Gender and Sexuality Commons^™

Gender Disparities In Self-Employment In Urban China's Market Transition: Income Inequality, Occupational Segregation And Mobility Processes, Qian Forrest Zhang

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This paper presents the first quantitative analysis of gender disparities in selfemployment in urban China. It documents the extent of gender income inequality in selfemployment. By disaggregating self-employment into three occupational classes, it shows the gender segregation within self-employment—women were concentrated in the financially least rewarding segment—and identifies it as a main source of the gender income inequality. It examines a range of determinants of participation in self employment—family structure, family background, and career history—and how their gender-specific effects contributed to gender segregation. Although using data from a 1996 national survey, this study captures two key processes that shaped the …

Fearless: Professor Janet Powers And Linnea Goebel, Janet M. Powers, Linnea C. Goebel

SURGE

This week we would like to recognize Professor Janet Powers and recent graduate Linnea Goebel ’13 for their work in Bosnia this summer helping to set up a group of female embroiderers with an Amazon Marketplace account to sell their wares on the internet. [excerpt]

What Really Matters: A Triangular Study Of Gender Roles And Standards Of Beauty In Cameroon Through The Lens Of Television Advertisements, Deborwah Faulk

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Mass media increasingly has become a powerful force around the world. It is impactful and useful in its various forms such as film, books, newspapers, magazines, television and visual and audio music. However even in its informative, educational, communicative, and entertaining character, the media also has the propensity to mirror larger societal practices, perceptions, thoughts, and opinions pertaining to social dynamics encountered within society. Thus social constructs of gender, race, class and other identity characteristics are exemplified and amplified through media forms. Such realities found in the media have the propensity to be socially dangerous in that it can shape …

Economic Autonomy Of The Miskitu Women Of The North Atlantic Autonomous Region, Nicaragua: Do Current Development Polices Apply To Matrifocal Societies?, Ariana M. Toth

Masters Theses

This thesis provides an ethnographic investigation into the economic autonomy of Miskitu women in the North Atlantic Autonomous Region of Nicaragua. The purpose of this study is to determine whether dominant development models created by patriarchal Western powers are suited to alleviating gendered poverty disparity among the matrifocal Miskitu Indians. Surveys of Miskitu women obtained during field research, with support from relevant literature, comprise the main source of information considered. It is concluded that while dominant development models are not best suited to alleviating gendered poverty in this region, it is the overarching indigenous nature of Miskitu culture and not …

Assimilation, Acculturation, And The Law: Solving A “Problem” Like Shar’Ia, Kristina E. Benson

LUX: A Journal of Transdisciplinary Writing and Research from Claremont Graduate University

An unexpected development in the English legal system involves Muslim women’s use of legally binding Shar’ia councils to protect their autonomy, marital security, and property rights. Although scholars and political commentators alike have voiced concerns that Muslim women will be treated unfairly in these councils, there is some indication that women have become adept at navigating this plural legal landscape and that they have often managed to secure better outcomes from Shar’ia family law than from English courts. Over 80 Shar’ia tribunals have been established to issue legally binding decisions on divorce, child custody, inheritance, and other areas of family …

Wajma (An Afghan Love Story), Dereck Daschke

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a film review of Wajma (An Afghan Love Story) (2013) directed by Barmak Akram.

We Came! We Stripped! We Conquered! The Sextremist Feminists Of Femen In Ukrainian Historical Context And Contemporary Controversy, Jayeon Kim

Honors Theses

In 2008, Anna Hutsol, an economist by training, founded feminist organization FEMEN (Megginson 2011). Comprised mostly of university-educated women, FEMEN has received international media coverage, encountered controversy, and received death threats for their topless protests. For their activism, French magazine Madame Figaro ranked one of the founding members Inna Schevchenko on the 13^th position in their list of Women of the Year (Madame Figaro 2012). They have delivered lectures on their movement at international forums and universities. FEMEN now has chapters in Brazil, Tunisia, France and Germany. FEMEN activists attribute their visibility to “sextremism,” their tactic of using the …

Sex Trafficking: The Influence Of Cultures, Socio-Economic Structures And Law & Order On Sex Trade In Asia, Saanya Dua

Political Science Theses and Capstones

Sex trafficking and prostitution are both matters of concern in today’s world. Trafficking of human beings is a global phenomenon and has been a topic of increased discussion and attention. It is believed that the sex trade industry is considered to be the fastest growing criminal industry in the world, currently it is second to drug trafficking in terms of profits through an illegal industry. Several initiatives have been made to prevent trafficking, through significant legislative and other actions provided to aid victims and those vulnerable in the world. However, the lack of systematic research is a big issue. Asia …

