Equality between men and women has as an ideal won an increasing impact on the contemporary Swedish society and has established as a factor influencing all areas of society from politics to business and private life. The focus of this essay is to explore the impact of equality on hegemonic masculinity and relations of masculinities. The aim of the essay has moreover been to investigate the consequences of an increased focus on men and critique of masculinity due to a growing influence of feminism and women’s movement in Sweden. The study is based on interviews with four members of staff working in a men’s clinic for sexual and reproductive health in Stockholm, Järva Mansmottagning. The clinic is an interesting object of study since it is the only one of its kind in Sweden and furthermore because of its explicit focus on the problems of masculinity and work with equality. The main questions of the study have been: what forms of hegemonic masculinity are constructed in dialogue with discourses on equality; what make up counter images and deviating masculinities and how are these positioned in relation to hegemonic masculinity; and last what kind of complicity with hegemonic masculinity are the men visiting the clinic considered to have? The theoretical framework of the essay has been social constructionist theories on masculinity as presented by Connell among others and theories on intersectionality, i.e. how masculinity interacts with other asymmetries of power such as ethnicity and sexuality. Closely linked to the theoretical stances are the methodological stances of discourse theory developed by Foucault and Laclau and Mouffe and dialogism developed by Bakhtin. These standpoints have guided my analysis of the material. To sum up the most important conclusions of the study hegemonic masculinity in relation to equality is constructed from significants such as modernity, change and responsibility over oneself as well as in relation to partners and children. Non-Swedish and masculinities of an older generation are depicted as the counter images of hegemonic masculinity and are conceived as unsuccessful masculinities. Non-Swedish masculinity is expected more patriarchal and dependent on traditional and stereotype masculine ideals and masculinities of older generations are presumed isolated, irresponsible and unable to change. These contrasting masculinities are depicted as frustrated, fearful and worried due to loss of power and losers in relation to femininity. Equality is enforced as the solution to these masculinities and what constitutes hegemonic masculinity is the appreciation, understanding and conduct of equality by men. Marginalisation of masculinities is thus a consequence of establishment of hegemonic masculinity in relation to equality and heteronormativity is moreover reinforced in hegemonic masculinity. Firstly, as a consequence of the constant focus of men and women in relation in discourses on equality, secondly since heterosexuality is described as men’s complicity in masculinity. Nor is the dominance of masculinity threatened as traditionally feminine traits such as caretaking now are connoted as indisputably masculine. One interesting conclusion is how discourses on masculinity are employing discourses from feminism and women’s movement claiming status as individuals and subjects beyond sexroles. Being a man is no longer a guarantee for being considered an individual. Another interesting conclusion is that in spite of the male body remaining an important fundament in masculinity there is however an extensive critique of traditional conceptions on male sexuality as active, conquering and constant. The interviewed present alternative discourses on masculinity and sexuality with significant potential destabilising hegemonic masculinity.

