The picture book is the children's first contact with the world of literature. The aim of our study is to look at how children and adults are portrayed in the picture book, from a gender perspective. Our aim is to critically examine how girls and boys, men and women are presented when it comes to both characteristics and appearance. Our research also focuses on how the text and images complete each other and we conduct a qualitative text and image analysis. We use Nikolajevas (2000) analytical model for picture books and previous research that already exists within the subject. In our paper we have clarified the concepts related to gender: gender, gender roles, gender equality and the picture book. We have also emphasized and described which gender patterns are found in each book. In order to obtain our results, we have examined three picture books that were published during the 2000s. Based on the analysis, we discovered that there are still stereotypical roles in the books. This also counts for the environment, clothes and accessories of the characters in the books. In all three books, however, we could also see some gender awareness and the willingness to question clear gender patterns.

This study maps out and explores the reactions to and strategies of men working against men's violence against women and LGBTI people. It is based on interviews with men in gender-based violence prevention in South Africa and builds on previous research on women's organising and men's roles in feminism. It provides an analysis of dilemmas and challenges that they face and the strategies that they have developed, navigating in a feminist field and as men practising what could be seen as a challenge to the power and privileges of the social category of men. Using feminist theory and the theoretical concept “hegemony of men”, I critically interpret the potential for men to undermine men's privilege, arguing that efforts to create new masculinities reinforce the gender order and that the gendered context leaves little room for men's counter-hegemonic practices. I argue, finally, that a feminist emancipatory project is better developed by seeking identifications beyond the social category of men than within a framework of reforming masculinity.

Bakalauro baigiamajame darbe nagrinėjama lyčių lygybės politikos įgyvendinimas Šiaulių miesto viešojo sektoriaus institucijose. Tiriamą problemą apibūdina šie klausimai: Kaip lyčių lygybė yra apibrėžiama teisės aktuose ir politinėse dokumentuose, kurie reguliuoja darbo rinkos santykius? Kokios institucijos įgyvendina lyčių lygybės politiką darbo rinkoje? Kokios priemonės gali būti taikomos siekiant lyčių lygybės darbo rinkoje? Šis darbas susideda iš įvado, keturių pagrindinių dalių, išvadų, rekomendacijų, literatūros sąrašo ir priedų. Teorinėje dalyje pateikiama lyčių lygybės samprata moksliniame ir teisiniame diskurse bei pristatomas lyčių lygybės politikos įgyvendinimo mechanizmas. Taip pat remiantis moksline literatūra ir įvairiais ataskaitos tyrimais, atskleidžiama Lietuvos darbo rinkai būdingos diskriminacijos formos. Empirinėje dalyje pristatomi kokybinio tyrimo metu apklaustų 10 informantų analizės rezultatai. Informantų vertinimai leidžia teigti, kad viešojo sektoriaus institucijos siekiant lyčių lygybės politikos darbo rinkoje taiko įvairaus pobūdžio priemones (lanksčias darbo formas, atostogas ir kt.). Taip pat tyrimo metu paaiškėjo, kad priemonių taikymas priklauso nuo organizacijos darbo veiklos specifikos, jos dydžio ir darbuotojų pasiskirstymo lyties bei amžiaus atžvilgiu. / Undergraduate thesis examines the implementation of gender policy of the Public Sector Institutions in the Siauliai city. The investigated problem is defined by the following questions: What is the meaning of gender equality in the legislation and policy documents that regulate the relationship of labor market? What are the institutions that implement gender equality policies in the labor market? What measures can be applied to achieve gender equality in the labor market? This work consists of introduction, the four main components, conclusions, recommendations, references and appendices. The theoretical part presents the conception of the gender equality in the scientific and political discourse and the mechanism for its implementation. Also on the basis of scientific literature and various research reports, the forms of discrimination typical of the Lithuanian labor market are disclosed. The empirical part presents the results of analysis of 10 informants interviewed during the qualitative study. Informants estimation suggests that public sector bodies to achieve gender equality in employment policy is applied by various means (flexible forms of work, holidays, etc.). Also, the study shows that the apllication of measures is depended on the organization's activities, its size and the distribution of employees in respect of gender and age.

