In relationships between men and women, women are still more likely than men to take family leave and reduce work hours after the birth of their first child. This results in economic changes between partners at the transition to parenthood. Gendered changes in income may impact relationship dynamics within couples and contribute to the elevated risk of intimate partner violence (IPV) seen at this time. Previous research has linked both relative and absolute income to IPV; however, it is unlikely that income directly impacts IPV. For this reason, the current study explored potential mediators of the relationship between income and IPV such as decision-making power (i.e., the ability to influence another person’s opinions and decisions) and quality of alternatives (i.e., the availability of options outside of the current relationship) by following 196 first time parents across four timepoints (the third trimester of pregnancy, one year, two years, and four years postpartum). Multilevel modelling was used to test whether decision-making power mediates the relationship between relative income and IPV and whether quality of alternatives mediates the relationship between absolute income and IPV. Despite low base rates of physical IPV, findings indicated that at times when the gender wage gap within couples was smaller, overall levels of physical violence within the relationship were reduced. However, at times when the gender wage gap was smaller women’s psychological IPV perpetration increased. There were mixed findings regarding decision-making power and quality of alternatives as mediators of the relationship between income and IPV. Implications for the current conceptualization of the link between income and power are discussed. / Graduate

Gender awareness has been recognized as critical in sustainable peace efforts, and gender mainstreaming has become a natural practice in peace projects. While gender has long been equated with focus on women, the inclusion of men has increased. The concept of militarized masculinity has gained recognition, where exposure to the military institution is believed to foster certain gendered norms. The construction of these militarized masculinities has been a prominent focus in previous research, where capability of violence is apparent, and they are often found to undermine sustainable peace efforts. Less attention has been given to how these norms endure outside of the military institution. This thesis seeks to explore this question by studying five Namibian veterans who after the independence war moved on to become prominent politicians, which is argued to provide a least likely case for norm change. Through a qualitative content analysis, the veterans are studied during their entire time in the Namibian parliament. The study finds that the masculinity norms of the veterans developed and adapted to peace time, but still remained militarized. A new ideal type of militarized masculinity is formulated based on the findings, the Nation Protector, where leadership, bravery and patriotism are central, together with ideas of gender equality and peace. The study thus provide evidence that militarized masculinities may change outside of the military institution, but that this change is slow.

Author: Frida Nordborg Title: It’s not hard to have sex, but it’s hard to have good sex, consent is essential’’ An interview study about women’s experiences of sex and sexual consent in practice. Sexual consent requires that you know what you want, that you want it on your own terms, and that you must be able to communicate it clearly. Previous studies show that more women than men agree to sex without consent. As a result of #Metoo movement in 2017, and the updated consent law in Sweden in 2018, more women in Sweden have started to talk about their experiences of sex and sexual consent. The aim of the study has been to gain an insight into how adult women in Swedish society relate to the expectations placed on them in their sexual relationships and about their view on sexual consent based on their ascribed sexual scripts as well as how their sexual consent manifests itself in practice. The collected material has then been analyzed based on gender theory and sexual script theory. The results show that women's views on sex and sexual consent do neither always match with each other nor how they practice it, nor how they express their will in the heat of the moment. It is understandable that the women can feel limited by what they "should" do at the moment, instead of being able to show what they really want, in fear of disappointing their male partners.

Background: A movement to improve women’s healthcare was started in 1885. Since then a lot of improvements have been made, but in order to provide all genders with equal healthcare, society has to pay more attention to gender disparity. Purpose: The aim of this study was to get an understanding of whether employees of The Tibetan settlement experience that a patient’s gender is affecting how they and/or their colleagues treat a patient.  Method: The data were collected by eight semi-structured interviews and semi-structured observations. The collected data were analyzed with a qualitative content analysis and three themes and five sub-themes were identified. Result: The result showed that there are experiences of gender-based approach in healthcare in the form of a more polite approach towards women. These differences were explained by the experiences that women and men need different approaches because of culture, gender inequality in society and because women are more sensitive than men. The participants experienced that except for the approach they treat all patients the same regardless of gender and they think this is because of their culture and training in awareness. Conclusion: The study showed experiences of differences in the approach depending on gender. Some health care workers approach female patients more gently and politely than they approach male patients. From the study’s result it is also concluded that except for how they approach patient’s there are no experienced gender differences in healthcare.

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The following Bachelor thesis is analysing how the Swedish armed forces promotes women in order to attract them to their organisation. Specifically it investigates (1) "How does the Swedish armed forces break the social norms of what it means to be a soldier?" (2) "How do they present a gender equal division of labour?" (3) "How do they try to affect women´s attitude towards the organisation?" This study investigates the Swedish armed forces, an organisation with a great underrepresentation of women. The underrepresentation of women is something that the Swedish armed forces openly tries to change through their marketing. This thesis is a single case study with both qualitative and quantitative approach, using Harding´s gender process theory in a descriptive design. By gathering television commercials from the Swedish armed forces user page on YouTube, I explore how the Swedish armed forces tries to minimize the underrepresentation of women. Their strategies are analysed by using Harding´s three gender processes. The results show that the organisation is active in all three processes, but focuses on breaking the social norms of what it means to be a soldier.