Grounding The International Norm On Women, Peace And Security: The Role Of Domestic Norm Entrepreneurs And The Challenges Ahead, Ma. Lourdes Veneracion-Rallonza

Political Science Department Faculty Publications

One of the gaps in the study of international norms is the process by which they are institutionalized and accepted at the national level. As the international norm negotiates its way through various national (and even grassroots) levels, a point of inquiry would be how domestic norm entrepreneurs have enabled its localization. This study looks at the narrative of a loose network of peace and women’s human rights groups that worked together to localize United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 on women, peace and security in the Philippines. Specifically, it reviews how the network evolved to become a domestic …

Quick And Dirty: Some Psychosocial Costs Associated With The Dark Triad In Three Countries, Peter K. Jonason, Norman P. Li, Anna Z. Czarna

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The current study provides the first examination of the relationship between life history indicators and the Dark Triad traits in an international sample drawn from the U.S. (n = 264), Singapore (n = 185), and Poland (n = 177). In all three samples, the Dark Triad traits were associated with psychosocial costs, although there were more links in the Singaporean and Polish samples than in the American sample. In the U.S., the quality of one’s romantic relationships and psychopathy were negatively correlated. Narcissism was higher in the Polish and American samples than in the Singaporean sample. Men scored higher than …

Women's Mobilization In Latin America: A Case Study Of Venezuela, Brianna Russell

Master's Theses

Abstract

I examine the following elements in regards to women’s mobilization in Latin America and Venezuela from the late 1950s to the present: (a) the influence of the state and economy on times when women mobilized (b) class division within the movement (c) women’s demands during different time periods (d) the ways in which women were successful in working towards gender equality. This thesis reviews the literature on women’s mobilization in Latin America during the second half of the twentieth century. I find that women mobilized across class lines with the masses to end dictatorships. Women demobilized during transitions to …

Why Eu Work-Family Reconciliation Policies Fail In Italy: A Feminist Legal Analysis, Chrystal Orozco

Master's Theses

Following the establishment of the European Parental Leave Directive (96/34/EC), the female employment rate in Italy is still ranked the third lowest in the European Union (EU) and Italian women continue to do twice as much household work as Italian men. Parents, especially women, struggle to find a balance between professional work and their family lives in a society that encourages the traditional gendered roles of the housewife and the breadwinner. The following study is a theoretical analysis of the Parental Leave Directive and the potential domestic influences that may prevent Italy from progressing socially towards gender equality. This study …

Why Chinese Neo-Confucian Women Made A Fetish Of Small Feet, Aubrey L. Mcmahan

Grand Valley Journal of History

Abstract for “Why Chinese Neo-Confucian Women Made a Fetish of Small Feet”

This paper explores the source of the traditional practice of Chinese footbinding which first gained popularity at the end of the Tang dynasty and continued to flourish until the last half of the twentieth century.[1] Derived initially from court concubines whose feet were formed to represent an attractive “deer lady” from an Indian tale, footbinding became a wide-spread symbol among the Chinese of obedience, pecuniary reputability, and Confucianism, among other things.[2]^,[3] Drawing on the analyses of such scholars as Beverly Jackson, Valerie Steele …

Sexual And Reproductive Health Care Access And Utilization By Mexican Immigrant Women In New York City – A Descriptive Study, Gabriela Betancourt

Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies

Introduction: This study examines reproductive health care access and utilization by Mexicans in New York City.

Methods: This report uses data collected by Planned Parenthood of New York City (PPNYC) as part of a larger sexual and reproductive health (SRH) needs assessment. We analyzed various demographic factors and barriers to describe SRH access and utilization of services among Mexican immigrant women residing in New York City (NYC). We purposely sampled 151 adult women seeking assistance from the Mexican Consulate of New York City and other community-based organizations (CBOs). Women choosing to participate were administered an anonymous survey. Data collected included …

Women’S Entry Into Self-Employment In Urban China: The Role Of Family In Creating Gendered Mobility Patterns, Qian Forrest Zhang, Zi Pan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

How did family characteristics affect women and men differently in self-employment participation in urban China? Analyses of national data show dual marriage penalties for women. Marketization made married women more vulnerable to lay-offs from state-sector jobs; their likelihood of being pushed into unskilled self-employment surpassed that of any other groups. The revitalized patriarchal family tradition favored men in family businesses and resulted in their higher rates of entering entrepreneurial self-employment. Married women who had the education to pursue entrepreneurial self-employment were constrained by family responsibilities to state-sector jobs for access to family services, and had much lower rates in entering …

