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The importance of cyber security is rapidly increasing. At the same time, too few cyber security professionals are educated in order to fulfill industrial needs. Women are a minority within information technology and account for an even smaller number of people within cyber security itself. A skewed gender disparity can lead to reduced productivity and missing out on wider perspectives. This project intends to investigate what different factors and reasons could be behind why women are a minority within cyber security. This study examines possible reasons for the gender disparity, using a survey study, directed towards university students, mostly within information technology and similar subjects. The study also included a ‘cyber security exercise’ where interviewees through a mixed- method qualitative study tested a practical example of a cyber security task, in this case an artificial website, with predetermined security flaws, programmed by the authors. None of the factors that were examined could be proven to cause the gender disparity, since this would have required more detailed experimentation. Support was found for there being a lack of female role models within cyber security, that women to a greater degree feel that they are treated differently on account of their gender, and that the environment in the workplace generally is more important to women than to men. There were also derivatives from some hypotheses that correlated with the low number of women in cyber security, but were not supported to the same extent: women’s lesser interest in working with software development or programming, that the popular image of cyber security may be highly focused on hacking, that there are so few women, and that women may have lower self- confidence than men when it comes to information technology. The results of this study shed a light on factors influencing women’s underrepresentation in cyber security, and can serve as a foundation for aspects that may be relevant to investigate further. Some cyber security programmes in Sweden have a more even gender distribution than the norm, but no clear reasons for this could be determined with certainty, meaning that they too can serve as a clear foundation for future research in this area. / Datasäkerhet är ett ämne som snabbt blir allt viktigare. Samtidigt så utbildas inte tillräckligt många datasäkerhetstekniker för att kunna uppfylla industrins behov. Inom området informationsteknologi utgör kvinnor en minoritet och inom datasäkerhet specifikt utgör de en ännu mindre andel. En skev könsfördelning kan leda till reducerad produktivitet och att bredare perspektiv missas. Detta arbete avser att undersöka vilka olika faktorer och anledningar som skulle kunna ligga bakom varför kvinnor utgör en minoritet inom datasäkerhet. Den här studien undersöker möjliga orsaker till könsfördelningen med hjälp av en enkätstudie, riktad till universitetsstudenter, främst inom informationsteknologi och liknande ämnen. Studien inkluderade även en “datasäkerhetsövning” där personer genom en ’mixed- method’ kvalitativ studie fick prova på ett konkret exempel på en datasäkerhetsuppgift, i form av en artificiell hemsida med förbestämda säkerhetsbrister, som programmerats av författarna. Ingen faktor av de som undersöktes kunde bevisas orsaka könsfördelningen, eftersom det skulle krävt mer detaljerad experimentering. Stöd hittades för att det finns en brist på kvinnliga förebilder inom datasäkerhet, att kvinnor i större grad upplever att de blir särbehandlade på grund av sitt kön, samt att miljön på en arbetsplats generellt är viktigare för kvinnor än för män. Det fanns även derivat från hypoteser som visades korrelera med det låga antalet kvinnor i datasäkerhet, men som inte fick stöd i samma utsträckning: kvinnors lägre intresse för att studera mjukvaruutveckling eller jobba som programmerare, att den allmänna bilden av att datasäkerhet kan vara mycket fokuserad på hacking, att det är en låg andel kvinnor samt att kvinnor kan ha lägre självförtroende än män när det kommer till informationsteknik. Resultaten av denna studie kan bidra till att belysa faktorer som påverkar kvinnors underrepresentation inom datasäkerhet och kan verka som en grund till aspekter som kan vara relevanta att undersöka vidare. Ett fåtal datasäkerhetsutbildningar i Sverige hade en betydligt jämnare könsfördelningen än normen, men inga tydliga anledningar för detta kunde bestämmas med säkerhet, vilket innebär att de utgör ett tydlig grund för ytterligare forskning inom området.

This thesis investigates the gender disparity among female teachers and principals within the Japanese education system. The purpose of the study is to identify factors contributing to this imbalance and to explore the career aspirations of future female educators alongside the experiences of retired female principals. Using a mixed-methods approach, quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews were employed to gather data. The surveys aimed to understand the career aspirations of future female educators, while interviews provided insights into the experiences of retired female principals. The results reveal a complex interplay of societal expectations, institutional structures, and individual aspirations shaping women's professional trajectories in education. Despite the high representation of female teachers, the proportion of female principals remains significantly low. Implications of the study highlight the need for addressing systemic barriers and fostering an environment conducive to the professional development and advancement of women in educational leadership roles. By promoting gender equity and inclusivity, policymakers, educators, and researchers can work towards a more diverse and representative education sector in Japan.

Recent studies from our laboratory on the aromatic amine carcinogen, 4-aminobiphenyl (ABP) have shown a significantly lower prevalence of ABP-induced liver tumors in male mice lacking the N-acetyltransferases, and a dramatically lower prevalence in females than in males, but no association of tumor prevalence with strain or sex differences in levels of acute ABP-induced DNA damage. This thesis aimed to investigate the possible involvement of acute cytotoxic effects of ABP in the development of a tumor-promoting inflammatory environment. We found that wild-type male mice showed higher acute hepatotoxicity to ABP, as well as, a possible trend towards higher serum levels of the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin 6. This correspondence between acute ABP cytotoxicity and inflammatory response with ultimate tumor growth is consistent with a model whereby ABP not only initiates cells by damaging DNA but also promotes tumor growth in a gender-selective fashion that may be governed by gonadal hormone influences.

