The aim of the study learn about if the court assesses boys and girls on an equal basis, or if there are norms of gender constructed in society that appears in the Administrative Court of Appeal. And we want to find out how norms, in this field, are different between boys and girls. We used the judgments of the Administrative Court of Appeal and went through the descriptions of the girls and boys. What basis was used in the judgment of LVU, to do this, we used discourse analysis. We summarized all judgments and then described the outcome of each requirement in LVU, we categorized the results for three requirements, other socially destructive behavior, criminal activity and abuse. Quote was taken from the judges to prove our result. The results were then analyzed by two theories, gender theory and theory of social constructivism. There, we showed what standards have emerged through our analysis and it is explained by the theories and previous research. We concluded that the Administrative Court of Appeal judge based on gender norms in the society. Finally, we discuss our results and what ideas and issues that have emerged during the study.

<p> Job satisfaction (JS) has been shown to significantly predict life satisfaction (LS) across a large array of research (Tait, Padgett, &amp; Baldwin, 1989), though the strength of the relationship varies (Steiner &amp; Truxillo, 1987). Authors have suggested the difference in the strength of the relationship across studies may be due to the presence of moderators (Rain, Lane, &amp; Steiner, 1991), particularly an individual's level of work importance (Lent &amp; Brown, 2008). Unfortunately, the research on the moderating impact of work importance uses measures which lack sufficient validity and reliability evidence about their scores (Steiner &amp; Truxillo, 1987). Steiner and Truxillo (1987) suggested Kanungo's ( 1982) Work Importance Questionnaire and Job Importance Questionnaire as a specific measure which would address this concern, though adherence to traditional masculine norms may also tap into the construct of work importance. Individuals who adhere to traditional masculine norms of the dominant culture in the U.S. often place even greater emphasis on their work role (Mahalik et al., 2003). The past literature on adherence to masculine norms has generally focused solely on negative outcomes (Kiselica &amp; Englar-Carlson, 2010) and often samples including only mainly White, heterosexual men (Parent &amp; Smiler, 2012). </p><p> The current study explores the impact of potential moderators on the relationship between job and life satisfaction, examines how this relationship may vary across categories of identity, evaluates potential positive outcomes of adherence to masculine norms, and analyzes how adherence to masculine norms may vary across categories of identity. An online survey was given to 290 U.S. adults, working at least part time, about job satisfaction, life satisfaction, positive and negative affect, job and work importance, and adherence to masculine norms. The results showed job satisfaction to predict life satisfaction, though did not find any significant moderating effect of any measure of work importance (work importance, job importance, primacy of work). The model explaining the largest amount of variance (45%) suggested that job satisfaction may have an indirect effect on life satisfaction, through positive and negative affect. The above results did not vary by gender (job satisfaction predicting life satisfaction, no significant moderators, mediation model). With regard to adherence to masculine norms, there were no relationship detected between positive outcomes and adherence. While the current sample did not have sufficient numbers to examine how adherence to masculine norms may vary by ethnicity and sexual orientation, differences between men and women were examined. Men showed significantly higher adherence to masculine norms, as well as higher adherence to specific norms of power over women, the use of violence, and frequently changing sexual partners. The results suggest the need for more complex models and statistical methods, using outside raters, selecting methods that can test causality, and intentionally selecting higher numbers of ethnic and sexual minorities. With regard to clinical implications, the study suggests the need to address values around help-seeking, focusing on strengths for adherence to masculine norms, and addressing barriers within therapy and barriers towards entering therapy for individuals with high self-reliance.</p>

<p> The purpose of this research is to examine sexual identity and sexual fluidity from a multicultural social work perspective. Examination includes having an understanding of the components of sexual identity development, the stability of sexual identity overtime and the challenges of sexual fluidity and identity. This provides a more substantial evaluation of themes within sexuality.</p><p> This content analysis of existing literature on sexual identity and sexual fluidity reveals findings and gaps in the research. In addition, it identifies areas in which further research is needed. This allows for more competent social work practices to effectively address issues of sexual identity. Findings suggest that it is difficult to capture the basic process that each individual experiences because circumstances can be unique for everyone. Patterns based on categorization within sexuality suggest that sexuality should be understood on a continuum.</p>

