Reversed Realities: Gender Hierarchies in Development Thought.
TL;DR: In this paper, Naila Kabeer traces the emergence of women as a specific category in development thought and examines alternative frameworks for analysing gender hierarchies and compares the extent to which gender inequalities are revealed in different approaches to the concept of the family unit.
Abstract: Reversed Realities uncovers the deeply entrenched, hence barely visible, biases which underpin mainstream development theory and account for the marginal status given to women's needs in current development policy. Naila Kabeer traces the emergence of 'women' as a specific category in development thought and examines alternative frameworks for analysing gender hierarchies. She identifies the household as a primary site for the construction of power relations and compares the extent to which gender inequalities are revealed in different approaches to the concept of the family unit. The book assesses the inadequacies of the poverty line as a measuring tool and provides a critical overview of an issue that has been fiercely contested by feminists: population control. While feminists themselves have no unanimous view of the meaning of 'reproductive choice', Kabeer argues that it is imperative for them to take a lead in the construction of population policy.
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01 Jan 2013
32 citations
Cites background from "Reversed Realities: Gender Hierarch..."
...Furthermore, Molyneux noted that practical interests “are usually a response to immediate perceived need, and they do not generally entail a strategic goal such as women’s emancipation or gender equality” (as cited in Kabeer, 1994, p. 90)....
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...Many authors have insisted that transnational and postcolonial feminist scholars and activists must come to terms with the legacy of imperialism and colonialism (Briggs, 2002; Kabeer, 1994; Majid, 2000; Mohanty, 1991 & 2003; Narayan, 1997; Oyewumi, 1997 & 2003; Stoler, 1995; Thomas, 2003)....
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...Kabeer (1994) explained that By virtue of their responsibility for family welfare within the domestic division of labor, women may be seen to have a practical gender interest in the provision of resources that meet basic welfare needs....
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Dissertation•
23 Mar 2017
TL;DR: In this article, a double demarche is defined: the analysis of the effets of the globalisation du genre par des politiques and the reactions of different-e-s acteurs/actrices, particulierement celles des organisations femines locales, dans la facon d'adapter ou de se reapproprier ces prescriptions internationales.
Abstract: La presente recherche developpe une double demarche : l’analyse des effets de la globalisation du genre par des politiques qui se veulent universelles en s’imposant a different-e-s acteurs/actrices et les reactions de ceux/celles-ci, particulierement celles des organisations feminines locales, dans la facon d’adapter ou de se reapproprier ces prescriptions internationales. Il s’agit de rendre compte de la maniere dont le genre en tant que categorie d’intervention publique parvient a se deployer d’une part dans les programmes d’aide au developpement des pays financeurs et d’autre part dans les pays du Sud. Une analyse multi-niveaux est donc menee, tant au niveau des politiques et programmes de la cooperation allemande, que de l’etat tchadien puis du PRODALKA. Des projets et politiques visant a l’empowerment economique et politique, mais aussi la lutte contre les violences faites aux femmes ou des reformes du code du statut personnel, sont-ils vraiment mis en oeuvre ? Peut-on reperer des effets du PRODALKA sur les conditions de vie des femmes mais aussi concernant leur reconnaissance par les hommes ? Pour repondre a ces questions, la recherche, a la fois qualitative et quantitative, s’appuie sur une enquete aupres de 310 femmes et sur une vingtaine d’entretiens formels et de plusieurs autres non formels aupres des personnes interessees par cette thematique dans le cadre d’un programme bilateral de developpement economique tchado-allemand. La these montre que peu de progres ont ete rendus possibles par l’intervention du PRODALKA, bien que certaines femmes aient vu leurs conditions ameliorees. En effet, les projets menes ont peu tenu compte des besoins des femmes ou des relations de genre a cause d’une posture de neutralite postulant que toute action menee dans la societe profite a tous les groupes sociaux sans exclusive. Ils relevaient plutot des actions de type « integration des femmes dans le developpement telles que celles qui etaient menees dans les annees 1960 et ont ete critiquees par l’approche « genre et developpement » qui a propose des outils theoriques et methodologiques qui auraient pu eviter les erreurs commises.
30 citations
Dissertation•
20 Jun 2017
TL;DR: A theoretical analysis of the ways in which structural factors intersect with the professional and social experiences of a group of nurse teachers in Bangladesh to discuss to what extent nursing education has been an empowering tool, and to analyse how the nurses’ socioeconomic background, personal experiences and life events have influenced their professional careers and their conceptualisation of nursing and care.
Abstract: The nursing profession in Bangladesh has undergone substantial development over recent decades but still faces significant challenges. A remarkable gap has been described between the institutionally-accepted image of nursing as the provision of hands-on care and the small amount of time that nurses allocate to it, especially in government hospitals. The reasons for this contradiction have shown a complex interaction between historical, socioeconomic and cultural factors. These are mainly related to the conflict between the British-inherited curriculum, with a strong emphasis on basic care activities, social and gender norms, and longstanding discrimination against nurses in their institutional settings and society.