Recent studies from our laboratory on the aromatic amine carcinogen, 4-aminobiphenyl (ABP) have shown a significantly lower prevalence of ABP-induced liver tumors in male mice lacking the N-acetyltransferases, and a dramatically lower prevalence in females than in males, but no association of tumor prevalence with strain or sex differences in levels of acute ABP-induced DNA damage. This thesis aimed to investigate the possible involvement of acute cytotoxic effects of ABP in the development of a tumor-promoting inflammatory environment. We found that wild-type male mice showed higher acute hepatotoxicity to ABP, as well as, a possible trend towards higher serum levels of the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin 6. This correspondence between acute ABP cytotoxicity and inflammatory response with ultimate tumor growth is consistent with a model whereby ABP not only initiates cells by damaging DNA but also promotes tumor growth in a gender-selective fashion that may be governed by gonadal hormone influences.

The overall policy goal of education for the Kenyan Government is the provision of education and training to all Kenyans as it is fundamental to the Government’s overall development strategy. This emphasis means that every Kenyan has the right to education and training no matter his/her socio-economic status. The Government has therefore allocated substantial resources and there has been notable achievements attained, but the sector still faces major challenges related to access, equity, and quality amongst others (Session paper no. 1 2005:2). One of these major challenges to access is the existence and persistence of retrogressive traditional practices such as female genital mutilation (FGM).The first concern of this study is that despite the immense awareness of the dangers on the victims in many aspects in life, and efforts to stamp it out, FGM still persists and thrives in many parts of the country to date. Secondly, there is an ever growing gender disparity in Kuria district, whereby women professionals are hard to come by. Even in the teaching profession which is associated with females in Kenya, there are a negligible number of Kuria female teachers. There is therefore need to liberate these girls from the persistent “senseless genital mutilation” by proper and relevant socialization and empowerment against cultural practices. The Cultural Lag theory of sociologist William F. Ogburn (1964) will be the underlying theoretical perspective of this study to explain the phenomenon, focusing explicitly on the / Sociology / DLITT(SOC)

The overall policy goal of education for the Kenyan Government is the provision of education and training to all Kenyans as it is fundamental to the Government’s overall development strategy. This emphasis means that every Kenyan has the right to education and training no matter his/her socio-economic status. The Government has therefore allocated substantial resources and there has been notable achievements attained, but the sector still faces major challenges related to access, equity, and quality amongst others (Session paper no. 1 2005:2). One of these major challenges to access is the existence and persistence of retrogressive traditional practices such as female genital mutilation (FGM).The first concern of this study is that despite the immense awareness of the dangers on the victims in many aspects in life, and efforts to stamp it out, FGM still persists and thrives in many parts of the country to date. Secondly, there is an ever growing gender disparity in Kuria district, whereby women professionals are hard to come by. Even in the teaching profession which is associated with females in Kenya, there are a negligible number of Kuria female teachers. There is therefore need to liberate these girls from the persistent “senseless genital mutilation” by proper and relevant socialization and empowerment against cultural practices. The Cultural Lag theory of sociologist William F. Ogburn (1964) will be the underlying theoretical perspective of this study to explain the phenomenon, focusing explicitly on the / Sociology / DLITT(SOC)

The major objective of this empirical research is to identify and explain the level of regional development and analyse the challenges of policy implementation with special focus on Tigray and Gambella Regions from 1995 to 2015. In line with the research objectives and statement of the problem, this study was designed to determine the level of development of the two regional states, the critical factors of regional growth in the regions, and what the major challenges were in the implementation of regional development policy. This research was explanatory cross-sectional in its design. In this research, both primary and secondary sources were consulted. Key informant interview, document review and observation were used to collect the necessary information. Accordingly, based on their expertise knowledge, and the position they held, a total of 24 regional and federal key informants were purposively selected and interviewed. The findings of the study showed that both regions made remarkable improvements and changes in health, education, road network, agricultural and revenue collection performance. However, contrary to the perceptions of the respondents, the secondary data when divided by regional population showed that in the past 20 years Gambella has been better off in terms of health, education, road networks and some agricultural indicators than Tigray. Tigray, however, grew more in terms of infrastructure than Gambella during the same period. The study found that the Government regional development policy designed and implemented as measured by growth-oriented indicators brought encouraging results. The most important determinant factors for regional economic development between the two sampled regions were: initial historical level of development; capacity of resource utilisation; leadership commitment, cultural differences, recurrent conflicts and insecurity, governance issues, political will, capacity of the regional government authorities; and rent-seeking attitude of politicians and civil servants. To address some of the challenges, few recommendations are made: designing a regional specific development policy, strengthening intergovernmental relations, protecting the environment, ensuring good governance, maintaining peace and security, strengthening capacity building, supporting infrastructural development for Gambella and the provision of additional financial incentives to regions. / Development Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Development Studies)