Truth and reconciliation commissions vary across geo-political context, depending on the social, economic, and political landscapes. In this thesis I compare how the truth and reconciliation commissions in Canada and South Africa vary in their approach to gender. If truth and reconciliation commissions (TRC) are venues to address past injustices, then the different gendered experiences of injustice need to be centred in the work of commissions. Yet, as I argue, the Canadian TRC has only minimally incorporated gender differences into its work, and while the South African TRC made women’s experiences more central, it too did not fully address the impact of gendered forms of domination. / Graduate / 0615 / 0453 / kereid@uvic.ca

The point of departure for “Affecting change? Cultural politics of sexuality and ‘race’ in Norwegian education” is the reconfiguration of sexual and racial politics in the Norwegian public sphere over the past decade. Both gender equality and homotolerance was transformed from contested political issues to common values that were seen to positively distinguish Norwegian culture in this process. Furthermore, these issues were increasingly taken up to describe both cultural differences and “cultural conflicts” internationally and in Norway. This development can be traced in curriculum and textbooks from 2006-2010, especially in the discussions of cultural differences in Social Science. Through interrogations of both the discursive interconnections between gender, sexuality, and “race,” and how the issues of sexuality and “race” are tackled in education separately, the dissertation highlights that both education about sexuality and “race” in contemporary Norway can be informed by a postcolonial critique that reveals the persistence of racializing discursive strategies in Norwegian education. “Affecting Change? Cultural Politics of Sexuality and ‘Race’ in Norwegian education” is an article based dissertation that investigates the cultural configurations of sexuality and “race” in Norwegian education as they appear in textbooks and in classroom interaction. It consists of four articles and an introduction that discusses contextual, methodological, and theoretical issues that were important for the research that the articles present. The articles focus on a) the cultural politics of Norwegian sex education, b) the interplay between sexuality and questions of cultural differences in Social Science textbooks, c) conceptual and affective problems in education about “race” and racism, and d) the impact of affective educational spaces on teaching and learning questions of “difference” in the classroom. The first two articles primarily consist of discussions of existing research and textbook analyses. The latter two are based on classroom observation. The analysis highlights the persistence of heteronormalizing and racializing conceptual frameworks in education that aims to combat discrimination. Specifically, it argues that the denial of “race” as a relevant concept in Norwegian public discourse and education currently hinders educational efforts to prevent racism among young people. Furthermore, it sheds light on how affective aspects of classroom interaction can strengthen or work against education that reproduces oppressive social norms. These considerations of the cultural politics of sexuality and “race” in Norwegian education are informed by a theoretical and methodological discussion about affect and cultural analysis. Drawing on both psychosocial perspectives and Deleuzo-Guatarian affect theory, the dissertation explores the persistence of oppressive social structures through a focus on psychosocial aspects of racist interaction, and the potential for social change that can be traced through affect on the level of the situation. In the articles, affective inquiry on both these levels helps highlight both how racism is enacted and thwarted in educational encounters.

The literature suggest that many young and small firms are discouraged borrowers, that is, they need finance but do not apply because they fear denial. This research aims to investigate demand-side financing differences between male and female-owned small and medium enterprises in Canada from the perspective of discouraged borrowers using secondary data from the "Survey on Financing of Small and Medium Enterprises, 2004" conducted by Statistics Canada. Women-owned firms are found to be credit constrained according to some studies, but not so in others. To date, however, there remain a lack of studies examining if there is a relationship between gender and discouragement. The study uses multivariate research methods to examine such a relationship while controlling for various firm-specific (age, size, industry, etc.) and owner-specific characteristics (experience). The study finds that majority-female owned firms are more likely to be discouraged borrowers as compared to majority-male owned firms. The study also offers support to arguments that relationship banking is important in reducing the probability of discouragement in both young and established firms.

