Gender and Agency

Gender and “Agency”
Rationale
 Even where gender gaps in

human capital and physical
assets are narrowed, differences
in gender outcomes could
emerge because girls and boys,
and later women and men, have
unequal capacity to exercise
agency
 The big word is capacity.
A starter
 In what situation do you feel the most assured or

secured?
 Where do those come from?
 What are the factors influencing this?
Rationale
 According to psychologist ALBERT BANDURA, agency

is synonymous with CONTROL. When you have a good
grasp of control in yourself, your morale is most likely TO
BE boosted and you have high level of certainty.
 This ultimately increases resilience of every person, that
is transpired through a successul realization of every
gender's endeavor.
What is Agency
 can be understood as the process through which women

and men use their endowments and take advantage of
economic opportunities to achieve desired outcomes
 agency is key to understanding how gender outcomes
emerge and why they are equal or unequal.
Expressions of “Agency”
Expressions Agency
 Where does agency usually center?

 ...........................comes?
 ...........................transpire?
Expressions Agency
1. Control over resources

*measured by men's and women’s ability to earn and
control income and to own, use, and dispose of
material assets
LABOR PARTICIPATION
HEIR
LOOM
Expressions Agency
2. Ability to move freely

*measured by bothe genders' freedom to decide their
movements and their ability to move outside their
homes.
JOB PROMOTION
DIASPORA
Expressions Agency
3. Decision making over family formation

*measured by both genders' ability to decide when and
whom to marry, when and how many children to have,
and when to leave a marriage.
PATERNALISTIC
FLOW OF DOMESTIC
DECISION FAMILY MILESTONES
WHAT DOES IT NEED TO BE A GOOD
HUSBAND/WIFE?
Expressions Agency
4. Freedom from the risk of violence

*measured by the prevalence of domestic violence
and other forms of sexual, physical, or emotional
violence.
SENSE OF
SAFETY AND SECURITY RESPECT
Expressions Agency
5. Ability to have a voice in society and influence

policy
*measured by participation and representation in
formal politics and engagement in collective action and
associations.
POLITICAL PARTICIPATION
Expressions Agency
COMMERCIAL:
**THE COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS

(CHR) SERVES AS THE “OMBUD” FOR ALL CASES OF
GENDER DISCRIMINATION. IT HAS AN INVESTIGATIVE
MANDATE TO HEAR ALL THESE CASES.
**THE BRANCH OF REGION 3 IS LOCATED AT BRGY.
MAIMPIS, CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, PAMP.
WOMEN'S AGENCY MATTERS
THREE LEVELS
 INTRINSIC RELEVANCE
 INSTRUMENTAL RELEVANCE
 ESSENTIAL IN THEIR ACTIVE ROLE
-A person’s ability to make effective
choices and exercise control over one’s
life is a key dimension of well-being
Women’s ability to influence their lives matters in and of itself

-Women and men can contest and
alter their conditions only if they are
able to aspire to better outcomes,
make effective choices, and take
action to improve their lives
-Agency determines women’s ability
to build their human capital and
access economic opportunities.
-FAMILY FORMATION DECISIONS
-TIMING OF MARRIAGE
-CHILDBEARING
-NUMBER OF CHILDREN
(Sir Jay Mark: Sorry to tell you below
statement)
-delays in marriage are strongly associated
with greater education, earnings,
and health-seeking behavior
*Greater health control and
relative had higher
nutritional status
*Women’s exercise of agency improves
their children’s welfare
---> There is a high correlation between
women's agency and children's
welfare.
*In Brazil and USA, omen’s greater control over
in come increases spending on goods that
benefit children.
* share of assets and the share of land owned by
women are positively associated with higher
food expenditures among rural households
*In Nepal, where mothers have greater ownership
of land, fewer children are severely under weight.
*In Mexico, the daughters (but not the sons) of
women with greater control over decisions
within their households work fewer hours in
household tasks.
-Women’s agency also shapes their children’s
future behavior
*What children see and experience in the home
can influence lifelong beliefs and behaviors
-SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY
**It posits that children learn based on modeling
(which is an exemplification of behavior) or
vicarious observation (semi-unconcious
acquisition of behaviors that came from
experiences of others).
-SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY
**Example:
1. Little boys learn how to shave by seeing their
fathers doing the same, everyday.
2. Young girls acquires the skills in cooking since
they observe their mothers doing stuff in the
kitchen.
-Childhood witnesses to or victims of domestic
violence are more likely to later perpetrate or
experience domestic vio lence as adults—men
who had witnessed domestic violence in
childhood were two to three times more likely
than other men to perpetrate violence
COMMERCIAL
GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT IS NOT JUST

PRO-WOMEN--->INSTEAD, IT ENDEAVORS FOR
FAIRNESS OF BOTH GENDERS!!!!!!!!! :) :)
-The perceptions of children—both girls and boys—of
what activities or behaviors are acceptable for men
and women are also often shaped in the home
In Japan, men raised by full-time working mothers are

less likely to support gender roles divisions.
 Essential for their active roles

-Women’s collective agency is
transformative, promoting changes in
society and policy.
*We are speaking in a large scale approach.

- While an individual woman’s greater ability to
exercise agency might help her reach better
outcomes for herself within her environment and
constraints, it rarely is sufficient to promote
structural changes that
will reform the environment for other women.

- women’s collective voice can contribute to
changes in laws, policies, services,
institutions, and social norms that eventually
will increase women’s individual agency.
SUMMARY
 Women’s collective voice—either through direct

participation in decision-making institutions or through
shaping the context for decisions—can result in policies,
programs, and laws that are quite different from those
that would have emerged without it.
 Providing an environment where women’s voice can
blend into a collective voice can thus promote women’s
agency and greater gender equality.
GROUP 1
*QUESTIONNAIRE C/O SIR WED + CONSENT
*RESPONDENTS:KAHIT SINO
*

Gender and Agency

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Gender and “Agency”

 Even where gender gaps in

 In what situation do you feel the most assured or

 According to psychologist ALBERT BANDURA, agency

 can be understood as the process through which women

 Where does agency usually center?

1. Control over resources

2. Ability to move freely

3. Decision making over family formation

4. Freedom from the risk of violence

5. Ability to have a voice in society and influence

**THE COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS

Women’s ability to influence their lives matters in and of itself

GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT IS NOT JUST

In Japan, men raised by full-time working mothers are

 Essential for their active roles

 Essential for their active roles

 Essential for their active roles

 Women’s collective voice—either through direct

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