Abstract This paper is based on a research conducted in a medium sized company, situated in Sweden, with the intent to study possible connections regarding views of gender and the existing sex segregation within the company. How is gender constructed, and does it exist representational ideas of the sexes, that leads to restrictions for men and women to be working within different areas of the company? Why are there such few women working within the company? Through five interviews with employees within the company, three women and two men, I found answers to these questions. My thesis and the specific questions were categorized into three different themes. The first theme aims to understand the interviewees’ discussions of gender and labour. In the next theme I focus on situations described by my interviewees, where acts of differentiating and favouritism based on gender have occurred. The third theme consists of the interviewee’s standpoints of why there is a minority of women in the company. To understand how gender is created and carried out in the company I utilize a theory called the gender system, developed by Yvonne Hirdman, which is a system where the sexes are divided, separated and the higher value is given to the male. I also use a combination of different theories of genderization of phenomenons, which is the process where a phenomenon is imprinted with a certain gender as a way to naturalize the order of the gender system. The process of genderization becomes visible when labour, occupational tasks, qualifications and behaviour are being discussed by the interviewees. For example; technical interests are genderized as male qualities, while tasks performed in the reception desk is seen as female qualities. Through the genderization of different phenomenons, women are excluded from male gendered spheres and women who trespass those spheres encounter suspicions due to the fact that her sex does not imply the qualities that are needed for the occupational tasks. The management within the company is also affected by the process of genderization, which becomes evident when the interviewees discuss different events that have taken place where management is involved. As a consequence, women who apply for occupations are probably less likely to get employed compared to that of men. Women are also held back at the company whereas men are more likely to have jobs assigned to them. Clearly, males are being favoured in this company and views on gender are one consequence of that favouritism, as well as the male dominance of the company as a whole. Male dominance will exist as long as both sexes are being held, separated and differentiated with genderization. Keywords: genderization, sex segregation, gender and organizations, gender systems and work / Denna studie baseras på en undersökning utförd på ett medelstort företag i Sverige, med syfte att undersöka om det finns någon koppling mellan attityder till kön och den könssegregering som existerar på arbetsplatsen. Hur skapas kön, och finns det attityder som begränsar mäns och kvinnors möjligheter att arbeta inom olika delar av företaget? Hur kommer det sig att det finns så få kvinnor på företaget? Mina svar söker jag genom fem intervjuer med anställda på företaget, varav tre är kvinnor och två är män. Mina tre frågeställningar har delats in i varsitt tema, där det första temat problematiserar de könsattityder som uppkommer och kopplas till arbete. I tema två ligger fokus på särbehandling och beteende kopplat till kön, medan tema tre innehåller informanternas förklaringar och mina tolkningar till den rådande könssegregeringen. Med hjälp av Yvonne Hirdmans teorier om genussystemets isärhållande av könen och mannen som norm, samt med diskussioner om de processer som vanligen kallas könsmärkning, könskodning, eller beköning försöker jag förstå hur kön görs och används på företaget. I mitt arbete att använder jag ordet beköning när jag vill förklara processen då kön kopplas samman med ett fenomen som sedan uppfattas som naturlig. Beköningsprocessen skymtar upprepade gånger då informanterna talar om yrke, arbetsuppgifter, kvaliteter och beteende, exempelvis bekönas teknik och elektronik som manliga intressen och kunskaper, medan expeditionssysslor bekönas som kvinnliga uppgifter. Genom beköningen av kvaliteter, intresse, arbetsuppgifter och yrke utestängs kvinnor från det som bekönats som manligt. Exempelvis uppstår misstänksamhet då en kvinna rekryteras till ett område som bekönats manligt, där misstänksamheten består i att hennes kön inte förväntas ha de kvaliteter som tjänsten kräver. Även i beskrivningar kring ledningen framkommer hur beköningen påverkar även deras föreställningar, vilket leder till att kvinnor som söker troligtvis har svårare att få tillträde till tjänster än män, och arbetsuppdrag har tilldelats män i högre grad än kvinnor. Här blir det tydligt att det pågår en särbehandling på arbetsplatsen, till mäns fördel och till kvinnors nackdel. Sammantaget kan också konstateras att attityder om kön har betydelse för upprätthållandet av mansdominansen på företaget. Könssegregeringen kvarstår så länge könen hålls isär och ges bekönade kvaliteter, och männen särbehandlas.

The purpose of this essay is to investigate and analyze the term diversity in five Swedish municipality’s combined gender equality- and diversity plans. The purpose is also to investigate who or whom of the employers that are included in the term diversity and if gender equality is included in the diversity work. The material is analyzed on the basis of theory of intersectionality and discourse analysis. The outcome of the analysis indicates that the municipalities use the term diversity in many different ways in the combined gender equality- and diversity plans. The municipalities usually use the term diversity for all of the employers and all groups of people are included in the work with diversity. Gender is included in the term diversity but gender quality work is often not included in the diversity work. In this essay the term diversity seem to be a difficult term for the municipalities to use and they often uses the term in different contexts.

In 2009 transgendered persons were included in the Swedish law against discrimination. Prior to the inclusion a commission made an investigation of the necessity of such change in the law and how it could be designed. This essay focuses on the discourses regarding gender that appear in the law and the report written by the commission. Using theories by Judith Butler and discourse analysis inspired by Norman Fairclough it identifies two main discourses regarding gender: a two gender discourse and a queer discourse. The two discourses meet in the studied material in an antagonistic way, a conflict that is solved by separating the two and making one part of the law focus on gender and one on transgender. The law that focuses on transgendered persons formulates a new, three gender discourse. The inclusion of the group transgendered persons in the law results in a creative interdiscoursivity and forces the commission to redefine the binary categories of men and women.

