Dissertation Title: Transforming Violent Masculinities: Nigeria's Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Programme in the Niger Delta Abstract Gender mainstream in security studies has been erroneously equated with the introduction of women in security practices. Hence, gender analysis of Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) programmes have largely underestimated the importance of also considering men's gender identity. Breaking this pattern, this dissertation examines the ability of the Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration approach adopted in the Niger Delta to change or consolidate violent masculinities among ex-combatants. The selected case study is of special relevance to the topic at hand since the conflict in the Niger Delta has been partly attributed to the constructions of masculinity that prevail in this Nigerian region. Following previous research in the field of critical masculinities and feminist peacebuilding, the paper reveals that the transformative potential of the Presidential Amnesty Programme is extremely limited, exclusively offering a way of expressing positive masculinities as part of the economy. This is the result of the Nigerian government's decision to adopt a minimalist approach to DDR that pays full attention to ex-combatants as individuals rather...

The main purpose of this research was to address the possible emotional consequences that working in German workplaces, using the local language, may have on non-native men’s self-esteem and to see if the difficulties they went through could have modified their perception of the power structures at the workplace. Using a feminist phenomenological approach, I interviewed four white cisgender men and focused on their feelings throughout the journey of working in a language that was not their native one, surrounded by German native speakers.The results showed how controversial might be for men to accept to feel empathy and that showing vulnerability at the workplace is still seen as very negative.Drawing from Berggren’s theory of “Sticky Masculinity”, I will analyse and explain the results, shedding a light on the participants’ behaviour. Finally, I will posit some “good practices” to avoid the stigmatization of vulnerability in organizational settings and to change the power structures at the workplace.

The word Incel, which stands for “involuntary celibacy”, is characterized and mostly used by young, white heterosexual men. The phenomenon of incels has increased in size and become big over the past years and has now spread in Sweden. Incels has received the society's attention because of different acts of terror committed by men who define themselves as incels. The aim for this study has been, with Raewyn Connell's theory of masculinity, to illustrate dominating discourses regarding gender and sexuality connected with the phenomenon of incels, and illustrate constructed conceptions of being subjected. More specifically we wanted to investigate which conceptions and norms of gender and sexuality that were expressed in connection with the phenomenon of incels. We also wanted to understand how conceptions of being subjected are being constructed linked to the phenomenon of incels. To answer this, we did a netnographic study of the Swedish forum Flashback and studied threads that contained discussions about incels. Our collected empirics were analyzed by the use of discourse analysis. The main results showed that a lot of the forum posts were written on the basis of misogyny as well as racism. A clear conception of dichotomy between men and women also appeared, concerning biological, social and cognitive aspects. Further our results showed how incels, by using different explanations, construct a conception of being subjected by women, other men and society. Our study shows that further research is needed on the phenomenon of incels and about digital communities.

This thesis draws upon the young theory of eco-masculinities and the aspiring movement of economic degrowth. We find the concept of eco-masculinities to be an underrepresented complement to the movement of ecofeminism. Studies show that masculine people are less involved in sustainability-related issues in conventional society. We identified this phenomenon as the ‘eco gender characteristics gap’. In the following pages, we elaborate what eco-masculinities can look like at an ecovillage and where we can see possible connections between eco-masculinities and a degrowth mindset. We do so by analysing qualitative data derived from observations of, interviews with and a questionnaire filled out by people living in ecovillages. At an ecovillage, it seems that awareness about feelings and emotions as well as communicating them are highly valued. Our analysis shows that these factors form crucial parts of precepts for eco-masculinities to develop. Connected to degrowth, we can see that eco-masculinities have to be actively implemented and are not automatically attained by living in an alternative setting. We hope that our gained insights contribute to gender characteristics research and to the understanding and acceptance of diverse eco-masculinities in society. / <p>Due to COVID-19, the presentation was held online in a Zoom meeting.</p>

This thesis investigates the notions of military masculinities in the gender training of the Nordic Centre of Gender in Military Operations (NCGM). Military masculinities are argued to create problematic gender norms that value men and devalue women. Therefore, there is a need to see if NCGM does reinforce or construct these gender norms into their training. The masculine norms are constructed as a dichotomy to the female norms, giving traits such as men being protectors and women the protected, and men being perpetrators and women being victims. The study is carried out through a qualitative text analysis of publications found on NCGM’s website. The analysis examines the extent of military masculine traits in their publications, and how these traits are depicted. The results show that NCGM is aware of the gender stereotypes of military masculinities, but they still do depict men and women in stereotypical feminine and masculine roles.