Securing South Africa's Future Grandmothers Against Poverty And Aids As A Model For Social Development Change, Savannah Lynn Eck

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Focusing on the role of elder women in South Africa as a lens to understand the central connections among HIV/ AIDS, poverty and Human Security provides a distinct approach to analyze women's contributions to community development and social change. Drawing from the theories of Gender and Development and Human Security, this research aims to highlight HIV/ AIDS as a social and political security issue, while underscoring the vitality of the inclusion of women in the processes of peace building, reconciliation, education and social development. Furthermore, the influential role of elder women in South Africa will serve as a model in …

Whose Gay Town Is Cape Town? An Examination Of Cape Town’S Gay Village And The Production Of A Queer White Patriarchy., Mollie Beebe

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My ISP works to illuminate the diversity of LGBTQI experiences and lives in Cape Town. I do this through discussing the privilege necessary to "come out" in Cape Town and, subsequently, have access to The Pink Village, Cape Town's gay district. By Bringing in theory on "coming out" as a white experience and the queer movement as re-centering white normativity, I work to openly discuss how a history of exclusion has lived on in Cape Town's gay district and pushed the more marginalized gay communities out of the city center. Through academic research, participant observation in both the gay village …

The Social And Economic Impact Of Mpesa On The Lives Of Women In The Fishing Industry On Lake Victoria, Danielle White

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study will examine the social and economic impact of the mobile banking system, MPESA, in the lives of women in the fishing industry on Lake Victoria in Kenya. The study aims to discover what MPESA is being used for and how its use is affecting the lives of its female users. It will not only study the immediate impact on women, but also the impact on the interactions with their families and communities, as well as the fishing industry. The study aims to determine whether or not MPESA is beneficial to these women and if it is, how the …

Rewriting The Future: The Construction Of Masculine Subjectivity Within Articulations Of Russia's Post-Soviet National Idea, Arianna L. Nowakowski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation evaluates the construction, negotiation, and contestation of masculine Subjectivity within articulations of Russia's post-Soviet national Idea. As Russia endeavors to define itself after years of turmoil and strife, gender identities have become deeply enmeshed in understandings of quintessential Russianness. From discourses of the state under Vladimir Putin to those of the Russian Orthodox Church, actors with significant social and political power have constructed particular understandings of what it means to be Russian, and in so doing, have delineated the parameters of normal, or natural gender identities and sexualities for men.

Drawing from the ideas of Michel Foucault, Jacques …

Portraits Of Empowerment Exhibited By One Million Signatures Campaign Activists, Manijeh Badiee

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Iranian women have shown themselves to be anything but victims (Afkhami, 2009; Price, 1996; Shiranipour, 2002). Although they live in an oppressive regime (Nafisi, 1999; ―Symbolic annihilation,‖ 1999), grassroots efforts of their One Million Signatures Campaign transformed gender politics in Iran (Khorasani, 2009). The Campaign has become international, and Iranian Americans have played a prominent role in furthering its message (Tohidi, 2010).

Iranian women‘s struggles reflect the global phenomenon of women‘s movements (Ferree, 2006). Empowerment is used to conceptualize such movements, but few studies have explored individuals from the Middle East (e.g. Dufour & Giraud, 2007).

The present study addressed …

Puerto Disperso: La Existencia O No De La Comunidad Y El Espacio No-Heteronormativa En Valparaíso, Chile, Rebecca Raymond-Kolker

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The social and political reality of contemporary Chile continues to be characterized by hegemonic social conservatism and restrictive and often violent government. Within this context, studies of sexuality and deviations from normative sexuality in Chile have historically focused on certain identity groups—namely gay, lesbian, bisexual and transsexual/gender populations—in relation to this conservative context. Previous work on specifically lesbian and gay individuals focus on the relationship between identity formation and social realities. Gay and lesbian studies in Chile are often based in Santiago; as the capital and the largest metropolitan area, the 15th Region is the site of the most GLBT …

Renegotiating Gender And Class In The Berry Fields Of Michoacán, Mexico, Donna Chollett

Anthropology Publications

This article examines the renegotiation of gender and class in a rural Mexican community where economic crisis in the sugar industry led foreign agribusinesses to promote blackberry and raspberry production for export and hire primarily women as berry pickers. Analysis focuses on the transition from a sugar economy where mostly men worked in the cane fields to non-traditional agricultural exports when women entered agricultural waged labor in unprecedented numbers. This restructuring of the regional economy raises important questions regarding the marginalization of differentiated subaltern groups and the nature of new sets of power relations between transnational agribusinesses, berry growers, and …