<p> My main research questions explore how contradictions of unity, organizing structures, gender, sexuality, citizenship, class, and ability are addressed within Filipino leftist organizations that utilize dialectical materialist theory. I also ask: How have US-based women of color feminist and queer of color theory impacted Filipino nationalist frameworks in the US? How do they also remain at odds with one another? I interviewed 21 NYC-based activists and organizers involved in anti-imperialist Filipino organizations the summer of 2012. I also used participant observation as an active member of study groups, educational workshops, and a town forum. </p><p> My central framework explores conflict as contradiction using Mao Tse-tung's "On Contradiction" and the Haitian concepts of balans and konesans. In doing so, I examine how hard-lined leadership has impeded dialogue. I also interrogate how sexism, transphobia, masculinist organizing structures, and neoliberalism impact women, trans, queer, disabled, working class, and undocumented organizers&mdash;particularly those with overlapping identities of marginalization. "The Movement's" familial dynamic, combined with the value of <i>utang na loob,</i> creates hierarchies that cause some members to feel both silenced and guilty. I name these feelings as indicators of invisible emotional labor "for the sake of the movement" that lead many members to eventually leave their organizations. Their departures raise questions of sustainability. Lastly, I ask how the Fil-Am Left can draw strength from its familial dynamic but still address hierarchical issues that mirror societal hierarchies of oppression.</p><p> Applying work by Patricia Hill Collins, Audre Lorde, and other women of color, along with feminist grounded theory and sociological movement theory, I highlight three strategies that New York City based Filipino organizations have taken within the past ten years. I argue that organizations have recognized problems with sustainability and are creating their own interventions as theory-producers. Organizers' relationships to the National Democratic movement in the Philippines shape both the creation of interventions and how they respond to new ideas. Drawing on Arlie Hoschchild's concept of "stalled revolution," individual behaviors lag behind organizations' formal ideological shifts. Thus, they are works in progress.</p>

<p> This qualitative study focused on exploring the experiences and decision making process of thirteen Latina and/or African American graduate women in master's programs at a large, public university in California. The purpose was to gain a better understanding of the considerations that graduate women of color have in terms of continuing on to doctoral programs. The effects of mentorship were also explored within the lived experience of the participants. Findings that emerged as important through the stories shared included the importance of family, the significance of going beyond a bachelor's degree, challenges faced in terms of gender and race, as well as the ways which graduate women of color have thrived within higher education institutions. Collecting these stories provided insight into some of the challenges, as well as the strengths that this population possesses. Continuing to gain understanding of graduate women of color allows faculty, staff, and student affairs professionals' better support graduate women of color at their institutions.</p>

This dissertation focuses on a textual analysis of the representation of femininity and female sexuality in popular Hindi cinema. Popular Hindi cinema has been a major point of reference for Indian culture in the last century, and will undoubtedly persist in the 21 st century. To an extent, Hindi cinema has shaped and reflected the burgeoning transformation of a 'traditional India' to a 'modern India'. (I use the term modern to reflect the impact the west has had on Indian society, and how this impact in turn is reflected on screen). Issues surrounding gender and sexuality tend to be avoided, if not subverted in Hindi cinema. More specifically, issues surrounding femininity and female sexuality in Hindi cinema is either not recognised or 'mis-recognised' on screen. Feminist studies, in relation to film, have taken up these issues, to a large extent in the west (cf. Hollows, 2000; Kaplan, 2000; Macdonald, 1995). Chatterji (1998) maintains that the interest of feminists in film began as a general concern for the underrepresentation and mis-representation of women in cinema. This study explores issues surrounding the 'presences' and 'absences' (as identified by Chatterji) in the representations of female sexuality and femininity in popular Hindi cinema. The project offers a comparative study of the films produced by two popular Hindi cinema filmmakers. Pooja Bhatt's Jism (The Body) (January, 2003) is analysed in comparison to Karan Johar's Kabhi Kushi Kabhi Gham (Sometimes happiness, sometimes sadness) (November, 2000). The study compares, contrasts and analyses the ways in which each of these films (and thus, how each filmmaker) positions female sexuality and femininity in popular Hindi cinema. Keywords: popular Hindi cinema, femininity, female sexuality, gender, representation. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2006.