In the aftermath the 25th January Revolution of 2011, two Egyptian dystopian novels stand out as particularly relevant: Utopia (2008) by Ahmed Khaled Towfik, and The Queue (2013), by Basma Abdel Aziz. Due to the absence of studies that pay attention to how gender relations are portrayed in Arabic dystopian novels, this study focuses on the literary representation of men and masculinities in Utopia and The Queue. This thesis uses narratology and content analysis in order to show that, although patterns of local masculinities are different in both novels, regional and global models of masculinity clearly point out men as controlling, violent and hypersexual, which is supported by multiple institutions, such as the state, media, and the religious establishment. The inclusion of relevant ethnological studies of masculinities in Egypt confirms that the social criticism of the novels include gender relations, and refers to the time in which the novels were written. This study points out the need for recognizing Arabic dystopian fiction as a valuable instrument that carries meaningful and intricate social criticism, as well as the need for the inclusion of gender as a category of literary analysis.

abstract: This doctoral dissertation proposes an analysis of a selection of photographic series by a diverse group of Latin American photographers such as Argentinian Gustavo Di Mario, Brazilians Claudio Edinger and Alair Gomes, and Mexican Dorian Ulises López Macías. The analyzed material focuses on a revision of characteristics of masculinity and imperative heteronormativity in the discourses on their respective national identities. The projects put-fourth by these four artists represent a political proposal that unveals the homoaffective possibilities of their photographic referents. Susan Sontag postulates in her On Photography (1979) that “the powers of photography have in effect de-Platonized our understanding of reality, making it less and less plausible to reflect upon our experience according to the distinction between images and things, between copies and originals” (179). These artists understand the power of the image and, through its meticulous composition, they propose to not only photograph, but to also narrate the reality of dissident identities and their belonging to a collective national identity. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Spanish 2019

The purpose of this thesis is to explore how stay-at-home fathers view their role as the primary caregiver, and how they encounter opposing masculinity issues. This is explored through discussion about daily life, the decision to stay home, and household labor, a particularly interesting reflection of gender roles and equality. The two research questions used to explore this included: How do stay-at-home fathers understand their masculinity and social role? How does talk about the negotiation of household labor in stay-at-home father/career mother families illustrate masculinity issues? Through an analysis of interviews of eight present or past stay-at-home fathers, I capture the ways that these fathers describe and discuss the stay-at-home parent role. By looking at how these men define and interpret the specific challenges they face while in this role, I help tell the stories of stay-at-home father/career mother families, and understand whether these families, too, experience Hochschild's "stalled revolution."

[pt] Um estudo de caráter etnográfico e comparativo entre dois grupos de homens que se reúnem para falar sobre masculinidade, sexualidade e gênero através da internet. O primeiro grupo se aproxima dos grupos terapêuticos clássicos, nos quais diferentes indivíduos se reúnem para falar especificamente sobre seus sentimentos mais adversos. O segundo grupo se reúne com a proposta de debater um tema específico, com o objetivo de encontrar nas suas memórias, sensações e comportamentos exemplos que se aproximem do tema em voga. Os dois grupos resultam da luta dos movimentos feministas que incentivam os homens a se reunirem para falar sobre gênero, entender as suas problemáticas e encontrar soluções, afastando-os da figura clássica, generalista e naturalista de vilanesco, relacionando o homem a também parte de um processo histórico e social de construção de um papel social oposto às mulheres, ligado à dominação. As diferentes motivações dos participantes desses grupos estão relacionadas desde a paternidade até sua relação com a pornografia e a traição. Pretende-se contribuir para os estudos sobre masculinidades no Brasil a partir das lentes da Antropologia das Emoções e da Antropologia das Terapias (Favret-Saada, 2005). / [en] An ethnographic and comparative study between two groups of men who meet to talk about masculinity, sexuality and gender through the internet. The first group approaches classical therapeutic groups, in which different individuals get together to talk specifically about their most adverse feelings. The second group meets with a fixed theme, with the proposal to find examples in their memories, sensations and behaviors that are close to the current theme. These two groups are the result of the struggle of feminist movements that open and encourage men to come together to talk about gender, understand their problems and find solutions, moving them away from the classic, generalist and naturalist figure of villainy, relating man to also being part of a historical and social process of construction of a social role opposed to women, linked to domination. The motivations of the participants in these groups range from paternity to their relationship with pornography and cheating. I understand this document as a contribution to the historical overview of studies on masculinities in Brazil from the lens of Anthropology of Emotions and Anthropology of Therapies (Favret-Saada, 2005).

No description available.