This research investigated the manner in which a group of African male students perceive and construct gender equality in the work place. A sample of 19 African male students within the University of Witwatersrand student population was used. The participants were aged between 19 and 30 years. This specific age range was chosen on the grounds that most students in this age range would have already formed specific views regarding gender equality. Individual and focus group interviews were the main methods of data collection; both types of interviews were conducted with this varied sample of African male students. The study was qualitative in nature and it employed thematic content analysis as a method of data analysis. Key themes were identified and discussed.The results indicated the contradictory nature of how men understand and accept equality. This was evident in how men tried to curb and undermine the empowerment of women in a manner that helped to advance the agenda of men. The participants used a varied number of strategies to try and argue for male power and control. These strategies were utilised as deemed contextually relevant by the men. This was especially relevant in how men were seen to negotiate their roles within the workplace in a manner that would align or help them be seen to be in favour of equal opportunities in the workplace yet in private and within their homes they were seemingly against the whole notion altogether.

Title: Fertility changes in the context of gender revolution with focus on the man's role in the family in the Czech republic Author: Mgr. Pavel Koudelka Department: Department of Demography and Geodemography Statistics Supervisor: Prof. RNDr. Jitka Rychtaříková, CSc. Abstract: Profound changes are occurring in the relations between men and women in European families and societies, a transformation that is referred to as the 'gender revolution'. Considering the unprecedented drop in fertility, some important questions may be asked: in a more egalitarian society/family, could we expect a rise in the birth rate? Does men's participation in housework and child- care have an impact on the number of children born (in a family)? Czech society is slowly adapting to gender equality, but this is more apparent in the general mood and opinions than in the reality of households and families. We drew on two waves of a panel study Generations & Gender Survey (GGS) performed in the Czech republic and compared the information about the real involvement of men in households in which (a number of) children were born in between the waves. This is an advantage of GGS over similar studies: we have information about real- ity, real facts, and not only values and attitudes to gender equality or the number of children a...

This study explores the representation of women in leadership positions in Metropolitan Police Departments (MPDs). Historically, the police career was male dominated and women were not allowed to work in the police. Democracy, changes in law, and societal beliefs opened policing as a career to women. Various legal frameworks provide for gender equality, therefore equal gender representation in the workplace is a developmental goal in South Africa. The Commission on Employment Equity (CEE, 2015) of South Africa reported that women comprised 44.8% of the economically active population, yet males were still in charge of senior management positions in South African companies. The 2015 South African Employment Equity Report indicates that women hold only 29.5% of top level management positions and 30.7% of senior management positions (CEE, 2015). These results are lower than the government’s mandated target of 44.4% management positions reserved for women. The MPDs (2017) indicated that, out of a sample of 600 women, 91 are in leadership positions. The current gender representation in MPDs’ leadership positions forms this study’s problem statement. This study is qualitative in nature. Twenty-five South African women from the Gauteng Province from Ekurhuleni, Tshwane, and Johannesburg MPDs were interviewed. The transformative approach was used to inquire on participants’ experiences and views about gender representation, as well as women’s advancement to leadership positions in the MPDs. Data were analysed using Atlas.ti™. The results showed that culture, stereotypes, and physical fitness were perceived as barriers that hindered the representation of women in leadership positions. Furthermore, sexual and verbal harassment, bullying, discrimination against female officers at the workplace, and unimplemented policies and procedures were also hindrances. The participants recommended that the South African MPDs review human resource practices and policies to promote a positive and constructive work environment for all employees. / Police Practice / D. Litt. et Phil. (Police Science)