This paper looks at the relationship between gender equality and the legal system in Japan. The legislative and judicial histories of cases involving women's rights in employment and the family system are utilized to understand this relationship and explore areas for future development of gender equality in Japan.

There has been increasingly interest in parental leave policies as instruments for the implementation of gender equality in society. This review essay explores the link between parental leave policies and the gender division of labour - referring to both paid employment and unpaid family work. Against this backdrop the essay systematically reviews evidence from quantitative empirical research on the effects of parental leave policies on mothers' employment and fathers' involvement in family work. The article suggests that there are several aspects of parental leave that seem to be especially relevant for the gender division of labour, such as the duration of leave, the provision of payments, and an individual entitlement of non-transferable leave rights. In a concluding section the article summarizes the results, discusses doubts and questions raised by the material and identifies promising areas of future research that are crucial for a better understanding of the effects of parental leave on the gender division of labour. (author's abstract) / Series: Working Papers / Institut für Sozialpolitik

There has been increasingly interest in parental leave policies as instruments for the implementation of gender equality in society. This review essay explores the link between parental leave policies and the gender division of labour - referring to both paid employment and unpaid family work. Against this backdrop the essay systematically reviews evidence from quantitative empirical research on the effects of parental leave policies on mothers' employment and fathers' involvement in family work. The article suggests that there are several aspects of parental leave that seem to be especially relevant for the gender division of labour, such as the duration of leave, the provision of payments, and an individual entitlement of non-transferable leave rights. In a concluding section the article summarizes the results, discusses doubts and questions raised by the material and identifies promising areas of future research that are crucial for a better understanding of the effects of parental leave on the gender division of labour. (author's abstract) / Series: Working Papers / Institut für Sozialpolitik

Father involvement benefits children, mothers, and themselves in a number of ways. Swedish legislation and Swedish society have promoted father involvement. At the same time, the Swedish child health field has also unequivocally states that both parents should feel welcomed and supported within that sphere. Despite these statements and policies, fathers feel neglected and invisible within and throughout the Swedish child health field, which includes prenatal clinics, birth and labor wards, postnatal clinics, child health centers, and parent support programs. Less is known however about the factors that influence father involvement in the child health centers, especially from the child health nurses’ perspective and the influence of the built environment. Additionally, parent support programs are another way through which parents receive support regarding their young child’s mental health, but very little research has focused on why fathers participate or the thoughts parents have regarding their participation, especially within a Swedish context. The overall aim of this dissertation was to better understand some of the barriers fathers have when trying to participate in the female-dominated world of the Swedish child health field, especially during the child’s preschool years. In Study I, 17 child health nurses were interviewed regarding their thoughts on fathers, and in Study II, 31 child health centers’ built environments were assessed to see how inclusive they were of fathers. In Study III, a parent support program was assessed to see if mothers and fathers had different background characteristics for participating, and Study IV sought to understand the extent to which parents appreciated and used the information from the program. These studies showed that child health nurses welcomed fathers, but did not actively invite them to participate. In addition, 75% of the child health centers did not have representations of fathers, but most child health centers had representations of mothers and/or children. Paternal behaviors positively changed if they were in an environment with either explicit paternal representations or only child representations. Mothers participated in the parent support program for several reasons, including if their child had perceived behavior problems, while fathers participated if they were stressed and perceived their child as having emotional problems. Parents believed the information they learned in the parent support program was valuable, and they continued using some strategies a year after the intervention. Swedish family policies can affect parental involvement within the child health field, but the child health field is less inclusive of fathers than mothers, and it fails to meet the needs of fathers, which can then, in turn, negatively affect maternal, paternal, and child outcomes. Therefore, the Swedish child health field needs to continue working on improving their practices of treating both parents equally.