Au cours des dernières années, plusieurs réformes pénales ont été implantées, surtout aux États-Unis, dans l’objectif d’uniformiser les pratiques des tribunaux. Alors que ces nouvelles mesures devaient empêcher l’apparition d’écarts injustifiés basés sur les caractéristiques individuelles des justiciables, les chercheurs s’entendent encore aujourd’hui pour dire que des variations liées au genre existent toujours à travers les décisions judiciaires. Les femmes feraient généralement l’objet d’un traitement plus clément, notamment à l’étape de la détermination de la peine. Cependant, très peu de cet intérêt scientifique s’est concentré sur le contexte pénal canadien. Ainsi, l’objectif général de cette étude est de vérifier si le genre influence les décisions des tribunaux criminels canadiens. Plus spécifiquement, les analyses permettent d’évaluer comment le traitement judiciaire varie selon le genre du justiciable à quatre étapes du processus judiciaire : la détention provisoire, la poursuite des accusations, le verdict de culpabilité ainsi que la détermination de la peine. Pour ce faire, les données administratives de l’Enquête intégrée sur les tribunaux de juridiction criminelle (EITJC) sont examinées. Elles comprennent plus de trois millions d’accusations criminelles portées contre des adultes de 18 à 98 ans à travers le Canada, de 2007 à 2016 inclusivement. L’effet du genre est mesuré à l’aide de régressions multiples et logistiques, en contrôlant pour divers facteurs tels que les antécédents criminels et le type d’infraction. Les analyses révèlent que le genre a un effet significatif sur l’ensemble des décisions étudiées. De manière générale, une plus grande clémence est accordée aux femmes dans le processus judiciaire canadien, celles-ci ayant plus de probabilités d’obtenir une décision moins sévère que les hommes à toutes les étapes analysées. Cependant, comme les disparités liées au genre pourraient s’expliquer par des facteurs qui n’ont pas été inclus dans les modèles prédictifs, les résultats présentent certaines limites. La question entourant la légitimité du traitement différentiel des femmes lors de leur passage en justice demande à être explorer plus en profondeur. / Over the past few years, several sentencing reforms have been implemented, particularly in the United States, to standardize judicial discretionary practices. Although these new measures were created to prevent unwarranted disparities related to individual characteristics, researchers agree that gender disparities still exist in various courts decisions today. Women are often given more leniency, especially at the sentencing stage. However, very little of this scientific interest has focused on the Canadian criminal context. Therefore, the main goal of this research is to analyze the influence of gender on Canadian criminal court decisions. More specifically, the study assesses how judicial treatment differs between men and women at four stages of the Canadian legal process: pre-trial detention, prosecution, conviction and sentencing. To verify this, administrative data from the Integrated Criminal Courts Survey (ICCS) are examined. They include more than 3 million criminal charges against adults aged from 18 to 98 across Canada, from 2007 to 2016 inclusively. The effect of gender is measured using multiple and logistic regressions, controlling for various factors such as criminal record and type of offense. Statistical analyses reveal that gender has a significant effect on all the decisions studied. Overall, women benefit from more leniency in the Canadian legal process, as they are more likely to receive a less severe decision than men at all stages analyzed. However, because gender disparity may be explained by factors that were not included in the predictive models, the results have certain limitations. Questions remain regarding the legitimacy of the differential treatment of women in the justice system and therefore, the gender gap should be further explored.

This study investigated issues of gender discrimination in the Cacadu district of the Eastern Cape and the possible role that Community Learning Centres could play in mitigating gender disparities in this particular district. The aim of the study was to recommend ways in which Community Learning Centres could assist people in mitigating gender disparities in the Cacadu district of the Eastern Cape. The study examined scholarly and professional publications, both theoretical and empirical, that support or challenge the proposed focal area. The study was underpinned by post-colonial feminism. Contrary to Western feminism, post-colonial feminism is primarily concerned with the representation of women in once colonized countries.The paradigm deemed to be the most appropriate in undergirding this study was a post-colonial indigenous paradigm which can be seen as context based and inclusive of all knowledge systems. The research approach was qualitative and the research design adopted for the study was phenomenological. Two Community Learning Centres (Xola and Zodwa) located in a rural and an urban area respectively in the Cacadu district of the Eastern Cape were selected by purposive sampling. Data gathering was conducted through semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. Three adult educators volunteered to participate in individual interviews and twenty-four adult learners volunteered to participate in focus group discussions. Findings indicated that Community Learning Centres in their attempt to promote equity and redress do not help people mitigate gender disparities in their daily lives in the Cacadu district of the Eastern Cape. Based on the findings, it was found that gender disparities emanate not only in the home, but also in Community Learning Centres in the Cacadu district of the Eastern Cape. Finally, strategies were identified in the form of educational practices, processes and developments to assist people to mitigate gender disparities in their daily lives in the Cacadu district of the Eastern Cape. Such educational strategies should be characterised by fairness, equality and the values embedded in social justice with reference to the role of women in society. / Educational Foundations / D. Ed. (Socio-Education)