La thèse explore les liens entre l'autonomisation des femmes et la transition économique. Elle examine la manière dont l'augmentation du nombre de femmes travaillant dans le secteur public ou privé peut contribuer à résoudre certains problèmes persistants de transition dans les pays émergents, comme un faible niveau de productivité, d'innovation et de développement humain. La thèse est composée de trois chapitres qui s'appuient sur les modèles économiques de l'égalité entre les sexes et de la transition. Le premier chapitre explore la relation entre la composition hommes-­femmes des entreprises et l'implication des entreprises en question dans des activités d'innovation en Europe de l'Est et en Asie centrale. Le deuxième chapitre établit l'analyse des performances des entreprises, et cherche à déterminer si les PME dirigées par des femmes se comportent différemment de celles dirigées par des hommes dans les pays de l'Europe de l'Est, d'Asie centrale et Russie. Ce chapitre examine en particulier les activités qui permettent d'améliorer la compétitivité des entreprises: l'acquisition de services de développement commercial et l'investissement dans la formation sur le terrain. Enfin, dans le dernier chapitre, j'examine les liens entre le nombre de femmes dans les assemblées législatives des États de l'Inde et l'amélioration de la condition des femmes dans leur famille, mesurée par leur âge lors de leur premier mariage et de leur première maternité. Dans ces trois chapitres, je conclus que l'augmentation de la participation des femmes à tous les niveaux des secteurs public et privé a un effet positif sur les résultats obtenus au niveau de l'entreprise et des personnes. / The thesis addresses the links between women's empowerment and economic transition. It examines the ways in which more women working in the public and private sectors could address the persistent problems of transition and emerging economies, such as poor human capital base and low levels of productivity and innovation. The thesis has three chapters which build on the economic models of gender equality and transition. The first chapter explores the relationship between the gender composition of a firm and the firm's involvement in innovation activities in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The second chapter extends the analysis of firm performance, and investigates whether SMEs owned by women perform differently from SMEs owned by men in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and Russia. In particular, the chapter examines activities which enhance firm competitiveness: acquisition of business development services and investment in on-the-job training. Finally, in the last chapter, I examine the relationship between the number of women in state legislative assemblies in lndia and better family outcomes for women as measured by age at first marriage and childbearing. Throughout the three chapters, I conclude that an increasing participation of women at all levels in the private and public sectors is positively associated with better firm-level and individual outcomes.

In 2015 the United Nations adopted an action plan named Agenda 2030. The plan contains 17 global sustainable development goals and 169 sub-goals; all of which are aimed towards creating a sustainable future within the spheres of the three cornerstones of sustainability; social, environmental, and economical by the year of 2030.  The aim of this paper is to examine the prerequisites for the Chilean government in implementing the UN's goal number five: reach gender equality. What are their ambitions? What are the biggest challenges? Which strategy does the government have to manage the challenges of the implementation process? The analysis has been conducted through a qualitative field study based on various documents, and is complemented by experts' interviews.   The method used is theory consuming and relies on Lennart Lundquist's implementation theory 'Understand, can and will' (1992).  Lundquist believes that the will is the most important factor for implementing a policy. The Chilean government shows both an understanding of what is needed and the resources that are needed.  The question is, do they possess the will it takes to overcome the obstacles they face?