Background: All over the world men and women show different health patterns, and therecan be many and various reasons for these differences. This thesis therefore evaluates theimpact of gender equality on health. To do this, we must be able to measure gender equality.In this thesis, we develop two new measurements of gender equality and evaluate the relationshipbetween gender equality and health. Methods: Two cross-sectional studies, one register-based and one survey study, are used tocompare different measurements of gender equality and different measurements of health,and the relationship between them. Differences between men and women in relation to healthoutcome are also discussed in the thesis. The register study, comprising 1 097 202 individuals,is based on public registers and includes information on workplace, income, sickness absence,full-time/part-time work, level of education, parental leave and temporary parental leave.A gender equality measurement, the Organizational Gender Gap Index or OGGI, was constructedand 123 companies in two sectors were ranked using the index. Employees in 21 of the mostand least gender-equal companies were invited to participate in a survey. A second genderequality index was constructed based on respondents’ own reports regarding gender equalityin their partner relationship. The variables measured were income, full-time/part-time work,educational level, and responsibilities for and sharing of household duties and parental leave.Both indices were evaluated using the single question: How gender equal is your workplace/your relationship with your partner? The four measurements were dichotomized and testedfor a relationship to health. Health was measured by three different measurements: registerbasedsickness absence, self-reported sickness absence in the past year, and self-rated health. Results: The thesis has produced two new measurements of gender equality, described above.On gender equality in the partner relationship, we found a difference between men and women.Men perceive higher gender equality than they report, while women report more gender equalitythan they perceive. When it comes to gender equality at work, we found that employees perceivetheir company to be more gender equal than the OGGI index shows. This thesis confirms thefindings that men have better health than women regardless of measurement. However, inthis study we also found that increased gender equality decreases these differences. If employeesperceive their company to be gender equal, they have higher odds of rating their health asgood, and this is especially so for women. Conclusion: This thesis supports the hypothesis that differences in health between men andwomen can be related to a lack of gender equality. When men and women have differentpossibilities and power to shape society and their own lives, their health will be affected throughembodiment of both biological and sociological determinants in accordance with the eco-socialtheory. Increased gender equality will decrease the differences in health between men andwomen through convergence. The theory of convergence explains why men and women areaffected differently by greater gender equality. Greater gender equality will also decrease thesocial injustice between men and women and improve justice in accordance with the theoryof justice to gender.The differences found between the indices and the single question on perceived genderequality make clear the need for “hard facts” as an complement to people’s own views on gender equality.

Detta är studie över Försvarsmaktens arbete med mångfald och jämställdhet. Syftet är att ta reda på varför kvinnor påbörjar deras antagningsprocess, men sedan väljer att inte fullfölja den. Detta är en problematik som Försvarsmakten har och de arbetar med att försöka få in fler kvinnor i organisationen. Deras mål är att kunna ta bättre beslut ur ett mångfaldigt perspektiv och därmed nå hög effekt.   Data samlades in med hjälp av semistrukturerade intervjuer, både personliga och via telefon. Först utfördes en personlig intervju med vår kontaktperson på Försvarsmakten, därefter en telefonintervju med en person som arbetar med ett projekt för att få kontakt med kvinnor som påbörjat deras antagningsprocess. Efter det utfördes 14 telefonintervjuer med kvinnor som hade påbörjat ansökningsprocessen, men som valde att inte fullfölja den.   Resultatet visade att Försvarsmaktens arbete för mångfald och jämställdhet går att koppla till tidigare forskning och teorier om ämnena. Det framkom även att de kvinnor som vi intervjuat, valde att inte fullfölja antagningsprocessen på grund av att andra intressen tog över eller för att det blev fel i det första steget i antagningsprocessen. / This is a study of how the Swedish Armed Forces work with diversity and gender equality. The aim is to find out why women begin their admission process, but then chose not to pursue it. This is a problem that the Swedish Armed Forces have and they are trying to attract more women into the organization. Their goal is to be able to make better decisions from a diverse perspective and thereby achieve high effect.   The data was collected by using semi-structured interviews, both personal and by telephone. First performed was a personal interview with our contact at the Swedish Armed Forces, then a telephone interview with a person who is working on a project to make contact with women who have started their admission process. 14 telephone interviews were performed with women who had begun the application process, but then chose not to pursue it.   The results showed that the Swedish Armed Forces' efforts to promote diversity and gender equality can be linked to previous research and theories on the substances. It also showed that the women who we interviewed, chose not to complete the admission process due to other interests took over, or that something turned out wrong in the first step of the admission process.

