Does the field of Women's Studies in China provide a space/time for a dissident political point of view, way of thinking/being/living? To answer this question we have looked at the nature of the discourse, its authors, its public, its goals and means. The All China Women's Federation and Women's Studies within the academic circle have provided the ground for our investigation. A critical analysis has been done through a qualitative review of documents in English, written mainly by Chinese authors. The findings of our research have shown us that, indeed, Women's Studies in China provide a space/time for a dissident political point of view that we can term "feminism". However, the existence of this feminist space and voice is curtailed by the non-democratic political regime of China, making it, so far, a difficult but very promising balancing act. In fact, Women's Studies are at the root of the democratisation of China.

Does the field of Women's Studies in China provide a space/time for a dissident political point of view, way of thinking/being/living? To answer this question we have looked at the nature of the discourse, its authors, its public, its goals and means. The All China Women's Federation and Women's Studies within the academic circle have provided the ground for our investigation. A critical analysis has been done through a qualitative review of documents in English, written mainly by Chinese authors. The findings of our research have shown us that, indeed, Women's Studies in China provide a space/time for a dissident political point of view that we can term "feminism". However, the existence of this feminist space and voice is curtailed by the non-democratic political regime of China, making it, so far, a difficult but very promising balancing act. In fact, Women's Studies are at the root of the democratisation of China. / Arts, Faculty of / Asian Research, Institute of / Graduate

The journal Stri-Dharma, published by the Women’s Indian Association from 1918 to 1936, endeavored to be the voice of the Indian women’s rights movement. It addressed political and social issues facing women in India as well as the achievements of women worldwide. Using the dichotomy of the home and world, this thesis examines how Stri-Dharma represented the tensions experienced by the Indian women’s movement as it pressed for reforms from the British colonial state, participation in the Indian nationalist movement, and inclusion in the international women’s movement.

Due to the actions of radicals and extremists, many in the West have come to view Islam as a religion of gender inequality that perpetuates the severe oppression of women. However, there is actually great variation in women’s rights across Muslim countries. This thesis presents a theoretical framework seeking to explain this variation, by examining differences in family law. The theory supposes that variation can be explained by the strategic actions of political leaders. From this theory, I hypothesize that the variations in women’s rights come from the variation in family law, which in large, are due to the existence of groups threatening the power of the political leaders, and the leader’s subsequent understanding of this threat. Using a most similar systems research design, I examine 4 moderate Muslim countries, Turkey, Tunisia, Morocco, and Egypt. Through case study research, I find limited support for the above hypothesis.

Revolutions, demonstrations, and, elections have a wide range of political and social impacts on societies. In many instances, the repercussions of these movements cause significant and irrevocable transformations that affect the daily lives of those living within the community. As a native Iranian female artist, my works of art speak specifically to the women who, like me, have been affected by these radical changes. As such, I use my personal experience of the post-revolution and election era to create poignant and progressive art that reflects the sentiments of many modern, Iranian women.

This study aims to understand the Kenyan cross-party parliamentary women’s caucus success at representing women substantively despite ethnic division. The Kenyan case highlights a paradox: the cross-party parliamentary women’s caucus is successful in a country where politics is shaped by ethnic division, which contradicts existing theories suggesting that the many layers of identity politics would make it difficult for the members to cooperate on a common women’s agenda. The material was collected during ten weeks in Nairobi through interviews with women MPs within the caucus and through observation of meetings, events, and the daily work of the caucus. The findings suggest that women’s issues are perceived as non-political, and non-controversial, which makes it possible for the members to cooperate on a common women’s agenda. Kenya seems to be in an initial stage of gender mainstreaming where the caucus’s members cooperate on women’s fundamental rights, on which they can all agree. It is reasonable to believe that the political parties will develop ideological differences concerning women’s issues as Kenya achieves a certain level of gender equality. The cross-party parliamentary women’s caucus will, according to the findings, be essential to improve the substantive representation of women in the Parliament.

This thesis investigates the Europeanisation of civil society at national level through a case study of the Swedish Women’s Lobby (SWL), an umbrella organisation which serves as the Swedish member of the Brussels-based European Women’s Lobby (EWL). Conceptualising umbrella organisations as ‘meta-organisations’, in Ahrne and Brunsson’s term, Europeanisation is seen as a process which imposes meta-organisational structures on domestic-level civil society. Based largely on semi-structured interviews, the aim of the study is thus to analyse in what ways the women’s movement in Sweden has been affected by the imposed meta-organisational structure. The findings show that while the SWL has been successful in establishing itself as the actor for the Swedish women’s movement, this success also brought with it some problems. The meta-organisational structure has had certain formalising and excluding effects, as well as bringing internal tensions due to overlapping activities and the desire to speak with one voice. Applying a meta-organisation perspective on the Europeanisation of domestic civil society is thus shown to be useful as it contributes an understanding of how the EU has an impact on inter-organisational relations among civil society organisations. / Denna studie undersöker europeiseringen av civilsamhället på nationell nivå genom en fallstudie av Sveriges Kvinnolobby, en paraplyorganisation och den svenska medlemmen i den europeiska kvinnolobbyn – European Women’s Lobby (EWL) – i Bryssel. Paraplyorganisationer förstås i detta sammanhang utifrån Ahrne och Brunssons begrepp metaorganisationer, dvs. ’organisationer av organisationer’. Därmed ses europeisering som en process vilken medför meta-organisatoriska strukturer till civilsamhället på nationell nivå. Studien syftar därmed till att analysera hur kvinnorörelsen i Sverige påverkats av den påbjudna metaorganisatoriska strukturen och baseras främst på semi-strukturerade intervjuer. Resultaten visar att Sveriges Kvinnolobby varit framgångsrik i att etablera sig som aktören för Sveriges kvinnorörelse men att denna framgång även medfört en del problem. Den metaorganisatoriska strukturen har medfört vissa formaliserande och exkluderande effekter, men också interna spänningar på grund av överlappande aktiviteter och lobbyns önskan att tala med en röst. Att applicera ett meta-organisatoriskt perspektiv på europeiseringen av civilsamhället på nationell nivå visar sig därmed vara användbart då det bidrar till förståelsen för hur EU har betydelse för inter-organisatoriska relationer bland civilsamhällets organisationer.

