Gendering (Trans)National Advocacy

Whether lauded or deplored, transnational organizing among non-governmental organizations (NGOs) generally, and women's NGOs specifically, is recognized as an active player in debates about international economic policy. In this article, I turn attention toward one consequence of women's transnational NGO organizing that has been under-analyzed: the impact that transnational activism has on domestic political organizations and opportunities. The recent increase in activism on gender and policies of free trade in the USA is the product of women's transnational political organizingover the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). In the case of NAFTA, theoretical insights about the ways that gendered categories undergird the economy were made visible by and through the transnational advocacy in which feminists engaged.And, this article indicates, these transnational advocacy efforts have helped to shift the domestic political terrain of women's organizing in the United States. I argue that as women's rights advocates in the United States were confronted with the realization that the nexus between gender and trade policy was important to many women's rights and feminist activists around the world, they began to question why the gendered implication of trade policy did not hold a comparable place in the US feminist arena. Thus, changes in the domestic political landscape of non-governmentalactivismmay be one of the longest lasting (and most overlooked) consequences of transnational political engagement.     

Power,Sex, and Rape Myth Acceptance: Testing Two Models of Rape Proclivity

Power and sex are thought to be important factors associated with sexual aggression. The goal of this study was to offer a dual-process model to determine how both an implicit power–sex association and explicit power–sex beliefs contribute to rape myth acceptance and rape proclivity. In Study 1, an explicit measure of power–sex beliefs was developed using a participant sample of 131 college students (54% female; age: M = 20.2 years, SD = 3.5 years). In Study 2, 108 male college students (age: M = 19.1 years, SD = 1.3 years) completed a power–sex implicit association test and three explicit measures assessing power–sex beliefs, rape myth acceptance, and rape proclivity. Two models of rape proclivity were compared. The best-fitting model showed that rape myth acceptance mediated the relationships between rape proclivity and an implicit power–sex association, as well as explicit power–sex beliefs.     

Social Relationships of African American and Hispanic Older Assisted Living Residents: Exploring the Role of Race and Ethnicity

African American and Hispanic older adults are underrepresented in assisted living communities, so little is known about how they experience social relationships in these settings. The purpose of the study was to explore resident-to-resident and resident-to-staff relationships experienced and perceived by African American and Hispanic older residents in assisted living settings. In-depth interviews with 15 African American and 15 Hispanic older adults were conducted in seven assisted living communities in Central Florida. Three salient themes emerged using a grounded theory approach: formation of relationships: emotional vs. instrumental support; language as a facilitator or barrier; and avoidance of inter-racial relationships. Implications for providing culturally competent services in assisted living communities with diverse populations are discussed.     

A Pilot Study of the Application of the Transtheoretical Model During Strength Training in Older Women

A Transtheoretical Model (TTM) goal-setting tool was used during strength training in women. Volunteers (mean age = 69, N = 27) were assigned to a strength training only or strength training/behavior change 12-week intervention. A pre/posttest, quasiexperimental design assessed TTM constructs, Health-Related Quality of Life, and functional fitness measurements. Multiple ANCOVAs revealed significant differences between groups on lower body strength (p = .001), upper body flexibility (p = .002), Decisional Balance (p = .024,) and Stage of Change for Exercise (p = .010). Stage of change progression may be enhanced using a goal-setting tool during strength training in older women.     

A Waif's Progress

This paper draws on a case study of media images of the British model Kate Moss to think through questions of affect, ideology, and pleasure in relation to fashion imagery. The question of whether and to what extent media images affect spectators is central to contemporary feminist media studies. The “turn to affect” has revitalised the debate about the extent to which media images can be held accountable for oppressive effects on the spectator's body image, with affect theory often being pitted “against” feminism in this regard. As Clare Hemmings states, affect theory emphasises how emotions place individual bodies in a circuit of feeling and response, connecting them to one another in ways that are potentially transformative. Through a critical reading of Kate Moss as a highly visible figure of projection, anxiety, and fantasy, I aim to show that whilst affects may be unpredictable, in that some media images become particular objects of attachment and anxiety, they are also mediated and political: that they engage us in intimate relations with ideologies of gender, power, and embodiment.     

Enhancing Student Gerocompetencies: Evaluation of an Intergenerational Service Learning Course

This article describes the development and evaluation of an intergenerational service-learning course designed to promote social work gerocompetencies. Service-learning opportunities were structured into the course, including an optional evidence-based falls prevention program, for older adults, entitled A Matter of Balance (MOB). Significant differences between pre- and posttest scores on the Geriatric Social Work Competency Scale (GSWCS) were noted for students in the service learning course (n = 13). Once MOB was introduced as an independent variable, the MOB participants scored the highest mean posttest scores for 2 GSWCS domains: values, ethics, and theoretical perspectives; and intervention. The benefits of utilizing social work gerocompetencies to guide course objectives, content, and student outcomes are discussed.     

Thinking like a lawyer: Gender differences in the production of professional knowledge

Accounts of law schools often report that women find law school a hostile atmosphere, although most studies do not compare male and female reactions. In this study of thirtyseven students at an elite law school, the author finds that the impact of a “women's” voice on professional knowledge is more complicated than a strict dichotomy between male and female reasoning proposes. While the process of “learning to think like a lawyer” retains traditionally male attributes, women students clearly learn this cognitive style competently. Many women do find the law school experience distancing and problematic, and are more likely to point out the inadequacies of legal thinking. Men, though far from universally positive about law school experiences, are more likely to describe the process as a game or a puzzle. Men and women's reactions are not essentialized, however; a few women thrive on the masculine style, while some men clearly do not like it. Debra Schleef is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Mary Washington College, Fredericksburg, Virginia. She has published articles on socialist law and feminist jurisprudence, and the social responsibilities of business and law students. She is currently writing a book on law and business student socialization, “Elites in Training: Accommodation and Resistance to Professional Socialization in Law and Business School.” She has recently published in the Sociology of Education.