<p> The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the experiences and perceptions of individuals who self-identified as trans gender or gender variant on gender identity and mental health care. The study sought to uncover the effectiveness and preparedness of mental health professionals in addressing issues of gender identity, through participants' experiences.</p><p> Fifteen individuals who identified variously on the transgender spectrum participated in the study. Results suggest that mental health professionals are generally unprepared and inexperienced in addressing transgender issues. Participants pointed to trans gender support groups and LGBT organizations as the most helpful services. Implications show the need for mental health professionals to seek out education on the trans gender community, and to assist clients in exploring alternative identities that transcend the gender binary. Additional research that focuses on mental health disparities among the trans gender population is also an implication emerging from this study. </p>

<p> The computing profession in the United States would benefit from an increasingly diverse workforce, specifically a larger female presence, because a more gender-balanced workforce would likely result in better technological solutions to difficulties in many areas of American life. However, to achieve this balance, more women with a solid educational foundation in computing need to enter the computing workplace. Yet a common problem is most colleges and universities offering computer-related degrees have found it challenging to attract females to their programs. Also, the women who begin a computing major have shown a higher tendency than men to leave the major. The combination of these factors has resulted in a low percentage of females graduating with a computing degree, providing one plausible explanation for the current gender imbalance in the computing profession. </p><p> It is readily apparent that female enrollment and retention must be improved to increase female graduation percentages. Although recruiting women into computing and keeping them in it has been problematic, there are some who decide to pursue a computer-related degree and successfully finish. The study focused on this special group of women who provided their insight into the pursuit and completion of an undergraduate computing degree. It is hoped that the knowledge acquired from this research will inspire and encourage more women to consider the field of computing and to seek an education in it. Also, the information gathered in this study may prove valuable to recruiters, professors, and administrators in computing academia. Recruiters will have a better awareness of the factors that direct women toward computing, which may lead to better recruitment strategies. Having a better awareness of the factors that contribute to persistence will provide professors and administrators with information that can help create better methods of encouraging females to continue rather than leave. The investigation used a sequential explanatory methodology to explore how a woman determined to pursue an undergraduate computing major and to persevere within it until attaining a degree.</p>

<p> <i>RuPaul's Drag Race</i> is one of the few reality television shows focusing on QLGBT (queer, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) identified individuals that has made it into mainstream consciousness. <i>RuPaul's Drag Race</i> debuted in 2009 and appears on the channels, Logo and VH1. This thesis analyzes the four seasons from 2009 through 2012. <i>RuPaul's Drag Race</i> provides a unique perspective on the ways that gender identity, sexuality, size, class, race, and ethnicity intersect and interact in people's lives. The television show augments many of these intersections and the challenges related to these identities while still reflecting the daily struggles that people experience. In many respects, the show works to promote messages of self-love and acceptance and makes an effort to praise each contestant. However, it also promotes many problematic and damaging stereotypes. This thesis conducts a feminist analysis in order to answer the question: How does <i>RuPaul's Drag Race</i> relate to hegemonic and oppressive stereotypes and roles associated with gender identity, sexual orientation, size, class, race and ethnicity? Does it challenge or reinforce such hegemonies? This thesis utilizes a number of secondary questions in its analysis. How does <i>RuPaul's Drag Race</i> portray fat and thin contestants? How do contestants' socioeconomic backgrounds fit into their portrayals on the show? How does <i> RuPaul's Drag Race</i> portray queer cultures, and are these portrayals stereotypical? How is race represented on the show; do racial stereotypes come into play? In order to answer these questions, this thesis examines visual imagery, narrative, and dialogue in the show as well as some supporting materials. It utilizes theories from cultural studies, women's studies, English, and communications within its analysis. This thesis concludes that although <i> RuPaul's Drag Race</i> does engage in some subversive behavior, it ultimately reinforces harmful hegemonic stereotypes.</p>