe determinants of condom use, illustrating individual-, interpersonal- and structural-level barriers and facilitating factors.ConclusionSRH programming targeting barriers and facilitators of condom use at multiple levels is recommended in Southern Africa. We present a multilevel integrated model of barriers and facilitators to guide adolescent SRH decision-making, programme planning and evaluation. Given the existence of multilevel barriers and facilitators, interventions should, likewise, take a multilevel approach that incorporates locally relevant understanding of the individual-, interpersonal- and structural-level barriers and facilitators to condom use among adolescents in the region.

Gender Bias in the News: A Scalable Topic Modelling and Visualization Framework.

We present a topic modelling and data visualization methodology to examine gender-based disparities in news articles by topic. Existing research in topic modelling is largely focused on the text mining of closed corpora, i.e., those that include a fixed collection of composite texts. We showcase a methodology to discover topics via Latent Dirichlet Allocation, which can reliably produce human-interpretable topics over an open news corpus that continually grows with time. Our system generates topics, or distributions of keywords, for news articles on a monthly basis, to consistently detect key events and trends aligned with events in the real world. Findings from 2 years worth of news articles in mainstream English-language Canadian media indicate that certain topics feature either women or men more prominently and exhibit different types of language. Perhaps unsurprisingly, topics such as lifestyle, entertainment, and healthcare tend to be prominent in articles that quote more women than men. Topics such as sports, politics, and business are characteristic of articles that quote more men than women. The data shows a self-reinforcing gendered division of duties and representation in society. Quoting female sources more frequently in a caregiving role and quoting male sources more frequently in political and business roles enshrines women’s status as caregivers and men’s status as leaders and breadwinners. Our results can help journalists and policy makers better understand the unequal gender representation of those quoted in the news and facilitate news organizations’ efforts to achieve gender parity in their sources. The proposed methodology is robust, reproducible, and scalable to very large corpora, and can be used for similar studies involving unsupervised topic modelling and language analyses.

Exploring the Logic of Gender Complementarity using Chimakonam’s Ezumezu System

In this essay, I want to argue that the existence of gender most times translated as gender binary, is a biological fact. What is at stake is a framework for transcending unequal gender binary to gender complementarity. Here, I propose to use Chimakonam’s Ezumezu logic as a mechanism for disclosing gender complementarity. The illogical, irrational and subjective perspectives on lopsided gender differences between men and women will be challenged in this essay. I will analyze the thrust of Ezumezu logic, its major principles, structures, and pillars of thought. I will also demonstrate its global and contextual relevance. I will submit that Ezumezu logic can ground gender complementarity across global cultures. I argue that regardless of the physical differences between males and females, it is illogical to exploit such differences to promote gender stereotype.
 Keywords: Gender equality, Ezumezu Logic, Gender Complementarity, Jonathan Chimakonam

Customary Marriages and Gender Equality : Zimbabwean and South African Perspectives

Patriarchy continues to place limitations on women’s rights in many societies. This is manifested by the unequal gender power relations between sexes, which also adversely impact women’s sexual and reproductive health rights. Using the key human rights principles of non-discrimination and gender equality, the study aimed to analyse gender equality within the sexual and reproductive health domain in customary marriages from the Zimbabwean and South African perspectives. The study was qualitative, conducted in Makwarela (South Africa) and Concession (Zimbabwe) with 16 participants using semi-structured interviews to collect data which were analysed using narrative analysis. The study established that there are restrictive gender norms that negatively affect the interaction of women with the health system, thereby producing negative health outcomes. The study recommends that women be empowered educationally, politically and financially so that they can make their own decisions regarding their health and well-being.

Gender mainstreaming in the European Union development policy: the Tunisian case.

This paper examines gender mainstreaming in the European Union development policy to Tunisia. The main objective of this paper is to analyse the way in which Gender Mainstreaming is included in the European Union Development polity in a strategic country such as Tunisia. In doing this, I will examine to which extent the Gender Mainstreaming integration is genuinely achieving its aim of transforming unequal gender relations. The first section of the paper develops the theoretical frame. The second section explains the research methodology. The third section explains the research results showing how the European Union has overlooked a unique opportunity that would has given the chance to integrate Gender Mainstreaming in the post-revolution European Union development policy, into the national public policies and lastly, in establishing a more inclusive dialogue with an embryonic civil society and mature feminist movement. The paper concludes with the hope that this study will serve to guide and promote, in first place, a real integration of a transformative gender mainstreaming in the EU development policy and in second place, to boost the EU role as promoter of possible national reforms which will enable the implementation of transformative gender mainstreaming in national policies breaking once for all with the artificial neutrality of public policies.

Lifestyles, sexuality and gender: vulnerability to STIs and unplanned pregnancy among female migrant beer promoters in Lao PDR

In Southeast Asia, many young rural female migrants supplement their income by working as beer promoters. This study examined how young, female beer promoters working in Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR, navigate intimate relations and sexual encounters and how their experiences create sexual vulnerabilities. A total of 30 female beer promoters aged 18-24 years old were recruited using snowball sampling. Repeated face-to-face in-depth interviews were undertaken and thematic analysis conducted to identify common themes. Most participants had their first coital experience pre-migration but living in the city introduced them to a larger pool of potential partners. Unprotected sexual intercourse was common, with young women usually deferring to their male partners preference for non-condom use. Working as beer promoters, the sexualised environment of the bar room promoted male ideals of femininity and exposed the young women to sexual harassment. While the young women used various strategies to assert their autonomy, and challenge unequal gender norms, the prevailing male hegemony acted to subvert female sexual agency. Leveraging young urban migrants’ desire to complete education, live independently and postpone motherhood may provide opportunities to examine and challenge gender norms and harmful practices.

