The main objective of this study is to develop a feminist theoretical understanding of menstruation. I first explore Simone de Beauvoir’s feminist existentialist concept of woman as Other to establish a baseline from which all other sociocultural discourses on menstruation flow. I next expand Erving Goffman’s symbolic interactionist theory on stigma to discuss the social-psychological internalization process that girls encounter as they become enculturated into menstruation as a stigmatic condition. I then use a macro-discursive, Foucauldian analysis on power and discourse to understand how menstruation has been socially constructed from premodern superstitions, to the rise of modern medicine in the late 19th century. I follow this with a Marxian, macro-materialist understanding of capitalism to discuss how the femcare industry emerged and commodified feminine hygiene products. Finally, I investigate how second and third wave feminists have mobilized to resist patriarchal ideologies which devalue, subordinate, and subjugate menstruating bodies.

Thesis advisor: David Blustein / This qualitative study explored the experiences of women going through a welfare-to-work program in a northeastern setting. Specifically, the women's identities as mothers, women of color, and women living in poverty were examined. Feminist and critical theory informed the research questions and literature review. Qualitative description and content analysis were used to analyze the data from 10 interviews. The concepts that emerged described the women's experiences going through the program, their identity as mothers and caregivers, the negative psychological experiences and impact of going through the system, feeling labeled and misunderstood, obstacles and barriers to success, forms of resilience and resistance, and their relationship with work. Four major inferences were gleaned from the results: the need to integrate the experience of motherhood/caregiving more explicitly into WTW, the need for more attention to mental health concerns, an alarming level of corruption and corruption within the welfare system itself, and a dialectical struggle between the theoretical and practical experience of work and employment. Implications for practice, policy, and research are discussed. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2008. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Counseling, Developmental, and Educational Psychology.

This thesis proposes that feminist social and political theory adopt the epistemology inherent in Jurgen Habermas's communicative ethics in order to more coherently work toward the goal of freeing individuals from social oppression. This thesis first examines the fundamental differences that exist between the particular claims for knowledge made by the three major schools of feminist theory; the empirical feminists, the standpoint feminists, and those allied with postmodernism. After illuminating the specifics of these feminist claims, the conception of knowledge central to Habermas's thought is explored and shown to be split into three distinct realms; the objective, the social, and the subjective. It is shown that the three realms of Habermas's knowledge account for the underlying claims of the differing groups of feminist theory, and provide a basis for reconciling the differences between them. Habermas's objective realm of knowledge corresponds to the concerns of empirically oriented feminists. A need for an accurate description of the events and conditions of the actual world is shared by both, as is a trust in the human potential for grasping these objects and events accurately. Standpoint feminism's concern for interpersonal relations, accounting for the context of an individual's or group's existence, is reflected in the type of knowledge that Habermas considers social in nature. Habermas's conception of our capacity for social knowledge, which guides our actions with other human beings, is shown to be dependent upon both social existence and communication. Finally, Habermas acknowledges the human potential for critical knowledge to explain the individual's ability to differentiate herself from the group, a task which a postmodern feminism demands to avoid essentializing any aspect of women. If feminist theory is able to move beyond the entrenched differences that it now finds itself locked within, perhaps then it will be able to continue with the project shared with Habermas, that of providing a meaningful emancipation for human beings.

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 181-195)

This collaborative research is an account of the recent lived experience of twelve women who bring about transformations in their own workplaces. The work integrates feminist theory with the social ecology focus of studying interactions between people and their environments. The study is multidisciplinary including psychological as well as social aspects and applies critical social research to workplace situations. The research group informed each other primarily by stories which narrated: social and family context; work situations; particular situations and specific strategies. Reflexive and archetypal meanings emerged from recounting ancient myths to help understand complex and difficult work structures which constrain the participants' creativity. This inquiry is a fresh approach to a range of workplace problems by engaging many women’s preferred working styles and applying this creative response: pro-active strategies which are demonstrated, are indeed, highly effective. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)(Social Ecology)

The study examines women's use of violence, focusing on the experiences of seven women who disclosed that they had perpetrated serious indictable crimes. The crimes included murder, accessory to murder after the fact, manslaughter, child sexual and physical assaults, grievous bodily harm, stalking and threats to kill. The narratives of the seven women form the central focus of the study and these stories contribute to our understanding of the lives of individual women who perpetrate violence. I also include the narratives of one hundred and twenty workers, analyse relevant sentencing comments, and draw on key insights from other research. I began the study believing that I would discover a single truth as to why women hurt other people. My original hypothesis was that women perpetrate violence because of their previous experiences of violence perpetrated by men and/or disadvantage due to structural oppression. In part this assumption has been borne out, with all of the women who participated in the study disclosing that they have been victims of serious violence as both children and adults. However, during the course of the study, I discovered that women's lives and their choices to perpetrate or participate in violent crimes are more complex and contradictory than my simple original hypothesis suggested. I found that the women whom I interviewed and the women whom the workers worked with, were active agents in their own lives, they made choices and engaged in activities that met some of their own needs. Sometimes these choices meant another person suffered extreme pain, injury or death. I came to the conclusion that all of us have the potential to seriously assault others. Drawing on a feminist analysis of male violence, I believe that women's, like men's, violence is also 'individually willed' and 'socially constructed' (Dankwort and Rausch, 2000: 937). I locate women's behaviour in an analytical framework that views violence as a deeply embedded part of our shared ideology, beliefs and social activities. This social fabric contributes to, and fundamentally influences, the choices of individual women who perpetrate violence. The familial, social, cultural and individual factors that contribute to women choosing to perpetrate violence against others are complex and challenging. The study critically examines these factors and describes how different factors intersect with each other.

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 181-195) / v, 195 leaves ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Depts. of Politics and Social Inquiry, 2002

Bibliography: leaves 211-218. / viii, 345 p. : ill. (some col.), music ; 31 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / "This thesis examines and applies feminist musicological theory to Iphis, Matricide the musical, and Mr Barbecue, three musical theatre works by the Australian composer Elena Kats-Chernin." --p. iii. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Elder School of Music, 2005

No description available.

In this study, I explore the ideas of doctoral level counselor education students on spirituality using a postmodern feminist research paradigm. I have found spirituality to be vital aspect of my own life and have been pleased to see its importance recognized within the counseling field. I analyzed the data through an intra case analysis and a cross case analysis. Within the intra case analysis, several findings were described including: definitions of spirituality, religion, spiritual experiences, counseling clients, counselor education, ethics, and more. From the cross case analysis, I perceived two themes. The first theme included questioning important aspects of life. The second theme was related to the ethical concerns surrounding spirituality in the education of counselors and in the counseling of clients. The participants seemed concerned about a counselor or professor imposing her/his beliefs on clients or students. Several mentioned they preferred to wait for clients to bring up spiritual issues rather than bring these issues up themselves. Suggestions for future research are given. / Graduation date: 2001