Equality and diversity legislation across the UK and Australia has stimulated the health profession sector to make workplace equality and diversity policies transparent to service users (Wadham et al.2010; RCN 2016; GMC 2016; WGEA 2012). However, research literature has identified inequalities within the healthcare workplace as reported by health professions students. Specifically, research has identified issues concerning identities (gender, age, sexuality etc.) adversely interplaying with students' workplace learning experiences (Rees & Monrouxe 2011; Illing et al. 2013;Monrouxe, Rees, et al. 2014). Such negative learning experiences (i.e.discrimination, abuse) have been found to affect students' retention and success (Northall et al. 2016). Despite research shedding light on these issues, studies have typically explored individual identities and demographics and neglected how students' intersecting identities shape their learning experiences, retention and success. Furthermore, research has only offered recommendations for enhancing retention and success of students, rather than exploring the issues affecting retention and success in health professions education. This thesis explicitly explores what and how multiple intersecting personal and professional identities shape healthcare students' learning, retention and success in the context of gendered environments and professions (i.e. male- and female-dominated contexts). Underpinned by social constructionist, narrative and feminist methodologies (Kitzinger 1995; Hunting 2014), I conducted a large secondary analysis on 2255 workplace learning experiences from across the UK and Australia as well as multiple health professions. To follow on from the secondary analysis, I led a multi-site longitudinal audio diary study across two sites in the UK, to explore health professional students' workplace learning experiences in the context of male- and female-dominated environments. Multiple cross-sectional and longitudinal qualitative approaches were employed to explore the data, including thematic, narrative, positioning, and case-study analytic methods. Novel findings from my thesis highlight how participants narrated their intersecting personal and professional identities within male- and female-dominated contexts. I found how recurrent tensions and power imbalances between intersecting identities, learning experiences and environments across time led to an adverse impact on healthcare participants' thoughts and reflections about their learning, retention and success in the health professions. Sensitising the participants to tensions concerning how they negotiate their intersecting personal and professional identities are valuable for understanding and influencing their retention and success. Furthermore, findings from my thesis provide critical recommendations to enhancing healthcare students' workplace learning, retention and success in the health professions, through incorporating intersectionality into healthcare education curricula. The recommendations made in this thesis contribute to helping understand and support a diversifying healthcare workforce and shed light on potential issues around healthcare workforce shortages, which can be addressed through enhancing health professions' educational policies and practice.

Det jämställdhetspolitiska målet innebär att män och kvinnor ska ha samma rättigheter, möjligheter och skyldigheter för att själva kunna forma sina liv inom alla livsområden. För att mäta jämställdhet i Sverige används statistik som grundar sig på kön som ensam social kategori. Detta trots att det går att se att arbetet med jämställdhet förbättras om kvinnor och män inte ses som statiska och homogena grupper. Inom den sociala kategorin kön finns fler underkategorier som påverkar det jämställdhetspolitiska arbetet och vid avsaknaden av ett intersektionellt perspektiv riskerar vissa grupper att missas. Studiens syfte är att undersöka vilka konsekvenser frånvaron av ett intersektionellt perspektiv får i regeringens jämställdhetspolitiska mål samt vad ett intersektionellt perspektiv skulle kunna bidra med. För att göra detta granskas texterna regeringens jämställdhetpolitiska delmål ett en jämn fördelning av makt och inflytande, Regeringens skrivelse 2016/17:10 Makt, mål och myndighet – feministisk politik för en jämställd framtid och SOU 2015:86 – Mål och myndighet. En effektiv styrning av jämställhetspolitiken genom en kritisk diskursanalys. Materialet analyseras utifrån kritisk diskursanalys och dess analytiska verktyg utifrån Machin och Mayr (2012) tillsammans med intersektionalitet som övergripande teoretisk utgångspunkt som belyser och ifrågasätter maktstrukturer både inom och mellan olika sociala kategorier. Analysen förstärks ytterligare utifrån Foucaults begrepp makt, kunskap och diskurs. I resultatet framträder fyra olika diskurser vilka är diskursen om jämn könsfördelning av makt och maktpositioner, diskursen om kvinnor som underordande män i förhållande till jämställdhet och makt, diskursen om inkludering och exkludering av sociala kategorier och diskursen om konstruerandet av kvinnligt och manligt. Diskurserna bygger främst på en primär social kategori, kön. Frånvaron av det intersektionella perspektivet riskerar alltså att det bara är en viss social kategori som inkluderas. Jämställdhet blir på så vis inte nåbar för alla grupper av människor och påverkar då också hur mänskliga rättigheter tas tillvara på. / The goal for gender equality policy means that men and women should have the same rights, opportunities and obligations to shape their lives in all areas of life. To measure gender equality in Sweden, statistics based on gender as a single social category are used. This is despite the fact that the work on gender equality can be improved if women and men are not seen as static and homogeneous groups. Within the social category gender there are more subcategories that affect gender equality policy work and in the absence of an intersectional perspective, certain groups may be missed. The aim of the study is to examine the consequences of the absence of an intersectional perspective have in the government’s gender equality policy goals and what an intersectional perspective could contribute with. In order to do this the texts of the government’s gender equality sub-goal one en jämn fördelning av makt och inflytande, Regeringens skrivelse 2016/17:10 Makt, mål och myndighet – feministisk politik för en jämställd framtid and SOU 2015:86 – Mål och myndighet. En effektiv styrning av jämställhetspolitiken are examined through a critical discourse analysis. The material is analyzed based on critical discourse analysis and its analytical tools based on Machin och Mayr (2012) along with intersectionality as an overall theoretical approach that illuminates and questions power structures both within and between different social categories. The analysis is further amplified based on Foucault’s concepts of power, knowledge and discourse. In the results, four different discourses appear which are the discourse of equal gender distribution of power and power positions, the discourse of women as subordinate men in relation to equality and power, the discourse of inclusion and exclusion of social categories and the discourse on the construction of women and men. The discourses are mainly based on a primary social category, gender. A risk with the absence of the intersectional perspective is that there is only a certain social category which is included. The gender equality is there for not reachable for all groups of people and will also affect how human rights are taken advantage of.

