Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Rupaul's Drag Race Is Still Figuring Out How To Handle Gender And Race, Scott J. Mckinnon

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

For a reality TV show about a queer subculture, RuPaul's Drag Race has achieved extraordinary success. In the show, which winds up another series this Friday, drag queens compete to be named "America's Next Drag Superstar". Across 13 seasons (including three of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars) it has graduated from niche programming on the LGBT cable station Logo to a mainstream, award-winning hit on the widely viewed VH1. In Australia, the show streams on Stan and is often highlighted as a drawcard in its ad campaigns. The show's wit and glamour go some way to explaining this success. Just …

Men's Perspectives On The Impact Of Female-Directed Cash Transfers On Gender Relations: Findings From The Hptn 068 Qualitative Study, Makhosazane Nomhle Khoza, Sinead Delany-Moretlwe, Fiona Scorgie, Jennifer Hove, Amanda Selin, John Imrie, Rhian Twine, Kathleen Kahn, Audrey Pettifor, Catherine L. Mac Phail

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

HIV is an inherently gendered disease in eastern and southern Africa, not only because more women than men are infected, but also because socially constructed gender norms work to increase women's HIV-infection risk. The provision of cash transfers to young women alone in such a context adds another dimension to already existing complex social relations where patriarchal values are entrenched, gender inequality is the norm, and violence against women and girls is pervasive. It raises concerns about complicating young women's relationships with their male partners or possibly even setting them up for more violence. In our attempt to understand how …

From Rice Eaters To Soy Boys: Race, Gender, And Tropes Of ‘Plant Food Masculinity’, Iselin Gambert, Tobias Linné

Animal Studies Journal

Tropes of ‘effeminized’ masculinity have long been bound up with a plant-based diet, dating back to the ‘effeminate rice eater’ stereotype used to justify 19th-century colonialism in Asia to the altright’s use of the term ‘soy boy’ on Twitter and other social media today to call out men they perceive to be weak, effeminate, and politically correct (Gambert and Linné). This article explores tropes of ‘plant food masculinity’ throughout history, focusing on how while they have embodied different social, cultural, and political identities, they all serve as a tool to construct an archetypal masculine ideal. The analysis draws on a …

Crafting Masculinities: Gender, Culture And Emotion At Work In The Surfboard Industry, Andrew T. Warren

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This article examines the masculinities of male workers in the context of an emotionally rich form of labour: surfboard-making. Contributing to emerging research around the emotional and embodied dimensions of men's working lives, the article maps the cultural, emotional and embodied dimensions of work onto masculine identity construction. Combining cultural economy theory, emotional geographies and in-depth ethnographic methods, I reveal how surfboard-making has become a gendered form of work; how jobs rely on (and impact) the body and what surfboard-making means to workers outside of financial returns. Following a manual labour process, and informed by Western surfing subculture, commercial surfboard-making …

Sexuality, Gender And Youth Sport, Jan Wright

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

There are two main themes underpinning most research and writing on gender, sexuality and youth sports: a concern with social inequalities based on gender and sexuality, and a concern with sport as a site where limiting gender norms are (re)produced for boys, girls, young women and men. The two themes are not distinct but are often intertwined in discussions of gender and sexuality in relation to youth sports. For example, girls' limited access to and different experience of sports, such as the different codes of football, are not only about fewer resources or opportunities but about the ways the practices …

Gender, Ethnicity And Sustainable Mobility: A Governmentality Analysis Of Migrant Chinese Women's Daily Trips In Sydney, Gordon R. Waitt, Sophie-May Kerr, Natascha Klocker

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The automobile is acknowledged as an urgent environmental sustainability issue in cities where it remains pivotal to everyday life and society. We explore the potential of migrants - from societies where urban spaces and everyday life are not centred on the automobile - to elucidate pathways for reducing car dependence. This paper explores the sustainability implications of everyday mobility decisions in Sydney, Australia, through the mobility discourses of female migrants from China. Our governmentality analyses suggest a preference, among female Chinese migrants, to initially walk and cycle after arriving in Sydney. Many expressed a fear rather than a love of …

Sexual Harassment And Gender Discrimination In Wildland Fire Management Must Be Addressed, Christine Eriksen

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Sexual harassment and gender discrimination are behavioral patterns not uncommon in the many varied settings of wildland fire. Whether in the classroom, on the fireline, in a government or non-governmental organization office, women and men are subjected to and are targets of sexual harassment and gender discrimination on a daily basis. The prevalence of this issue, its causes, its impacts, and potential solutions are the foci of this Associa- tion for Fire Ecology (AFE) position paper.