In Canada, there is the perception that boys are scoring consistently below girls in academic ranking, particularly in the area of literacies. Is there a bias? Is the school system promoting a certain type of 'boy'? Is hegemonic masculinity regularly promoted within the Grade 1 classrooms, in particular regarding literacies? If so, how? Are alternative masculinities encouraged and performed by the boys? This research was conducted over six months, from January to June 2009, in four Grade 1 public school classrooms in two schools in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Along with participant-observation in these classes, interviews were done with students, both individually and in groups. A theoretical framework supported by Butler's idea of performance of gender and Foucault's notions about the creation of self guide this exploration. The findings of this research concluded that, though alternative masculinites were performed, hegemonic masculinity was still regularly promoted within the schools.

<p> The purpose of this project was to identify potential funding sources, and write a grant to fund an existing violence prevention program designed to change cultural norms around masculinity that condone and glorify violence. The grant would fund the expansion of the program into targeted organizations that the host organization was previously unable to collaborate with for a variety of reasons. An extensive literature review increased knowledge about the problem of violence and its relationship to traditional or hegemonic definitions of masculinity and provided information about evidence-based violence prevention programs that the grant writer then used to design a best-practices approach to phase two of the existing program. A search for potential funding sources resulted in the selection of the Office on Violence Against Women, a division of the United States Department of Justice, as the best funding source for this project. Actual submission and funding of this grant were not a requirement for successful completion of this project.</p>

This thesis examines the representations of gender and femininity on the television series Deadly Women. Each episode deals with three real-life cases of female murderers, each organized around the theme of the particular episode. The three chosen case representations were analyzed through a critical gender studies theoretical lens. The specific theories utilized were Judith Butler’s (1990, 1993) performativity theory, R.W. Connell’s (1995, 2002) notion of multiple masculinities and femininities, Judith Halberstam’s (1998) notion of female masculinity, and Ann Lloyd’s (1995) doubly deviant, doubly damned hypothesis. The cases analyzed were Aileen Wuornos (“Predators”, Season 2 (2008), episode 6), Jill Coit (“Fortune Hunters”, Season 4 (2010), episode 3), and Ashley Humphrey (“Dangerous Liaisons”, Season 4 (2010), episode 4). These three cases are viewed as particular performatives of violent transgressions of the social norm regarding ‘appropriate’ femininity. Aileen Wuornos’ representation replicates conventional understandings of female killers, in (re)producing the notion of the ‘monstrous’ predatory femininity of such women. Her “monsterization” (Morrissey, 2003) is often juxtaposed with testimony to Wuornos’ own troubled background. Wuornos’ own victimhood, however, is never portrayed in a manner that would condone her serial murders. The latter two cases provide alternative ways of understanding and discussing female killers. Jill Coit performs a version of (deadly) female masculinity (c.f. Halberstam, 1998), killing one husband while disguised in oversize men’s clothing and a clearly fake handlebar moustache. Finally, Ashley Humphrey performs a version of dangerous violent racialized hegemonic masculinity (Connell, 1995, 2002) and of victimized femininity.

In this thesis, the author claims that dance (especially improvisational dance) is a political practice. Rather than following the familiar trope, where the dancing body stands in as a figure of liberation, the author draws on theorists such as Michel Foucault, Pierre Klossowski, and Judith Butler to suggest that bodies in motion are partially determined though discipline, coded language, and norms of sex and gender. Citing empirical cases of dance performances and the author’s own practice, she suggests that the body in motion is also partially undetermined by cultural conventions. She extrapolates from the example of dance improvisation, where the dancer begins with a norm or loose choreography and, from there, moves into unexpected territory, to offer an alternative conception of the body. The author argues that bodies in motion move between extremes of structure and freedom. / Graduate