A dissertação tem como objetivo analisar o impacto da Organização das Nações Unidas – ONU no Direito Internacional das Mulheres e suas consequências no Brasil. Para a execução deste propósito, utilizou-se do método teórico-pragmático para a verificação do efeito e influência da ONU sobre a temática escolhida. A técnica de pesquisa empregada foi a investigação bibliográfica e documental, por meio de consulta doutrinária, jurisprudencial e legal. Nesse sentido, elucida-se a noção de desigualdade e vulnerabilidade feminina, descrevendo a situação das mulheres na sociedade internacional, e o consequente desenvolvimento do tema no âmbito da ONU, destacando-se a criação da Comissão sobre a Situação das Mulheres – CSW, e, recentemente, da ONU Mulheres, entidade especificamente instituída para fomentar a igualdade de gênero e o empoderamento das mulheres. Em seguida, aborda-se o quadro normativo global e as conferências mundiais organizadas pela ONU acerca dos direitos das mulheres, com a definição de um importante marco jurídico-político: a Declaração de Pequim e sua Plataforma de Ação. Dessas compreensões, realiza-se uma análise do contexto brasileiro, refletindo sobre o impacto da ONU e os desafios impostos ao Brasil. Nas conclusões obtidas, verificou-se um progresso lento e irregular na condição das mulheres, apesar da expansão dos compromissos normativos internacionais favorecidos pela ONU. Constatou-se como maior contribuição da Organização, além do diagnóstico traçado sobre a situação feminina, o respaldo e a concessão de um espaço propício para o fortalecimento do ativismo feminista transnacional, que contribuiu para o quadro jurídico internacional formado. No Brasil, em que pese ainda não se ter alcançado a almejada transformação da realidade social, podem ser apontados como consectários da atuação da ONU os avanços legislativos obtidos, a exemplo, da previsão legal de cotas de gênero para candidatura, eliminação de disposições discriminatórias nas Leis Civil e Penal, além da Lei Maria da Penha e a mais recente Lei do Feminicídio. / The aim of this thesis is to analyze the impact of United Nations – UN on International Women’s Law and it’s consequences in Brazil. For this purpose, we have choosen the theoretical and pragmatic method to verify the effects and influence of UN on the selected theme. As a technique of research, we used bibliographical and documentary exploration, with doctrinal, jurisprudential and legal consultation. In this regard, the first chapter elucidates the notion of women’s inequality and vulnerability, describing the women’s situation in international society and its development within the UN, including the creation of the Commission on The Status of Women – CSW, and recently the UN Women, an entitity specifically established for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The second chapter adresses the global normative framework, the UN World Conferences on women’s rights, and the definition of an important juridical-political milestone: Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. From these understandings, the third chapter analyses the Brazilian context, reflecting on the impact of UN work and it’s challenges in Brazil. In conclusion, it was found slow and uneven progress in the status of women, despite the expanded international normative commitments to women’s and girls’ human rights favored by UN. The Organization’s greatest contribution was its diagnosis on the situation of women, as well as it’s support and granting of a friendly space for the strenghtening of transnational feminist activism, which contributed to the international legal framework. In Brazil, alhthough we haven’t achieved yet the desired transformation on social reality, legislative advances like electoral gender quotas, elimination of discriminatory provisions in the Civil and Criminal law, besides Maria da Penha Law and the most recent Law on Feminicide can be pointed out as UN impact and influence in Brazil.