More Men Die In Bushfires: How Gender Affects How We Plan And Respond, Joshua Whittaker, Christine Eriksen, Katharine Haynes

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The recent bushfires in Western Australia and South Australia are a reminder of the deadly potential of bushfires in this country. Four people lost their lives in the WA fires, and two people are confirmed to have died in the SA fires. It is now well documented that women and men are exposed to bushfire risk in different ways and degrees due to everyday divisions of labour and gendered norms. A range of factors influence how people prepare for, respond to, and recover from bushfire. These include: the type of work they do; responsibilities for children, older and disabled people; …

Ripples Of Learning -Higher Education Participation, Familial Habitus, Gender And First In Family Female Students, Sarah Elizabeth O'Shea, Josephine May, Cathy Stone

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Abstract presented at the Gender and Education Association Asia Pacific Biennial Interim Conference, 9-11 December 2014, Melbourne, Australia

Gender Differences In Cognitive Function Of Patients With Chronic Schizophrenia, Mei Han, Xu-Feng Huang, Da Chun Chen, Mei Hong Xiu, Li Hui, Haibo Liu, Thomas R. Kosten, Xiang Yang Zhang

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Schizophrenic patients have cognitive impairments, but gender differences in these cognitive deficits have had limited study. This study assessed cognitive functioning in 471 subjects including 122 male and 78 female schizophrenic patients and 141 male and 130 female healthy controls. We found that immediate memory, language, delayed memory and total RBANS scores were significantly decreased in schizophrenia compared with healthy controls for both genders. Male patients had significant lower immediate memory, delayed memory and total RBANS scores than female patients, and healthy controls showed a similar gender difference. The RBANS showed modest correlations with PANSS scores, duration of illness and …

Gender Differences In Wheelchair Marathon Performances - Oita Wheelchair Marathon From 1983 To 2011, Romuald Lepers, Paul J. Stapley, Beat Knechtle

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: The purpose of the study was (1) to examine the changes in participation and performance of males and females at the Oita International Wheelchair Marathon in Oita, Japan, between 1983 and 2011, and (2) to analyze the gender difference in the age of peak wheelchair marathon performance. Methods: Age and time performance data for all wheelchair athletes completing the Oita International Wheelchair Marathon from 1983 to 2011 were analyzed. Results: Mean annual number of finishers was 123 ± 43 for males and 6 ± 3 for females (5.0% ± 2.0% of all finishers), respectively. Mean age of overall finishers …

The Gender Fault-Line, Ayako Kano, Vera C. Mackie

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

The economic, demographic and environmental shocks of recent years that have so profoundly shaped contemporary Japanese society have distinctive gendered dimensions.

The economic reality has shifted, but social expectations about the roles of men and women have been slower to change. Meanwhile, the demographic crisis is placing considerable burden on families and revealing the attendant risk of the ‘care deficit’ — in the home and in the face of disaster.

Changing Media Understandings Of Gender Relations: Japan's Equal Employment Opportunity Law In 1985 And 1997, Kirsti Rawstron

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

This paper examines the portrayal of gender relations and issues in theJapanese media through a case study of discussions in mainstreamnewspapers surrounding the introduction in 1985 of the Equal EmploymentOpportunity Law (EEOL) in Japan. This law was introduced as part of Japan's ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of AllForms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). The debate surroundingthe changing EEOL is examined through articles from three mainstreamdaily national newspapers, notably the Asahi Shinbun, the Nihon KeizaiShinbun and the Yomiuri Shinbun. The articles reflect and reinforce thechanging cultural understanding of gender relations in Japan over thisperiod. The newspapers …

Absence Of Democracy And Gender Inequality In Education, Arusha V. Cooray, N Potrafke

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

We investigate empirically how the degree of democracy affects gender equality in education. The dataset contains 66 countries from Asia, Africa, the Middle East and South America over the 1991-2008 period. The results indicate that democracy advances gender equality in education while conversely less democratic regimes discriminate in education against girls. Democratization therefore has an important role in gender equality in education of girls, which, in turn, has a positive influence on economic development and growth.