This research aims to provide a theoretical analysis of the ways in which structural factors intersect with the professional and social experiences of a group of nurse teachers. The objectives of the thesis are to describe nurses’ views about nursing care and their profession, to discuss to what extent nursing education has been an empowering tool, and to analyse how the nurses’ socioeconomic background, personal experiences and life events have influenced their professional careers and their conceptualisation of nursing and care.
A critical phenomenological analysis of the nurses’ life stories has been used, relating the stories to the broader history and political economy of nursing in Bangladesh. Twenty-two nurses were selected and interviewed over an eight-month fieldwork period, of which seven were selected as key informants. The discussion is mainly based on theoretical contributions from anthropology, practice theory, feminism and a critical analysis of nursing knowledge.
A common rhetoric was found among the nurses: namely that nursing care has ‘deteriorated’. They tended to emphasise hands-on care and the ‘old’ apprenticeship model, while also approving moves towards a more professional model. Nursing care activities were understood as a mixture of service and management of the wards and patients, linked to a wish to ‘utilise’ the knowledge that they were continuously acquiring. Therefore, nursing education was broadly empowering in terms of knowledge, independence, and self-realization. Nevertheless, at some moments social and institutional discrimination made the m feel disempowered, frustrated and vulnerable. Even so, the nurses interviewed have achieved successful professional careers, together with a significant amount of social recognition. Without ignoring their outstanding individual capacities, the role that key people and institutions had in supporting them in their eagerness to learn has to be considered. Finally, the act of caring itself and the knowledge that it produces may also be a source of personal and collective agency. However, work is needed in order to create and maintain the necessary conditions for the caring experience to be empowering. This responsibility falls beyond the nursing field, as it involves structural changes, especially in terms of gender and class inequalities.
27 citations
Dissertation•
12 Sep 2014
TL;DR: Understanding Africa's URBAN future through the lens of post-colonial uRBANism and aFRICAN FEMINISM as discussed by the authors was a seminal work.
Abstract: .............................................................................................................................................. ii DEDICATION ............................................................................................................................................ iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS......................................................................................................................... v CHAPTER 1 -“BETTER LATE THAN NEVER?”: UNDERSTANDING AFRICA’S URBAN FUTURE THROUGH THE LENSES OF POSTCOLONIAL URBANISM AND AFRICAN FEMINISM ................................................................................................................................................
27 citations
Cites background from "Reversed Realities: Gender Hierarch..."
...55 Although empowerment is a contested term (see Batliwala, 1994; Chong, 2012; Cornwall & Brock, 2005; Kabeer, 1994; Murphy-Graham, 2008; Parpart, Rai & Staudt, 2002), a general understanding of women’s empowerment is: the processes which enable women to take control and ownership of their lives through expansion of their choices....
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...…have therefore noted the failure of gender 55 Although empowerment is a contested term (see Batliwala, 1994; Chong, 2012; Cornwall & Brock, 2005; Kabeer, 1994; Murphy-Graham, 2008; Parpart, Rai & Staudt, 2002), a general understanding of women’s empowerment is: the processes which enable women…...
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Dissertation•
01 Dec 2014
TL;DR: The notion of empowerment has become a Western "buzzword" within the development lexicon over recent decades, especially in relation to improving the socioeconomic and political status of women in the developing world as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: The notion of empowerment has become a Western ‘buzzword’ within the development lexicon over recent decades, especially in relation to improving the socioeconomic and political status of women in the developing world. By exploring narratives of Canari indigenous women in the Ecuadorian Andes, this thesis considers the meaning of empowerment, as evolved and theorised by the West, in relation to an indigenous context. It employs an exploratory, interpretevist and phenomenological approach to understanding the everyday lived experience of individuals and how they engage with the world around them. It seeks to understand the processes that indigenous women might go through in order to become empowered, considers any potential factors that might influence processes of empowerment for indigenous women, in addition to observing the possible outcomes of empowerment in both their individual lives and for the wider community. It draws attention to the idea of collective empowerment, or power with, as a dominant feature of empowerment in Canari women’s lives, reflecting the significance of both the family and community in indigenous culture. Focusing on the individualism that pervades Western notions of empowerment does not always fit the meaning of empowerment in non-Western societies. This thesis seeks to demonstrate how.
25 citations
Cites background from "Reversed Realities: Gender Hierarch..."
...The central reproductive role of women meant that the sexual division of labour within the home associated women with domestic work, whilst men specialised in full-time production for the market and economic development (Kabeer, 1994: 17)....
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...Both advocates and critics of the concept in development have acknowledged that the use of the word is illdefined (Cornwall and Brock, 2005; Deere and León, 2001b; Kabeer, 1994; Parpart et al., 2002; Rowlands, 1998)....
