For the past several decades, coordinated efforts from within the women’s social movement in Perú... more For the past several decades, coordinated efforts from within the women’s social movement in Perú have led to groundbreaking legislation surrounding gender equity – for example, the National Gender Equality Policy of 2019 and the Gender Parity Law of 2020. These institutionalized policy changes mark milestones on the path to gender equity, certainly in Perú, but activist efforts that targeted these outcomes can inform women globally. The current study investigated key components of feminist activism by social movement actors themselves through the use of testimonio with nine key leaders in the movement. Using a liberation psychology approach and thematic narrative analysis, the findings suggested three key components of feminist activism: conflict, militant identity, and pluralism that were critical in processes of change. Centering majority world women’s voices contributes to the production of knowledge regarding approaches to gender equity, in particular because much that has been...
Scholars have argued that institutional inequities and control over resources are linked to gende... more Scholars have argued that institutional inequities and control over resources are linked to gender-based violence. However, psychologists have yet to reposition their research questions to examine how structural inequities lead to power im-balances and gender-based norms that perpetuate threats to women’s health and safety. This study provides a theoretical framework for, and an examination of, hypotheses surrounding the role of land ownership in shifting gender relations and women’s receipt of violence that have been posed in the literature but never empir-ically tested. Surveys conducted in rural Nicaragua revealed that land ownership among women challenges traditional gender ideology and increases women’s power and control within the marital relationship, which in turn, reduces levels of violence. The findings have important implications for the discussion of gender-based violence in the context of development and for initiatives that can lead to more equitable policies for women...
Feminist Perspectives on Building a Better Psychological Science of Gender, 2016
Transnational feminism, in particular, arose during the 1980s out of the interplay between global... more Transnational feminism, in particular, arose during the 1980s out of the interplay between global and local practices influenced by neoliberalism that were denying women’s rights, permitting exploitation, and reproducing subjugation. Therefore, the mobilization and collective identity behind transnational feminism is rooted in a shared criticism of and resistance to how neoliberal economic policies and governments create structural conditions that limit women’s rights in their respective locations. To date, processes of resistance that have fueled individuals committed to collective action aimed at social justice for women have received only limited attention from the discipline of psychology. Because an aim of transnational feminism is to contribute to efforts toward social justice in a global context, a transnational feminist psychology needs to move beyond a focus on difference to examine the psychosocial processes behind oppression and resistance that are critical to creating the transformations necessary for gender justice. This chapter will discuss the role transnational feminism has begun to play in the discipline of psychology and conclude with a list of suggested “best practices” for feminist psychologists interested in conducting investigations from a transnational feminist perspective.
Despite decades of research on women’s human rights and empowerment across several academic disci... more Despite decades of research on women’s human rights and empowerment across several academic disciplines, inequities between women and men persist at alarming rates across the globe. The current study employs an in-depth exploration of how programs intended for empowering purposes impact individual women’s lives, focusing on the transformation promoted at multiple ecological levels. More specifically, the present study assesses how women involved in a feminist organization in rural Nicaragua were affected by their participation in the organization. Via analysis of qualitative interviews with 14 women, we identify aspects of the organization most associated with actualizing transformative change and assess how involvement in the organization affected women’s sense of self and lived experience. Specifically, we identify and explicate two themes: (a) moving forward, which details aspects of the organization that facilitated positive changes for women, and (b) feminist autoconocimiento, which involved developing an understanding of oneself as capable of offering valuable contributions to their homes and communities. Findings have implications for promoting empowering contexts for women, with a focus on ensuring that desired empowering change is occurring for the women involved.
For the past several decades, coordinated efforts from within the women’s social movement in Perú... more For the past several decades, coordinated efforts from within the women’s social movement in Perú have led to groundbreaking legislation surrounding gender equity – for example, the National Gender Equality Policy of 2019 and the Gender Parity Law of 2020. These institutionalized policy changes mark milestones on the path to gender equity, certainly in Perú, but activist efforts that targeted these outcomes can inform women globally. The current study investigated key components of feminist activism by social movement actors themselves through the use of testimonio with nine key leaders in the movement. Using a liberation psychology approach and thematic narrative analysis, the findings suggested three key components of feminist activism: conflict, militant identity, and pluralism that were critical in processes of change. Centering majority world women’s voices contributes to the production of knowledge regarding approaches to gender equity, in particular because much that has been...
Scholars have argued that institutional inequities and control over resources are linked to gende... more Scholars have argued that institutional inequities and control over resources are linked to gender-based violence. However, psychologists have yet to reposition their research questions to examine how structural inequities lead to power im-balances and gender-based norms that perpetuate threats to women’s health and safety. This study provides a theoretical framework for, and an examination of, hypotheses surrounding the role of land ownership in shifting gender relations and women’s receipt of violence that have been posed in the literature but never empir-ically tested. Surveys conducted in rural Nicaragua revealed that land ownership among women challenges traditional gender ideology and increases women’s power and control within the marital relationship, which in turn, reduces levels of violence. The findings have important implications for the discussion of gender-based violence in the context of development and for initiatives that can lead to more equitable policies for women...
Feminist Perspectives on Building a Better Psychological Science of Gender, 2016
Transnational feminism, in particular, arose during the 1980s out of the interplay between global... more Transnational feminism, in particular, arose during the 1980s out of the interplay between global and local practices influenced by neoliberalism that were denying women’s rights, permitting exploitation, and reproducing subjugation. Therefore, the mobilization and collective identity behind transnational feminism is rooted in a shared criticism of and resistance to how neoliberal economic policies and governments create structural conditions that limit women’s rights in their respective locations. To date, processes of resistance that have fueled individuals committed to collective action aimed at social justice for women have received only limited attention from the discipline of psychology. Because an aim of transnational feminism is to contribute to efforts toward social justice in a global context, a transnational feminist psychology needs to move beyond a focus on difference to examine the psychosocial processes behind oppression and resistance that are critical to creating the transformations necessary for gender justice. This chapter will discuss the role transnational feminism has begun to play in the discipline of psychology and conclude with a list of suggested “best practices” for feminist psychologists interested in conducting investigations from a transnational feminist perspective.
Despite decades of research on women’s human rights and empowerment across several academic disci... more Despite decades of research on women’s human rights and empowerment across several academic disciplines, inequities between women and men persist at alarming rates across the globe. The current study employs an in-depth exploration of how programs intended for empowering purposes impact individual women’s lives, focusing on the transformation promoted at multiple ecological levels. More specifically, the present study assesses how women involved in a feminist organization in rural Nicaragua were affected by their participation in the organization. Via analysis of qualitative interviews with 14 women, we identify aspects of the organization most associated with actualizing transformative change and assess how involvement in the organization affected women’s sense of self and lived experience. Specifically, we identify and explicate two themes: (a) moving forward, which details aspects of the organization that facilitated positive changes for women, and (b) feminist autoconocimiento, which involved developing an understanding of oneself as capable of offering valuable contributions to their homes and communities. Findings have implications for promoting empowering contexts for women, with a focus on ensuring that desired empowering change is occurring for the women involved.
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Papers by Shelly Grabe