Bakgrund och problem: Jämställdhet är ett aktuellt ämne som diskuteras bland både forskare och medier. Revisionsbranschen anses som en jämställd bransch samtidigt som undersökningar visar att kvinnor i de större företagen inte uppfattar den så jämställd som den genom könsfördelningen verkar vara. Forskare menar att det är viktigt att följa hur information om kvinnor och män redovisas i företags års- och hållbarhetsredovisningar för att se hur uppfattningar förändras över tid. Studier har genomförts i syfte att se hur företag redovisar sociala faktorer, såsom jämställdhet, men dessa finnes underrepresenterade i Sverige vilket leder fram till studiens problemformulering:   Vad redovisar större svenska revisionsbyråer om jämställdhet i sina års- och hållbarhetsredovisningar och hur har denna redovisning förändrats från räkenskapsår 2007/2008 till och med räkenskapsår 2011/2012?   Syfte: Syftet med studien är att identifiera och beskriva vad större revisionsbyråer i Sverige redovisar om jämställdhet i sina års- och hållbarhetsredovisningar för att få bättre insikt i denna redovisning. Delsyftet är även att beskriva hur denna redovisning har förändrats från räkenskapsår 2007/2008 till och med räkenskapsår 2011/2012 för att se hur engagemanget i frågan utvecklats. Metod: Års- och hållbarhetsredovisningar från de fyra största revisionsbyråerna i Sverige studerades från räkenskapsår 2007/2008 till och med räkenskapsår 2011/2012. Den metod som användes för att samla in informationen var en kvalitativ innehållsanalys där en undersökningsmall som följde Weberprotokollet utformades. Resultat och slutsatser: Endast ett av företagen redovisade ett uppsatt mål om jämställdhet i sina rapporter men företagen uttryckte istället jämställdhet som en strävan eller utmaning. Företagen redovisade lagstadgad könsuppdelad statistik och frivilliga upplysningar om jämställdhet. Däremot var redovisningen om jämställdhet bristfällig hos några av företagen vilket gjorde att det var svårt att identifiera tydliga förändringar. De redovisade frivilliga upplysningar vilket skulle kunna förklaras med att de redovisar detta i syfte att skapa legitimitet gentemot sina intressenter. Nyckelord: Jämställdhet, legitimitet, intressenter, redovisning, årsredovisningar, hållbarhetsredovisningar / Background and problem: Gender equality is a current topic discussed among researchers and the media. The audit industry is considered as an equal branch while surveys show that women in the larger companies do not perceive it as equal as gender balance appears to be. Researchers believe that it is important to monitor how information about women and men is reported in the company's annual and sustainability reports to see how perceptions change over time. Research has been carried out to see how companies report on social factors such as gender, but these studies are underrepresented in Sweden, which leads to the study´s question: What do major Swedish auditing firms report about gender equality in their annual and sustainability reports and how has this reporting changed between 2007/2008 – 2011/2012?   Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify and describe what the major auditing firms in Sweden report on gender equality in their annual and sustainability reports to gain a better understanding of this reporting. Another purpose is to describe how this report has changed between 2007/2008 – 2011/2012 to see how the involvement has developed. Method: Annual and sustainability reports from the four largest auditing firms in Sweden were studied between 2007/2008 – 2011/2012. The method used to collect the information was a qualitative content analysis where a list that followed the Weber protocol was created. Results and conclusions: Only one company reported a goal of equality in its reports, but all companies expressed equality as an ambition or challenge. The companies reported statutory gender statistics and voluntary disclosures. The results showed, however, that the reporting of equality was deficient in some of the companies that made it difficult to identify changes. They reported voluntary disclosures, which could be explained by that they report this in order to create legitimacy to their stakeholders. Keywords: Gender equality, legitimacy, stakeholders, accounting, annual reports, sustainability reports