A new book examined gender differences in aspirations and attainment across the life course, drawing on United Kingdom and international evidence to consider the way in which gendered lives evolved, and the role of family, institutional structures, and the wider socio-historical context in helping young men and women to realize ambitions.
Source: Ingrid Schoon and Jacquelynne Eccles (eds), Gender Differences in Aspirations and Attainment: A life course perspective, Cambridge University Press
Links: Summary
Date: 2014-Sep
A report examined the risk factors associated with negative outcomes for girls and women, including those in contact with the criminal justice system, experiencing homelessness, involved in prostitution or sexual exploitation, experiencing severe mental health problems, or with serious drugs and/or alcohol problems. The report considered the relationship between such outcomes and the prevalence or accumulation of negative and abusive experiences across the life course, and examined differential impacts by gender.
Source: Di McNeish and Sara Scott, Women and Girls at Risk: Evidence across the life course, DMSS Research
Links: Report | Summary | DMSS press release
Date: 2014-Aug
A think-tank report said that many social housing estates in Britain had experienced decades of neglect and had entrenched and generational social problems (including 'endemic' domestic violence). Drawing on case studies of good practice, the report said that such estates would benefit from locally-based intervention involving local people, based on good local intelligence, and supported by inter-agency collaborative working. It said that existing resources should be better deployed, that encouraging the reporting of crime was crucial, and that women needed to be supported through the provision of, and support for, male perpetrator programmes, sex and relationships education, and interventions to empower women in deprived areas through education, employment, and parenting support. The report made a range of recommendations, including: for an 'Estates Recovery Board', to complement the Troubled Families team, pooling funding from relevant government departments; and for the police and crime commissioners to establish multi-agency 'Estate Recovery Teams' to devise estate recovery plans.
Source: Gavin Knight, The Estate We're In: Lessons from the front line, Policy Exchange
Links: Report | Policy Exchange press release | NHS Alliance press release | Inside Housing report
Date: 2014-Aug
An article examined the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion (EY 2010) and considered the nature of gender diversities in European Union policies. The article discussed how gender and ethnicity were articulated in the policy-making process that led to the adoption of EY 2010, the activities undertaken, and its evaluation, and suggested how the European Union policy framework interacted with particular national contexts to affect policy that considered the intersection between gender and diversity.
Source: Lise Rolandsen Agustin and Birte Siim, 'Gender diversities practising intersectionality in the European Union', Ethnicities, Volume 14 Number 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Aug
A report examined the evidence on the links between gender and poverty, possible reasons for them, and the impact on those links of related policies and policy approaches. The report concluded that the weight of evidence suggested that there were such links, which arose from the organization of family relations and responsibilities, the nature of labour market engagement and rewards, and the structure of the welfare state. However, the report argued that few studies and evaluations had focused on the links between gender and poverty, and that analytical methods needed to be developed in order to provide further clarity and investigate the gender impact of related policies.
Source: Fran Bennett and Mary Daly, Poverty Through a Gender Lens: Evidence and policy review on gender and poverty, Department of Social Policy and Intervention, University of Oxford
Links: Report
Date: 2014-Aug
A new book examined how constructions of femininity fundamentally affected women's mental well-being through the life course. It argued that the processes of becoming and being a woman influenced mental well-being, and that this cut across age and class differences to impact on the material conditions of women's lives throughout the life course (thus manifesting as a driver of inequality).
Source: Suzanne Clisby and Julia Holdsworth, Gendering Women: Identity and mental wellbeing through the lifecourse, Policy Press
Links: Summary
Date: 2014-Aug
A paper examined the relative impact of the 2014 Budget for women and men in the United Kingdom. It said that personal tax measures such as increased ISA limits and personal allowances advantaged more men than women, and that changes to social security and cuts to public services each had a disproportionate effect on women. It discussed employment rates for women, and said that the policy to end annuities might advantage women who retired with a number of small pensions. The paper also considered the impact of housing measures, and affordability issues in both housing and childcare. It called for investment in social infrastructure, public transport, green energy, and other physical infrastructure, and the diversification of the labour force in male-dominated industries.
Source: The Impact on Women of Budget 2014: No recovery for women, Women's Budget Group
Links: Report | Briefing | WBG press release
Date: 2014-May
A paper examined the use of quotas to increase the political representation of women. It put forward a rationale behind the use of quotas, and gave details of a survey of quota types, summarised where they were in use, and considered their effectiveness.
Source: Michael Potter, The Use of Quotas to Increase the Political Representation of Women, Paper 57/14, Northern Ireland Assembly
Links: Paper
Date: 2014-May
An article examined associations between gender role attitudes, three roles (marital status, household chore division, and couple employment), and psychological distress in working-age men and women, using British Household Panel Survey data. Although some aspects of gender roles and attitudes (traditionalism and paid employment) were associated with well-being, others (marital status and household chores), and attitude-role consistency, appeared to have little impact on well-being.
Source: Helen Sweeting, Abita Bhaskar, Michaela Benzeval, Frank Popham, and Kate Hunt, 'Changing gender roles and attitudes and their implications for well-being around the new millennium', Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, Volume 49 Number 5
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Apr
A report said that women who were homeless were among the most marginalized in society and, while there was much good practice among homelessness services, the complex and multiple needs of women were often failed by services that were predominantly developed for men. It noted the potential ongoing impact of welfare reform for women's homelessness, and called for more gender-sensitive services to be developed with appropriate provision for mothers with children, better partnership working, and senior staff with specific responsibilities for women's homelessness.
Source: Sarah Hutchinson, Anna Page, and Esther Sample, Rebuilding Shattered Lives: The final report, St. Mungo's
Links: Report | St Mungos press release | Revolving Doors press release | Guardian report
Date: 2014-Mar
An article examined policy debates on 'honour-based' violence and forced marriage in the Netherlands, Germany, and Britain. It considered how understandings of gender equality informed distinct approaches to immigrant integration. It said the Dutch case showed how the idea of gender equality could sometimes be used to include Muslim communities in the larger population, by generating policy responses that were more likely to position immigrants as full members of society. Alternatively, as the German case illustrated, the idea of gender equality could inform the stigmatization of Muslim communities and lead to exclusionary immigration policies. It said that, in Britain, there was a tension between gender equality and race discourses, with some organizations accusing the government of failing women out of fear of being accused of racism.
Source: Gokce Yurdakul and Anna Korteweg, 'Gender equality and immigrant integration: honor killing and forced marriage debates in the Netherlands, Germany, and Britain', Women's Studies International Forum, Volume 41 Issue 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Jan
A report examined the experiences of 46 women who had been detained while they sought asylum in the United Kingdom. The report outlined the nature of the violence and persecution that led to the asylum requests, and the impact of their subsequent detention on the mental health of the women. It said that, while in detention, 93 per cent had felt depressed, 85 per cent felt scared, more than half thought about killing themselves and ten women had tried to do so. The report included new official statistics (supplied by the Home Office for the report), which showed that, of the 1,867 women who had sought asylum and who left detention in 2012, 36 per cent were removed from the United Kingdom. The report made recommendations, including to end the detention of female asylum-seekers.
Source: Marchu Girma, Sophie Radice, Natasha Tsangarides, and Natasha Walter, Detained: Women asylum seekers locked up in the UK, Women for Refugee Women
Links: Report
Date: 2014-Jan