Youth Dating Culture In Urban Vietnam: Attitudes, Behaviors, And Influences, Alexa Difiore

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper attempts to research urban youth’s attitudes and behaviors concerning everything having to do with dating (the process, PDA, typical dating spots and behavior) and opinions towards “hot issues” in contemporary, Vietnam such as pre-marital sex and co-habitation. My research question focuses on what the term “dating” means among youth in urban Vietnam, and the various influences that affect youth’s dating and sexual lives. Through an extensive literature review, I learned that there is an overall lack of information and discussion about sex in Vietnam. There is also a general idea that from parents, the government, and school that …

Female Genital Mutilation: Policies To Encourage Abandonment, Melissa Arneson

Political Science Theses and Capstones

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) also known as Female Genital Cutting (FGC) captured my interest the first time I heard about the practice. I assumed, wrongly, that it was only practiced in remote areas of Africa where educational opportunities were few and outside influences were nil. After researching the topic it is clear that is not the case. FGM is practiced in many countries in Africa, the Middle East, and around the world. It is a barbaric practice that has no religious significance and is incredibly harmful to women and their health, both mentally and physically. I focused my research on …

¡El Machismo Mata! Promoviendo Una Masculinidad Libre De Violencia, Olivia Bergman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Al escuchar la declaración ‘¡el machismo mata!’, es muy probable que uno inmediatamente piense en las miles de mujeres que anualmente son asesinadas por el elemental hecho de haber nacido mujer. El pueblo nicaragüense está muy familiarizado con esta violencia contra las mujeres, porque “en Nicaragua, las muertes violentas de éstas han crecido en número y crueldad durante los últimos años.”[1] Solamente durante el primer trimestre de 2011 hubo 28 femicidios en Nicaragua - el número más alto nunca registrado, más del doble del número de mujeres asesinadas en la misma temporada de 2010.[2]

Sin embargo, cuando decidí titular este …

Change And Persistence In Marriage Payments In Vietnam, 1963-2000, Bussarawan Puk Teerawichitchainan, John Knodel

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Among various marriage and family practices, economic exchange at the time of marriage is one of the most multifaceted and complex. Prevalence, direction, magnitude, and property rights of marriage payments can vary considerably over time and across societies. Despite their implications for the wellbeing of family members and the distribution of wealth across generations, trends and determinants of payments have rarely been examined at the population level. Based on representative data from the Vietnam Study of Family Change, we describe temporal trends, cohort patterns, and regional differences in payments among Vietnamese marriages contracted during 1963-2000 to ascertain influences of cultural …

Reflections On Reflections: Dialectical Commentaries On Gender And Class In Ntae Production, Donna Chollett

Anthropology Publications

No abstract provided.

Palestinian Women: Mothers, Martyrs And Agents Of Political Change, Rebecca Ann Otis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation seeks to understand the role of women as political actors in the rise of Islamo-nationalist movement in Palestine. Using a historical and ethnographic approach, it examines the changing opportunity structures available to Palestinian women in the nationalist struggle between 1987 and 2007. It looks into the sites of political engagement of Palestinian women as mothers, organizers and political candidates, suicide bombers, and nonviolent activists with attention paid to the evolution of the Islamist ideology within these four pathways for political participation. The goal of this work is to engage the question of how some Palestinian women who appear …

Mate Preferences In The Us And Singapore: A Cross-Cultural Test Of The Mate Preference Priority Model, Norman P. Li, Katherine A. Valentine, Lily Patel

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Sex differences have been found in mate preferences across several decades. Especially for long-term partners, men tend to value physical attractiveness and women tend to value social status. However, the sexes both value various other traits even more highly. Such findings thus diminish the importance of the sex differences and challenge the theoretical importance that evolutionary psychologists place on physical attractiveness and social status. Using a budget allocation methodology to examine mate preferences in both the US and Singapore, we found not only the usual sex differences, but also evidence that men prioritize physical attractiveness and women prioritize social status …

An Assessment Of The Social Impact Of Feminist Network Organizing: A Qualitative Study Of The First Nepali Women's Global Network (Nwgn) Conference, Barret Katuna

Master's Theses

In this study, the author examines the efforts of one transnational feminist network, the Nepali Women’s Global Network (NWGN) to organize through a conference addressing gender inequality matters that shape the experiences of Nepali women on a global and national level and the variant experiences of conference participants based on their social locations. Recognizing the complexity of individual social change on a personal level as well as process-based institutional social change challenging social norms, the author posits the following two research questions 1) Can conferences organized by feminist networks initiate social change? and 2) How can feminist networks best promote …