Tag: Gender

Posted on

Violent Aftershocks

Gender violence.
The ripples of disaster,
exacerbating.

Natural disasters and hazards are increasing in frequency, severity and duration worldwide, with evidence suggesting that the cause is anthropogenic climate change. Whilst this means we need improved and increased disaster management policies and practices for the immediate impacts of disasters (e.g. the collapse of a building during an earthquake), it is just as important to understand the wider implications natural disasters.

Women and girls are disproportionately impacted by natural disasters and hazards, including having higher mortality rates. The causes of this discrepancy include “discriminatory practices in relief efforts, lower access to information and resources, care responsibilities and gendered poverty”, with women’s perspectives in disaster management “not adequately considered and met”.

Yet new research by Thurston et al. (2021) also suggests that violence against women and girls also increases following natural disasters. Reviewing 37 previous studies the team found positive associations between disaster exposure and increased gender-based violence, with 12 of the 20 quantitative studies showing a positive association and all 17 of the qualitative and mixed methods studies describing post-disaster violence against women and girls.

The researchers suggest three reasons behind this increase, with natural disasters and hazards:

  • Increasing stressors that trigger gendered violence (e.g. trauma, mental health issues, financial insecurities).
  • Increasing enabling environments (e.g. the absence of police, health and support services, a breakdown of family structure, social isolation).
  • Exacerbating the underlying drivers of violence against women and girls (e.g. gender and social inequalities, lack of female representation and inclusion).

Whilst the researchers acknowledge their work has some limitations (due to the limitations of the studies they examined), their findings make it clear that disaster risk-reduction policies must be gender sensitive and women need to be included in all aspects of disaster management, from policy to practice.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2020-004377

Posted on

Australian Science Poetry by Michael J. Leach and Rachel Rayner

Australian science
poems oft explore life death
theories space horses

By Michael J. Leach and Rachel Rayner

We recently conducted a novel study to describe the demographics and characteristics of contemporary Australian science poetry. Twelve contemporary Australian poetry or science writing anthologies were used to identify science poems matching a set definition built from our research. After finding 100 contemporary Australian science poems by 73 poets, we proceeded to collect and analyse data on poem characteristics as well as poet demographics.

The specific scientific topics addressed in the 100 science poems were visualised in a word cloud – an image that uses font size to show the relative frequency with which words appear in a dataset. This sciku presents some of the standout features from our word cloud of contemporary Australian science poetry topics.

Word cloud from ‘The demographics and characteristics of contemporary Australian science poetry’ by Michael J. Leach and Rachel Rayner, published in Axon: Creative Explorations, 2020.

Other results from the study showed the state of New South Wales produced the most science poets; however, the Australian Capital Territory had more poets per capita. Finally, contrary to usual publication statistics, there were more science poems written by female-identifying poets than male or non-binary individuals.

Full details of our study can be found in a peer-reviewed research paper:

Leach MJ, Rayner R. The demographics and characteristics of contemporary Australian science poetry. Axon: Creative Explorations. 2020; 10(1). Available at: https://www.axonjournal.com.au/issue-vol-10-no-1-may-2020/demographics-and-characteristics-contemporary-australian-science-poetry

Michael J. Leach (@m_jleach) is a poet and Senior Lecturer at Monash University. Michael’s poems have appeared in the Antarctic Poetry Exhibition, the Medical Journal of Australia, GRAVITON, and elsewhere. Check out an earlier sciku of Michael’s here.

Rachel Rayner (@RaeRay4) is a science communicator at experimental PR and communications company, AndironGroup. Rachel connects with audiences through various means – whether articles, educational activities, live shows, broadcasts or poetry.

If you enjoyed Michael and Rachel’s sciku then make sure you check out their longer poems in the first issue of Consilience here!

Posted on

Braking Decisions

Too posh to push? No?
How about too rich to brake?
Poor pedestrians!

Road safety and awareness is crucial for pedestrians and drivers alike, particularly when it comes to crossing the road. Yet not everyone is made equal so understanding the decisions and interactions that occur between driver and pedestrian is crucial for public health and safety.

Coughenour et al. (2020) examined driver yielding rates at a midblock crosswalk in Las Vegas. Their results reveal worrying tendencies for road safety based on both the identity of the driver and the pedestrian.

Drivers of more expensive cars were less likely to stop for pedestrians at cross walks, with yielding decreasing by 3% for each $1,000 increase in car cost. The identity of the pedestrian mattered too – cars yielded more frequently for women and white pedestrians compared to males and non-white pedestrians.

Perhaps most worryingly of all, only 28% of drivers actually yielded to pedestrians at the crosswalks, despite being legally obliged to do so.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jth.2020.100831

Posted on

Couple affection

Art class and board games –

oxytocin released for

couple affection.

Oxytocin is often known as the ’hugging hormone’ and is important for attachment forming in relationships. Shared activities between two individuals in a relationship can help with bonding and release oxytocin. But what sort of activities can promote this?

Melton et al (2019) investigated the impact of two activities on couple’s oxytocin levels: playing board games and attending art classes. Both activities resulted in an increase in oxytocin in both men and women but there were interesting differences between the activity, sex and location of the activities.

The greatest increase in oxytocin was in men during the art class. Interestingly, greater levels of eye contact were observed between couples playing board games but greater physical contact observed during art class, whilst couples in a novel setting and doing a novel activity also released more oxytocin than couples in a familiar environment. These results show that whilst joint leisure activities do result in increased oxytocin, the type of activity and the novelty can affect the amounts.

Original research: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jomf.12556

Posted on

Trust me, I’m female

Crowdfund my startup,

Your money is safe with me.

Trust me, I’m female!

 

In business, women are traditionally at a disadvantage when seeking financing for business start-ups. Yet a new study by Johnson et al (2018) suggests that women have the advantage when it comes to crowd-funded start-ups. The research suggests that women are stereotypically seen as more trustworthy than men which influences the amateur investors’ willingness to invest.

Original research: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2018.04.003