Equality Vs Difference: A Case Study Of Japanese Media Representations Of Gender-Specific Provisions In Labour Legislation, Kirsti Rawstron

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

This paper examines the portrayal of gender issues in the Japanese media. It will do so through a case study of discussions in mainstream newspapers surrounding the removal of the gender-specific provisions (or ‘women’s protection articles’, hereafter WPA) of the Labour Standards Law. The discussions touch on debates concerning ‘equality’ and ‘difference’ and debates concerning the role of legislation in promoting social change. After a summary of relevant legislation, the arguments surrounding the 1997 removal (effective 1999) of the WPA is examined using items from 1982 to 2005 in the Asahi Shimbun, the Mainichi Shimbun, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun and …

Necktie Nightmare: Narrating Gender In Contemporary Japan, Vera C. Mackie

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

...the thing I hated most of all was the necktie.
When I wore a necktie, there was just no doubt that I was a man.
The image was of a salaryman! The mainstay of the house! The symbol of manhood!

These are the words of Nomachi Mineko in the autobiographical account of her transition from male to female. The book (adapted from a blog) appeared in late 2006 under the title O-kama dakedo OL yattemasu (I'm Queer But I'm An Office Lady). The book's publication coincided with a range of mainstream representations of trans-gendered lives - in television …

Does Democracy Explain Gender Differentials In Education?, Arusha V. Cooray

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

This study shows that despite a strong empirical association between gender differentials in enrolment ratios and democracy, that democracy alone does not explain gender differentials in education in Africa and Asia. The results indicate that income, employment in agriculture, religious heterogeneity and colonialism also help explain the under-representation of girls in education in these regions. Countries in which the duration of suffrage has been longer tend to perform better on average in terms of gender equality in education.

Politicising Parenthood In Scandinavia: Gender Relations In Welfare States, Patricia Kennedy

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Book review of: Ellingsaeter A. L. and Leira A. (2006), Politicising Parenthood in Scandinavia: Gender Relations in Welfare States. Bristol: The Policy Press. £23.99. pp. 286, pbk.

Ambitious Angel: Jean Batten And The Performance Of Gender In A Man's Country, Anne A. Collett

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

Sydney has witness similar demonstrations of enthusiasm, but never one that was more spontaneous, wrote one Sydney reportetr of Jean Battens arrivalo in Mascot in October 1936 on completion of her record breaking solo-flight from England to Australia. Batten greeted the crowd that had waited long hours for her arrival, with and apology and the reminder that it was of course a womens prerogative to be a little late.

The Cultural Context Of Youth Suicide In Australia: Unemployment, Identity And Gender, Heidi E. Gilchrist, Glennys Howarth, Gerard Sullivan

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This article considers the impact, in terms of life and death choices, of the economicexclusion of young people in Australia, where suicide is the leading cause of deathby injury. In the two decades from 1980 there was a dramatic increase in suiciderates for young males. Research demonstrates a correlation between youth suicideand unemployment but the complex relationship between the two has not been fullyinvestigated. This article explores the perceptions of young people, parents and serviceproviders of the cultural context of suicide and how it comes to be constructed as anoption for young people experiencing economic marginalisation.I n

Double Degrees: Double The Trouble Or Twice The Return?, A. Russell, Sara Dolnicar, M. Ayoub

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Double degrees (also called joint or combined degrees) – programs of study combining two bachelor degrees – are increasingly popular in Australian universities, particularly among women. A case study using qualitative and quantitative surveys of current and past double degree students is presented. The study indicates that double degrees benefit students in providing a broad education and increasing skills and options. However, benefits are not fully realised because of administrative difficulties, lack of support and absence of 'learning communities'. These problems arise because double degrees sit outside the disciplinary structure of universities. As such, however, double degrees have potential to …

'Not Another Hijab Row': New Conversations On Gender, Race And Religion., Tanja Dreher, Christina Ho

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

Headscarves in schools. Sexual violence in Indigenous communities. Muslim women at public swimming pools, Polygamy. Sharia law. Outspoken Imams on sexual assualt. Integration and respect for women. It seems that around the world in the media and public debate, women's issues are at the top of the agenda. Yet all too often, support for women's rights is proclaimed loudest by conservative politicians intent on policing communities and demonising Muslims during the 'war on terror'. This edition of the Transorming Cultures eJournal offers critical reflections on the contemporary politics of gender, race and religion, and provides a platorm for those perspectives …

"Not Another Hijab Row": New Conversations On Gender, Race, Religion And The Making Of Communities, Tanja Dreher, Christina Ho

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

No abstract provided.