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References
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TL;DR: Livelihoods perspectives have been central to rural development thinking and practice in the past decade But where do such perspectives come from, what are their conceptual roots, and what influences have shaped the way they have emerged? as mentioned in this paper offers an historical review of key moments in debates about rural livelihoods, identifying the tensions, ambiguities and challenges of such approaches.
Abstract: Livelihoods perspectives have been central to rural development thinking and practice in the past decade But where do such perspectives come from, what are their conceptual roots, and what influences have shaped the way they have emerged? This paper offers an historical review of key moments in debates about rural livelihoods, identifying the tensions, ambiguities and challenges of such approaches A number of core challenges are identified, centred on the need to inject a more thorough-going political analysis into the centre of livelihoods perspectives This will enhance the capacity of livelihoods perspectives to address key lacunae in recent discussions, including questions of knowledge, politics, scale and dynamics
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that opportunities for participation do not automatically translate into spaces for change, and that much depends on the power dynamics that surround and infuse them, shaping who participates, where and with what result.
Abstract: Around the world, new spaces and opportunities are emerging for citizen engagement in policy and governance processes. Yet opportunities for participation do not automatically translate into spaces for change. Much depends on the power dynamics that surround and infuse them, shaping who participates, where and with what result. Building on previous work based on the ‘three dimensions’ of power originally elaborated by Steven Lukes (1974), this article argues that these dimensions or forms of power must also be understood in relation to how spaces for engagement are created and the places (from local to global) in which they occur. Understanding each of these – the spaces, places and forms of power – as themselves interrelated dimensions, each of which has at least three components within them, these dimensions are visually and analytically linked together in a ‘power cube’. This framework, the article argues, can be used to assess the possibilities of transformative action in various settings.
861 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the importance of structural components and regularities in the relationship between livelihood opportunities and decision-making and propose livelihood trajectories as an appropriate methodology for examining these issues.
Abstract: This article discusses the value of livelihoods studies and examines the obstacles which have prevented it from making a greater contribution to understanding the lives of poor people over the past decade. After examining the roots of the livelihoods approach, two major challenges are explored: the conceptualization of the problem of access, and how to achieve a better understanding of the mutual link between livelihood opportunities and decision-making. The article concludes that access to livelihood opportunities is governed by social relations, institutions and organizations, and that power is an important (and sometimes overlooked) explanatory variable. In discussing the issue of access to livelihood opportunities, the authors note the occurrence of both strategic and unintentional behaviour and the importance of structural factors; they discuss concepts of styles and pathways, which try to cater for structural components and regularities; and they propose livelihood trajectories as an appropriate methodology for examining these issues. In this way, the article also sets the agenda for future livelihoods research.
725 citations
Book•
01 Jun 1999TL;DR: The 1999 Annual World Bank Conference on Development Economics, the eleventh anniversary, was held at the Bank on April 28-30, 1999 as discussed by the authors, which focused on three trends of development: 1) the emerging international financial architecture; 2) challenges to social development; and 3) lessons from a decade of transition.
Abstract: The 1999 Annual World Bank Conference on Development Economics, the eleventh anniversary, was held at the Bank on April 28-30, 1999. The discussions focused on three trends of development: 1) the emerging international financial architecture; 2) challenges to social development; and 3) lessons from a decade of transition. Twelve papers were presented on a variety of topics including corporate governance, short-term capital flows, and the relationships between crime, violence, and inequitable development. The keynote addresses by Noble Laureate Kenneth Arrow, Secretary of the US Treasury Lawrence Summers, and Joseph E. Stiglitz, senior vice president, Development Economics and chief economist at the World Bank and former chair of the US Council of Economic Advisors, broach many of the topics that were central to the conference. They examine technological knowledge and innovation and global integration and look back at the arduous process of transition in the former Soviet Union.
500 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a genealogical approach is used to trace how Nepalese planners' enduring concerns about rural development intersect in surprising (and gendered) ways with donors' present focus on deepening financial markets.
Abstract: This paper addresses the emergence of microcredit programmes as a preferred strategy for poverty alleviation world-wide. Taking the paradigmatic case of Nepal, it engages a genealogical approach to trace how Nepalese planners' enduring concerns about rural development intersect in surprising (and gendered) ways with donors' present focus on deepening financial markets. In the resulting microcredit model, the onus for rural lending is devolved from commercial banks to subsidized 'rural development banks' and women borrowers become the target of an aggressive 'selfhelp' approach to development. As a governmental strategy, microcredit thus constitutes social citizenship and women's needs in a manner consistent with neoliberalism. Drawing on ethnographic research, the paper also considers the progressive and regressive possibilities in the articulation of such constructed subjectivities with local cultural ideologies and social processes. Such an investigation can in turn provide a foundation for articulating...
486 citations