Female leaders as ‘Superwomen’: Post-global financial crisis media framing of women and leadership in investment banking in UK print media 2014–2016

The print media is an important and powerful social arbiter. It both reflects and crafts societal opinion, and consequentially has received significant scholarly attention. This article analyses the media framing of women and leadership in Investment Banking (IB) post the GFC (2014–2016) to understand both the framing content, and how it has or has not changed. Utilising an institutional perspective, and the concept of IB as gendered social space, we reveal the existence of an overarching meta-frame which illustrates IB as a setting characterised by unequal power relations between men and women and the sustainment of hegemonic norms. This meta-frame did not change significantly during the period analysed. Our analysis reveals a meta-frame which emphasises ‘deficiency’ and is underpinned by three key interpretive repertoires, each giving expression to different dimensions of IB as a gendered social space. We found evidence of contradictory interpretive repertoire and media framing ignored issues of female agency, the male perspective on leadership in IB and the domestic context of female leaders. While the media did champion certain ‘superwomen’, the framing of women’s absence from senior roles was embedded with stereotypes about gender relations and suggestions that women’s lack of progress could be attributed to their supposed internal weaknesses rather than IB organisations. The characteristics of IB as a gendered space and their role in maintaining unequal gender power dynamics are less frequently highlighted in media framing. In addition, while media framing makes attempts to positively frame female leaders in IB, overall very little has changed.

Indonesian Woman Migrant Workers Fighting Inequality and Violence in Burung-Burung Migran

The story of Indonesian Migrant Workers or Tenaga Kerja Indonesia (TKI) is a blurred portrait of Indonesian citizens' absence in their own country, presented in Burung-burung Migran by Miranda Harlan. This study aims to expose gender inequality, the dominance of structural oppression systems, and poor treatment of woman migrant workers. They struggle to get out of poverty, unemployed, unskilled, and uneducated. The determination and willingness to change destiny is not in line with the reality that often does not side with them. This study uses a qualitative method, narrative strategies about narrator, and focalizations, and gender concepts. The results showed that the focalization and narrator type in the text are internal focalisator and homodiegetic narrator. The focalisator also shows unequal gender relations, physical and verbal violence, which tends to repress Indonesian woman migrant workers. The writer's narrative strategy is in the form of using words, phrases, and sentences that appropriately reflect the repression of female migrant workers.

How do teens define what it means to be a gamer? Mapping teens’ video game practices and cultural imaginaries from a gender and sociocultural perspective

ABSTRACT This study analyses how gender and socioeconomic characteristics permeate teens’ discourses when they define what it means to be a gamer. Video games have become a reference framework for teenagers, in which gaming practices may be important parts of their identity and social context. In addition, many teens see gaming as a professional possibility. This study provides five new gamer categories based on data from four focus groups carried out in Spain with teens from 12 to 16 years old. The ‘escapist-gamer’ and the ‘ashamed-gamer’ categories are based on teens’ gaming practices, and the ‘celebrity-platform-gamer’, the ‘professional-gamer’ and the ‘poser-gamer’ are based on the adolescents’ cultural imaginaries and aspirations. These categories demonstrate that certain male game practices are explicit, while female game practices are silenced. Moreover, sociodemographic characteristics complexify inequalities further, resulting in a struggle against normative models of femininity and masculinity, and determining teens’ aspirations and conceptions of the video game world. Thus, the gamer categories exemplify how video games are currently playing a pivotal role in forging unequal gender and social identities. And, at the same time, these categories show how teens struggle against heteronormative values associated with the game industry.

Empowering rural women for sustainable development through the provision of water infrastructure in north-western Ghana

This article examines the role of the ‘Water for Resilience’ intervention in empowering poor women for sustainable development in the semi-arid and deprived settings of rural north-western Ghana. The Water for Resilience project aimed at equipping poor women, with enhanced income-generating opportunities to overcome poverty and to enhance resilience. This was done by drawing on agro-ecological methodologies, strategies that encourage the use of environmentally sustainable practices such as composting, organic-based pesticides, mulching, and the provision of enhanced water resources. We employed qualitative in-depth interviews, focused group discussions and observation with women beneficiaries and project staff to gather data in four intervention communities. Based on the analysis of the field data, our study shows that the Water for Resilience approach has enormous prospects for reducing poverty and eradicating vulnerability in these deprived settings. We further show that this innovative intervention can promote the transformation of unequal gender relations and empower women. Nonetheless, these can only be achieved if the intervention is executed within a framework that incorporates strategic gender interests, including issues of status relative to men, improved capacity for action, equitable access to household productive resources and access to decision-making and influencing power. We conclude that these structural issues, which remain untouched by this instrumentalist intervention require critical attention if women’s empowerment is to achieve meaningful results in the male-centric settings of rural northern Ghana and beyond. We explore lessons to emerge from our analysis for the empowerment of women in these and similar resource-scarce and patriarchal contexts for sustainable development.