Paper: Gender relations and health research: a review of current practices

Gender relations and health research: a review of current practices

Bottorff, J. L., Oliffe, J. L., Robinson, C. A., & Carey, J. (2011). Gender relations and health research: a review of current practices. International Journal for Equity in Health, 10(1), 60.

  

Important Quotation:

·      The influence of masculinities and femininities, and the interplay within and between them manifests within relations and interactions among couples, family members and peers to influence health behaviours and outcomes

·      Recommendations for advancing gender relations and health research are discussed. This research has the potential to reduce gender inequities in health

·      marriage seems to protect women's health by increasing financial stability

·      individuals who are married engage in more healthful behaviours, report healthier psychological and physical well being, and lower mortality rates compared to divorced, separated, widowed, or single individuals

·      four interconnected structures of gender relations: production relations reflected in sexual divisions of labour; power relations evident in the positioning of men as the dominant class in societal discourses and in the exercise of imperial powers; emotional relations that include the influence of hegemonic patterns and relationships in a variety of contexts (e.g., households, workplace); and symbolic representations of gender in society

·     A gender relations approach recognizes the importance of gender dynamics and the circumstances under which they interact to influence health opportunities and constraints.

·      Health-related behaviours do not operate in isolation and need to be understood in the context of interactions within and between men and women across personal, interpersonal and institutional levels. A better understanding of gender relations and health in research and policy will have direct implications for health interventions and guide decisions about whether group, dyadic or single point programs are likely to be effective

CONTEXTUAL SITUATION IN Indonesia

·      Production relations seperti: ibu pendidik anak, ayah pencari nafkah

·      Power relations: suami sbg kepala keluarga, suami pemimpin istri, istri harus nurut suami, suami pengambil keputusan dlm keluarga, dll

·      Dlm hal mendidik anak misalnya: perempuan yg jadi pengambil keputusan utama

·      Di keluarga jawa, keputusan pengelolaan keuangan ada di perempuan jg

·      symbolic representations of gender in society: ernikahan atau menikah merupakan representasi simbolik dari heteroseksualitas pelakunya. Makanya di Indo menangkal tuduhan homoseksual bisa dilakukan dengan menikah

Abstract

Introduction

The importance of gender in understanding health practices and illness experiences is increasingly recognized, and key to this work is a better understanding of the application of gender relations. The influence of masculinities and femininities, and the interplay within and between them manifests within relations and interactions among couples, family members and peers to influence health behaviours and outcomes.

Methods

To explore how conceptualizations of gender relations have been integrated in health research a scoping review of the existing literature was conducted. The key terms gender relations, gender interactions, relations gender, partner communication, femininities and masculinities were used to search online databases.

Results

Through analysis of this literature we identified two main ways gender relations were integrated in health research: a) as emergent findings; and b) as a basis for research design. In the latter, gender relations are included in conceptual frameworks, guide data collection and are used to direct data analysis.

Conclusions

Current uses of gender relations are typically positioned within intimate heterosexual couples whereby single narratives (i.e., either men or women) are used to explore the influence and/or impact of intimate partner gender relations on health and illness issues. Recommendations for advancing gender relations and health research are discussed. This research has the potential to reduce gender inequities in health.

Keywords

gender relationsgenderfemininitiesmasculinitieshealthillness experiences

Although there have been promising developments in accounting for gender influences in health research, the concepts of masculinity and femininity for the most part have been delinked despite the social constructionist premise that gender is relational. Further, this research has been predominantly premised on assumptions of associations between femininity and women, and masculinity and men rather than integrating gender structures that suggest a continuum of experience between men and women, and evolving forms of social relations of gender that influence health [23]. While accounting for a range of social determinants including race, social class, and sexual identity has rendered more sophisticated understandings of men's and women's health, health behaviours need to be understood in the context of men's and women's interactions on both personal and institutional levels [6, 14]. There is strong evidence that gender relations both within and between men and women strongly influence health outcomes. For example, individuals who are married engage in more healthful behaviours, report healthier psychological and physical well being, and lower mortality rates compared to divorced, separated, widowed, or single individuals [23, 24]. Although marriage is associated with improved health for women and men, its beneficial effects seem to be higher for men. Married men live longer than single men, and widowed men's life expectancy is significantly shortened following the loss of their partners [25, 26, 27]. In contrast marriage seems to protect women's health by increasing financial stability [25]. However, married women are more vulnerable than men to negative outcomes of dysfunctional relationships including intimate partner violence. Possible influences underpinning these discordant relationships include feminine ideals around nurturing others and linkages between masculinity and men's disregard for self-health.

Although Judith Butler [35] theorizes that heterosexual desire unites masculine and feminine in a binary and hierarchical relationship, others position gender relations as part of recurring patterns embedded in interpersonal relationships, culture, and social structures and organizations that permeate all aspects of everyday life. Connell [32], for example, conceptualizes gender relations as being part of dynamic social life performed through daily interactions and practices, whereby individual actions collectively constitute and re-create prevailing understandings and enactments of masculinities and femininities but not in a uniform way. She describes four interconnected structures of gender relations: production relations reflected in sexual divisions of labour; power relations evident in the positioning of men as the dominant class in societal discourses and in the exercise of imperial powers; emotional relations that include the influence of hegemonic patterns and relationships in a variety of contexts (e.g., households, workplace); and symbolic representations of gender in society [33, 36]

A gender relations approach recognizes the importance of gender dynamics and the circumstances under which they interact to influence health opportunities and constraints. More than a decade after Schofield, Connell, Walker, Wood, and Butland [4] advocated for increased attention to gender relations by signalling some designated pathways for "doing" gender relations and health research, there appears to be limited uptake of gender relations by health researchers.

 gender relations approach recognizes the importance of gender dynamics and the circumstances under which they interact to influence health opportunities and constraints. More than a decade after Schofield, Connell, Walker, Wood, and Butland [4] advocated for increased attention to gender relations by signalling some designated pathways for "doing" gender relations and health research, there appears to be limited uptake of gender relations by health researchers.

Discussion

Gender relations has featured most prominently in ethnographic work dedicated to understanding health practices in developing countries, the potential for studying men's and women's health behaviour in western societies and in micro yet increasingly globalized contexts is ever present.

The identification and use of standard indicators for gender relations would allow researchers to account for gender relations (e.g., as a confounder or independent variable) in survey research, the complex, social terrain in which gender relations emerge is likely to require multi-dimensional measures developed for application to specific societal and cultural contex

The concept of femininities in health research needs more attention along with broader considerations about what constitutes ideals in the context of gender relations between and among men and women. 

Conclusions

Gender relations are an exciting and emergent area in need of more attention from health researchers. Health-related behaviours do not operate in isolation and need to be understood in the context of interactions within and between men and women across personal, interpersonal and institutional levels. A better understanding of gender relations and health in research and policy will have direct implications for health interventions and guide decisions about whether group, dyadic or single point programs are likely to be effective. In addition, this research has great potential to challenge relational patterns that are so often taken-for-granted and contribute to reducing gender inequalities in health.