Currently, men’s responsibility is the focus of much of the public talk on gender equality in Sweden.This has given rise to a number of organisations carrying the overall ambition to include menin what has traditionally been regarded as a women´s issue. One of these initiatives is called #killmiddag,”dinner for guys”, and can be understood as a call out for men to get together and have intimateconversations with each other in order to free themselves from destructive masculinitynorms. In this thesis, the feminist equality initiative #killmiddag is scrutinized with the aim to findwhat possibilities and restraints the initiative might give rise to in regards to issues connected togender equality. The empirical material consists of the initiatives conversational guides and instructionsalong with a number of press articles published between the years of 2016-2018. In order toanalyze this material, specifically the role of conversations, experience and emotions this thesis usesresearch about therapeutic discourse and how this is linked to contemporary ideals about intimacy.This analysis focuses on how problems and solutions are articulated discursively, and how categorieslike ”gender equality” is filled with meaning. Using research concerning the effects of marketbasedforms of governing, my goal is to further contribute to a discussion about what happens with”gender equality” when market rationalities come to replace conflicting interests in politics. Assistedby a poststructuralist approach this thesis highlights some of the problems in using personalexperience as a source of objective knowledge, and how the use of emotions and intimacy, withtheir inbuilt epistemological fragility, might not necessarily be considered apt when striving for politicalchange.

In 2017 the Swedish government decided that the defense should be based on both volunteerism and duty. The military service had then been dormant since 2010 and built entirely on volunteerism. From this political decision, the duty is now gender neutral, which means that the same opportunities and obligations apply to both men and women. The Swedish Armed Forces have an active desire for more women to carry out the military service - an organisation that historically has been strongly associated with masculine norms.  ”From campaign to attention” is a qualitative interview study on the military conscripts’ experience of government communication, which aims to contribute to increased gender equality in the defense. The study aims to illustrate how communication that challenges stereotypes to change norms is received by men and women who carry out their basic education in the Armed Forces.  In order to find out the military conscripts’ view of the chosen authorities’ communication, we conducted ten qualitative interviews with military conscripts who are in the middle of their basic education. All respondents belonged to the armory regiment P4 in Skövde, Sweden. The material selected for the study consists of a campaign from the Recruitment Authority (2017) and two campaigns from the Swedish Armed Forces (2018). The theories from which the study is based on are Stuart Hall’s encoding / decoding theory, theories on framing and theories on advertising, stereotypes and mirror theories. These theories help the study to shed light on the different parts of the process when a message is packaged and coded and how they are finally interpreted by their recipients.  The study shows that the military conscripts believe that the authorities have chosen appropriate efforts to increase gender equality in the Swedish Armed Forces in the long term. They believe that the authorities communicate a broader picture of who can be a soldier, they consider contributing to reaching new target groups, including both women and men who do not identify with the historical norm of a soldier.  The respondents, however, highlight a gap between how the authorities communicate the distribution between men and women versus reality. Although the picture does not correspond to reality, they understand the purpose for which the authorities have chosen to show women to the extent they do. The study shows that government communication with such realistic images of military service as possible is the one that the target group interpret in the most efficient way and which is best appreciated. Our study also shows that the respondents do not automatically believe that the authorities' communication loosens the stereotypical image of a soldier simply because they show women instead of men. Instead, there are other factors (such as attributes or charisma) that contribute to the presentation being perceived as stereotyped.