Societal discourses and rigid gender norms, tenaciously reinforced by media representations, prevent men from being recognized as survivors of sexual violence (Gulas, McKeage, & Weinberger, 2010; Heber, 2017). Consequently, research on the ability of male survivors of sexual violence to acquire positive characteristics as a result of their victimization, termed posttraumatic growth (PTG), is limited (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004a). This thesis assesses the experience of PTG for male survivors of sexual violence, specifically analyzing the role of gender norms, coping styles, and service access in the production, or lack thereof, of PTG. Through the concepts of gender norms and coping, the experience of PTG for male survivors is contextualized, providing insight into how these forces individually and collectively facilitate or hinder the experience of PTG. A qualitative comparative analysis is conducted in order to establish a configuration of causal factors that are associated with the presence and absence of PTG for male survivors (N=9). Only one of the five hypotheses this thesis tests are supported; high stability (no interruption) of service access is associated with PTG. This thesis argues that the use of coping styles and service access is intertwined with conflicts between their gender and victimization, where male survivors utilize certain forms of coping or services depending on the degree to which they need to regain feelings of control.

Coraline by Neil Gaiman has several characters who in many ways break gender norms. The main protagonist of the novel, Coraline, acts more in accordance with masculine gender norms, and the mother figures are mothers who do not fully conform to the traditional mother role. The purpose of this study is to look at how Coraline and the mother figures perform their gender, and in which ways this breaks with or aligns with traditional gender norms. The analytical approach is based on Judith Butler’s theory of gender performativity, and on masculine and feminine gender schemas defined by John Stephens. For the analysis of motherhood, gender performativity has also been used, and works by Adrienne Rich and Einat Natalie Palkovich. This study shows that the protagonists challenge traditional gender role norms of masculinity and femininity, whereof motherhood is part. The study also shows that there is a lack of female role models for the young protagonist, and that acting according to masculine gender norms is desirable and necessary in the novel. But for the mothers, breaking gender norms is undesirable, dangerous, and even punished. A conclusion of the study is that even though Coraline appears to be a feminist novel, the underlying message is not entirely so.

<p>Nonverbal communication such as body language is a vital component of our communication, and since scholars agree that there are some notable differences in the way men and women use body language, the study of gendered nonverbal communication as a social construction is vital to our understanding of how we create gendered identities. The aim of this paper is to investigate how social gender norms concerning body language appear in constructed communication. By studying the body language of the characters in the American sitcom Friends, and with focus on leg postures, I examine how the show Friends enacts and represents stereotyped sex differences in body language. The study encompasses both the distribution of leg positions between the genders, and what these postures seem to accomplish in interaction. As for the relationship between gender and leg postures, I observed the sitting positions of the characters Chandler, Ross, Joey, Monica and Rachel in six episodes from the 1999/2000 season of Friends for the first study. For the analysis of leg postures in relation to the communicative situation, the entire corpus of ten episode recordings was used. Based on repeated inspection of scenes where leg positions could be studied in relation to gender and communication, systematic patterns were identified.</p><p>The results of the study are consistent with the findings of scholars like Vrugt and Luyerink (2000); women tend to sit in closed postures or with their legs crossed, which is regarded feminine, while men sit in wide positions with their legs spread, which is regarded masculine. Furthermore, the characters/actors in Friends seem to perform their gender roles partly by using different leg positions and wideness of postures. However, leg positions alone were not found to be decisive in the messages communicated, and emotions and stance were communicated using verbal and other non-verbal channels and cues. Instead, leg positions remained gender-stereotypical regardless of the message communicated, and men and women seem to communicate the same message using different leg positions. It is therefore concluded that leg positions are an inherent part of “doing gender”, but that leg positions as such are not necessarily related to the type of message or emotional stance that is communicated.</p>

This thesis seeks to demonstrate that although Laurie Anderson’s performance works are technologically driven and often involve gender play, seemingly transgressing the gender binary, ultimately she reinscribes traditional gender norms. On the one hand, Anderson has been a pioneer in the use of electronic technology, which is significant considering she is a woman and electronics is a male-dominated arena; on the other hand, her ambiguously- gendered cyborg persona, which does often raise awareness about gender stereotypes, ultimately reinscribes traditional gender norms. Although I consider these issues as they pertain specifically to Anderson, the significance of this project lies in the broader picture. Are there limits to gender performativity? Is it possible to break traditional gender norms? Must gender norms constantly reinscribe themselves regardless of new technology? As gender norms are deeply rooted in society, they are difficult to escape, as Anderson’s work demonstrates.