A Curious Space ‘In-Between’: The Public/Private Divide And Gender-Based Activism In Singapore, Lenore T. Lyons

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

In Singapore, the state’s role in shaping the space of civil society has been well documented. Many scholars argue that civil society in Singapore is largely a state-sanctioned sphere of engagement that has emerged in response to middle-class pressure for greater political liberalization. In these accounts, the space of civil society is described as an arena that is shaped by the state, and in which the state constantly intervenes. What is less clear, however, is how the space of civil society is gendered. Through an analysis of women’s activism in Singapore, this article deconstructs the binaries ‘public/private’ and ‘state/civil society’ …

Comparative Masculinities: Why Islamic Indonesian Men Are Great Mates And Australian Men Are Girls , Mike Donaldson, P. Nilan, R. Howson

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

There may well be no known human societies in which some form of masculinity has not emerged as dominant, more socially central, more associated with power, in which a pattern of practices embodying the currently most honoured way of being male legitimates the superordination of men over women. This paper shows what a small sample of Indonesian men living in Australia thought of Australian masculinity, revealing much about hegemonic masculinity in Indonesia in the process, and disclosing some uncomfortable uniformities concerning men in both countries.

Gender And Communication At Work: An Introduction, Mary Barrett, Marilyn J. Davidson

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

The last three to four decades have seen a rapid increase in numbers of womenin the workplace worldwide, with more women also entering managerial ranks.However, despite legislation in many countries aimed at furthering women’scapacities to move to the top of their organizations, the phenomenon of the ‘glassceiling’ persists (Davidson and Burke, 2004; Ryan and Haslam, 2005). Publicpolicy documents, academic research and popular books advocating government,industry and organization-level policy initiatives to facilitate women’s advancementcontinue to be published. So-called ‘business case’ arguments, that is, argumentsto the effect that organizations that fail to acknowledge and use the skills of allmembers of their workforce …

Book Review - Theresa Coletti: Mary Magdalene And The Drama Of Saints: Theater, Gender, And Religion In Late Medieval England, Louise D'Arcens

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

Theresa Coletti’s Mary Magdalene and the Drama of Saints is a persuasively argued and rigorously researched study that examines the late medieval English career of medieval Christianity’s “other Mary.” Coletti argues for the significance of the figure of Mary Magdalene within traditions of medieval insular piety dating back to Bede, and more specifically within vernacular East Anglian culture of the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. Taking as her main focus the early sixteenthcentury Digby saint play Mary Magdalene, Coletti succeeds in demonstrating the many striking ways in which “late medieval East Anglia’s feminine religious culture and commitment to sacred drama …

A Politics Of Accommodation: Women And The People’S Action Party In Singapore, Lenore T. Lyons

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

For the first time since achieving Independence in 1965, women now make up more than 10% of parliamentary representatives in Singapore. While this figure still lags behind international benchmarks, it is a significant improvement on the last election in which women made up less than 5% of MPs. This article explores the factors that led to the increase in women’s parliamentary representation. I examine the attitudes of senior leaders within the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP), as well as recent constitutional reforms, including the introduction of the Nominated Members of Parliament (NMPs) scheme, and the creation of a Group Representative …

Are Negative Reactions To Sexist Appeals In Alcohol Advertisements A Function Of Feminism Or Gender?, Sandra C. Jones

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Anecdotal evidence suggests that the use of sexual appeals in alcohol advertising is increasing. It has been shown that the use of sex appeals may result in a more negative attitude towards the brand, particularly among female consumers. This study investigates the proposition that this is the effect of feminist ideology rather than, or in addition to, biological gender. The results show that female respondents have more negative attitudes towards alcohol advertisements utilizing overt (or demeaning) sexual appeals than males and more positive attitudes towards alcohol advertisements utilizing feminist (empowering) appeals than males; and that there is no consistent independent …

Gender Discrimination And Growth In Major Economies In Asia, Van Hoa Tran

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

Economic growth, its determination and distribution have been the main objectives of normative and positive market economics over the years.