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Degree

MA, University of Cincinnati, Arts and Sciences : Sociology, 2010.

Abstract

Two of the most enduring and troubling elements of the social world are civil war and gender inequality. They are not just human rights issues; they are complex development issues. Of the 150 armed conflicts since World War II, 90 percent have taken place in developing countries, the places where women’s status is most tenuous.

This study examined the relationship between civil war and women’s status in less-developed countries. The primary hypothesis was supported that institutionalized gender inequality is higher in countries where there has been recent civil war. Part of these effects are slightly mitigated by the level of democratic development, and by economic development. Nevertheless, the effect remains significant. Specifically, results show that countries that have been involved in civil war at some time between 1995 and 2004 have higher overall institutional gender inequality, specifically more discrimination in property rights and relative decision-making authority in the household.

This cross-national study expands the scholarship on the effect of armed conflict on the status of women, using an institutional framework, and is guided by structural theories of gender stratification developed by scholars such as Rae Lesser Blumberg, Janet Chafetz, and Randall Collins. It utilized a groundbreaking index of institutionalized gender inequality that has never been employed in sociological analysis or any study involving armed conflict. In addition, it may help identify places where women and girls need the most help not just with short-term needs (as humanitarian relief focuses on) but also on the long-term needs for structural changes in their status.

Subject Headings

Sociology

Keywords

gender inequality; civil war; women's status; armed conflict; gender stratification

Committee / Advisors

Steven Carlton-Ford, PhD (Committee Chair)
Erynn Casanova, PhD (Committee Member)

Pages

47p.

Document number: ucin1277146681
Permalink: http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1277146681

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