The gender-sensitive/feminist research methodology training workshop was held in Hanoi from 8th to 10th December, 2005. The course was organized within the framework of the project on “Enhancing capacity for Vietnamese researchers on publishing and dissemination of research on gender and sexuality (ENCOURAGES)–operated by the Consultation of Investment in Health Promotion (CIHP) and funded by the Rockefeller Foundation. Professor Pimpawun Boonmongkon from The Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Mahidol University, Thailand conducted the training. Objectives of the workshop were to provide participants, researchers and programmers in the field of gender, sexuality and sexual health a clear conceptual framework relating to gender-sensitive/feminist research and to help participants approach these topics reflexively in their own research works/papers.
In the past, quantitative and practical research methodologies were used in sex and sexuality research in the form of questionnaires with large samples and subsequent statistical analysis used to establish, identify and develop the epistemology on sexuality. One example of this kind of research are the surveys on sexual behaviours conducted by Afred Kinsey in the 1950s. Kinsey’s research focused on the objectives of sexuality by measuring sexual behaviours in terms of frequency, number of sexual partners, sexual attitudes and sexual identities and orientations. These studies were often conducted as population surveys or fertility research. As such, Kinsey’s survey-based research generally focused on the statistical components of human sexuality, and did not address the subjective aspects of sexuality. Kinsey did not address respondents’ thoughts and feelings around sex and sexuality, and the meaning given to these thoughts and feelings
Another limitation of the bio-statistical approach is the scant attention paid to the contextual settings of socio-economic, cultural and political environments that form and influence both objective and subjective components of sexuality. By definition, quantitative studies fail to examine most gender perspectives and power relations in sexuality.
Emerging in many Western countries in the 1960s, second-wave feminism aimed to improve women’s status in society and promote gender equality. In many countries, women have lower status than men and endure a range of gender-based oppressions and discriminations. Standpoint theorist Sandra Harding showed that as women and men are biologically different, and as men and women have different social status, they also have different perceptions and life experiences. Many feminist theories challenged and questioned pre-existing ‘knowledge’ and ideologies developed by men and based on males’ experiences. Feminist theories challenged existing theories by offering frameworks and policy suggestions, among other things, aimed at enhancing the status of women and achieving women’s equality in political and socio-economic fields. At the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in 1994, the definitions of sexual and reproductive health, and feminist theory were broadened and integrated into strategies redefining population, health and family planning policies and programs. Feminist methodologies employ qualitative methods in natural settings to explore personal experiences of all people, and that of women in particular settings to fully and systematically understand and develop the epistemology.
The principles of gender sensitive/gender research
- Focus on women’s experiences, explore and actively research at multiple levels on meanings and gender roles, and find out how gender relations were formed, maintained and established, and their influence upon sexuality and sexual health.
- Create appropriate ‘natural’ settings in research: the researcher should place her/himself in the soci-economic context of the researched, establish non-hierarchical power between researcher and the researched, explore lived experiences, meanings, context bound and lived experiences of women at rupture points (divorce, physical violence, sexual harassment, rape….)
- Research with the participation of women, ie., for, rather than on women. With feminist models and theories, women are subjects of research and the “subject” of knowledge. Such research is not limited to simply obtaining practical knowledge of women, but also focuses on knowledge-forming procedures contributing to women’s liberation.
- Feminist/ gender sensitive methodologies are tools to improve the daily lives of women and influence programs and policies to change inequality and the oppressed status of women in society.
Methods and techniques of gender sensitive/ feminist study:
- Focus on the oppressive, unequal social relations while developing women’s knowledge; criticize existing assumptions and theories that reinforce women’s unequal status
- Use a combination of techniques to collect qualitative data: analyze narratives of research subjects, free listing, grouping, group discussions, opinion box and textual analysis. Narrative analysis techniques decode and explain cultural codes embedded in text by analyzing the purposes, messages, gender oppressions etc hidden within language, analyze historical contexts and gender and power relations, criticize the values reinforcing and maintaining gender inequality.
- Limitations of feminist/gender sensitive research methodologies include: difficulty in creating natural settings in which respondents’ behaviours can be explored and researched. Consequently, questions emerge as to how natural research settings actually are, what areas to pay attention to in the research environment, and ethical issues. Additionally, how might researchers place themselves in the position of the researched? It is worth remembering researchers and those under study are often very different in terms of education background, personal traits, and cultural values and beliefs.
In the training workshop, participants had opportunities to explore definitions and theories on gender, feminism and feminist research methodologies, exchange and share their research experiences and activities on gender, and women in the field of sexual health. Along with presentations on theories, practical exercises on gender sensitiveness, and methods for textual analysis on printed articles (newspapers and magazines), participants learned about cases studies demonstrating success and effective gender sensitive/ feminist research methods. The training workshop provided the participants with comprehensive theory framework on feminist/gender sensitive research methodologies, raised the awareness of researchers in terms of gender and sexuality, as well as sharpened their analytical skills. Overall, the training was highly appreciated by the participants.
Training workshop materials and relevant theoretical texts on gender and feminism are available at CIHP’s library, with titles including: Gender-sensitive & feminist Methodologies: A handbook for health and social researchers – Sylvia H. Guerrero (ed); Feminism and methodology: Social science issues – Sandra Harding (ed), Feminist research in theory and practice – Gayle Letherby.
Should you be interested in obtaining a hard-copy version of the papers, please contact us via e-mail: encourages@cihp.org
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