Background: The HPV vaccine is a primary prevention method available to reduce the burden of HPV-related cancers and genital warts. The vaccine is currently approved for catch-up vaccination among women 18 to 26 years of age. Despite this recommendation, the rate of vaccine uptake among this group is considerably low (~34% uptake). One demographic characteristic that is consistently reported as a risk factor for non-vaccination is relationship status, specifically married or monogamous relationships. While the epidemiological data confirm this association, there is a lack of understanding how this risk factor operates. By elucidating the mechanism for this risk factor, HPV vaccine uptake among this consistently unvaccinated group could be improved. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to understand how young adult women’s relationship status influence informational needs, motivations, and behavioral skills related to HPV vaccination. This objective was achieved through the following specific aims: (1) assess how relationship status affects primary reasons for non-vaccination among 18 to 26 year old women; and (2) understand how relationship status frames HPV vaccine decision-making among 18 to 26 year old women. Methods: To effectively achieve these specific aims, a concurrent mixed-methods study design was conducted. In Phase I, a secondary data analysis using the 2010 National Health Interview Survey was employed to determine if women in relationships are less likely to be interested in vaccination and identify the primary reasons (e.g., misinformation, motivations, behavioral skills) for non-vaccination among different relationship status categories. In Phase II, in-depth interviews were conducted with a sample (N=50) of 18 to 26 year old women at the University of South Florida, stratified by relationship status and vaccination status. A comparative thematic analysis was conducted to determine if there were differences in informational needs, motivations, behavioral skills, and HPV vaccine decision-making between the groups. Results: Using NHIS 2010 data, women who were living with a partner (PR 1.44 95%CI 1.07-1.87) and never married (PR 1.41 95%CI 1.12-1.73) were less likely to be interested in HPV vaccination compared women who were married. Moreover, primary reasons for non-vaccination differed significantly by relationship status group (p Conclusion: This study found that relationship status impacts HPV vaccine decision-making among young adult women. Specifically, it operates by modifying risk perceptions for HPV, which serve as barriers to vaccination. Young adult women have the knowledge and behavioral skills necessary to access and understand the importance of HPV vaccination; however, women were unable to accurately perceive their risk for HPV, resulting in impaired motivation for vaccination. A potential approach to address this issue is the use of health literacy. Future research should integrate health literacy techniques with healthcare providers serving this population to assist in the evaluation process for risk of HPV. This will facilitate shared decision-making and patient-provider communication surrounding the HPV vaccine. This can ultimately promote HPV vaccination among young adult women and reduce the morbidity and mortality of HPV-related diseases.

Mobile health (mHealth) message design strategies for low and middle-income countries (LMICs) have quickly gained acceptance in the field of health education. mHealth initiatives focusing on maternal health are frequently implemented with the aim of providing access to information while improving maternal health practices. Within Ghana, access to relevant health information and hospital care within rural settings remain scarce for the majority of citizens (WHO, 2011). However, with the rapid rate of mobile phone adoption, delivering learning opportunities in conjunction with mobile devices may be promising for many individuals in Ghana. The purpose of this study was to examine message design inputs influencing expecting mothers’ maternal health activity. McGuire’s communication-persuasion theoretical framework informed the mix-methods study. I used participatory rapid appraisal techniques while carrying out the study with research team members. I employed surveys to collect quantitative data. To gather qualitative data I engaged in open-ended survey questions, interviews (one-on-one and focus groups), a journal and team reflections. The findings revealed that participants from two communities in Northern Ghana in rural settings had several inputs in the message design which may influence expecting mothers. These include; information source, design and delivery, power dynamics and personal circumstances, and perceived gains. The findings highlight that for many mHealth projects in LMIC's, there is an urgent need to reexamining the culture attributes of the users' local environment. These findings also address critical aspects of a real world problem with intent to support rural community development in Northern Ghana with goals to alleviate the lack of academic knowledge by providing an insider’s perspectives regarding community insights.

No / In this pilot study, we explored the difference in the use of occupational competence strategies for daily participation between more active and less active older Hispanic women. Twenty-nine women who were 70 and older and lived alone participated in this study. We used a mixed-methods design by which the principal investigator administered a tool to measure participation restrictions during the quantitative phase and conducted in-depth interviews with a subsample in the qualitative phase. More active women predominantly used transportation resources, emotional social support, and spirituality to support participation in life activities. Less active women used more practical social support, assistive technology, and environmental modifications. Personal facilitators seemed to directly modify these strategies. These results suggest that older women with different activity levels use distinct internal and external resources to maintain or enhance daily participation. Future studies should explore whether these resources remain consistent across gender, living status, and ethnicity. / This publication was supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD), Clinical Research Education and Career Development (CRECD) grant R25RR017589, in collaboration with the Puerto Rico Clinical and Translational Research Consortium (PRCTRC) grant 8U54 MD 007587-03 and the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR) grant 8U54RR026139- 01A1.