Browsing by Subject "Gender"

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An analysis of gender in intra-household decision-making as an important socio-economic factor in agriculture-nutrition linkages
(2021) Sariyev, Orkhan; Zeller, Manfred
In 2018, almost 2 billion people around the globe experienced severe or moderate levels of food insecurity. Poverty is strongly linked with food insecurity, and most of the extreme poor live in rural areas where agriculture is the main livelihood. Thus, agricultural and rural development have profound implications for rural households. Agricultural produce is consumed or marketed or both; when marketed, the generated income can be used for (safe and nutritious) food purchases and non-food expenditures, including medical expenses and investments in sanitation. Some income may not be consumed directly but saved or invested in the form of physical, social or human capital. Moreover, considering that the end goal of development should be an environment in which people can be creative and freely enjoy a long and healthy life, rural and agricultural development will have implications for all elements of human development: health, education, poverty, environment, security, women’s status, and finally, food and nutrition. The effect is seemingly more direct and profound in terms of its contribution to a healthy household environment and food security, which together determine nutritional outcomes. However, this seemingly straightforward linkage between agriculture and nutrition is challenged by numerous socio-economic factors. This dissertation concentrates on the gender dynamics of intra-household decision-making as an important socio-economic factor in the agriculture and nutrition framework. Here, I refer to gender dynamics as the interactions and relations between men and women that can strengthen or confront the social norms of a society. Thus, the main objective is to examine the gender dynamics of decision-making as an important component of agriculture-nutrition linkages. There are three sub-objectives that concentrate on selected linkages within the framework. Given the high concentration of women’s empowerment literature in social contexts in which females are underprivileged, the first sub-objective is to investigate the implications of women’s empowerment in contexts in which women historically experienced equality or favoritism. Second, concentrating on the role of women’s empowerment in the agriculture and nutrition framework, the next objective is to study the implications of women’s empowerment on varietal adoption, diversified production, and consumption. The third objective is to examine the viability of production diversification as a strategy to improve household diets. The findings of this dissertation are based on data collected from Bhutanese and Ethiopian households. The survey in Bhutan employed multistage random sampling; it was implemented in November 2017 and covered 251 households in two central districts of Bhutan: Tsirang and Dagana. The survey in Ethiopia was conducted in 2014 and 2016 and covered 390 Ethiopian households located in a radius of circa 150-200 km around the town of Hawassa. These households were randomly selected from a sample of farmers from a survey that was conducted by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) for the Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency (ATA) in 2012. This dissertation has five chapters. The first chapter gives a general overview and provides a conceptual framework that helps to describe the research topics and questions investigated in the following chapters. The three following chapters are scientific papers that have been prepared for publication in scientific journals. The second chapter deals with the first sub-objective. It investigates women’s participation in crucial domains of intra-household decision-making and its implications for dietary quality in Bhutanese households. The third chapter studies the effect of the main female’s risk preference on the adoption of high-yielding varieties (HYVs) conditional on the dominance of female preferences declared in domestic decision-making. The fourth chapter explores the association between women’s participation in decision-making and both agricultural production and dietary diversity. The final chapter concludes the dissertation, highlights main limitations, and gives recommendations for future research and policies. Chapter 1 discusses the agriculture-nutrition linkages and interacting socio-economic factors of interest in the conceptual framework of the dissertation. Chapter 2 investigates the implications of women’s participation in domestic decision-making processes for dietary quality in Bhutanese rural households. Bhutan was selected as the country of interest for this chapter because polyandry and matrilineal succession were still observed in some ethnic groups through the 20th century. We employ a mixed methods research approach to investigate women’s participation in domestic decision-making processes and its implications for dietary quality at the household level. Considering the historical presence of matrilineal succession in Bhutan, we also check for any association between women’s land ownership and participation in domestic decision-making using non-parametric tests. Quantitative analyses and in-depth interviews reveal no lack of participation in crucial domains of domestic decision-making for Bhutanese women. We observe a positive association between women’s participation in decision-making and their property rights; thus, it is plausible that the matrilineal succession might have provided for women’s empowerment over time. Moreover, we find that gender equality in decision-making results in better dietary diversity in Bhutanese households. Given the results, we recommend that social programs focus not merely on women’s empowerment, but gender-equal human development in general. The findings contribute to the gender literature and emphasize the importance of gender equality. Considering that females are generally found to be more risk averse than males and that risk aversion hinders technology adoption, in Chapter 3, we study the importance of the main female decision-maker’s risk preference for the adoption of HYVs in Ethiopia. Most often, food security is the ultimate goal for the rural poor in Ethiopia. Their risk preferences are likely to determine their willingness to trade some short-term security for a greater potential income and security in the future. Rural households are disinclined to adopt new varieties as they are unfamiliar and present a risk of failure. The number of female decision-makers in a household is assumed to reflect the dominance of female preference declared in household decision-making. The main female decision-maker is assumed to be empowered to express her preferences more strongly and freely when the decision-making processes involves more female members. In this case, the impact of her risk preferences is likely to be more profound. To the best of my knowledge, this hypothesis has not been investigated before. Considering that rural households are constrained differently, we want to study both adoption and intensity of the HYV adoption. The results show no effect of the main female’s or male’s risk preferences on the adoption of HYV seeds. It is observed that the adoption decision is mostly determined by access and availability, which are captured by wealth, access to extension, and all-weather roads. We observe a positive association between the main female’s risk preference and the intensity of the adoption at higher levels of women’s participation in decision-making. As hypothesized, the conditionality of the effect of female risk preference on the level of female dominance in decision-making is observed. Given these results, we conclude that the main female’s risk preference matters for the intensity of HYV adoption. Given the potential risk of crop failure when adopting HYV, a risk-taking female is willing to risk her household’s short-run security to a potential learning effect from the new variety and potentially gain a higher income and more security in the long-run. The findings from this chapter contribute to the gender and technology adoption literature. The study interacts female risk preference with a proxy that measures female dominance in decision-making in an HYV adoption study. The results of our analysis of the role of the main female’s risk preferences in agricultural technology adoption signify the importance of a gendered lens to intra-household decision-making and risk preferences for future empirical studies. Nutrition sensitive agricultural development programs consider diversified farm production as a promising strategy to achieve better dietary outcomes for rural poor who are mostly subsistence oriented. In Chapter 4, we mainly question the viability of this strategy for rural Ethiopian households. Furthermore, considering that both household-level production diversification and consumption choices are outcomes of intra-household decision-making, we investigate the implications of women’s participation in the domains of decision-making for both outcomes. Thus, there are two objectives in Chapter 4. The first is to estimate the association between production diversification and household dietary diversity in various settings, and the second is to examine the association of female participation in decision-making with both livelihood outcomes separately. We find that on-farm diversification can be a feasible strategy to improve the diets of those who are mostly subsistence oriented and therefore highly dependent on agricultural production and those who live a great distance from markets. These results were obtained by employing and carefully interpreting multiplicative interaction models. We find that women’s participation in decision-making regarding which crops are grown is associated with more diversity both in terms of food groups and the number of different livestock and crop species produced. Nevertheless, we do not find any association when both evenness and richness of crop species are considered together as an indicator of diversification. This is due to the fact that sampled Ethiopian women are observed to be involved in decision-making on small plots, such as kitchen gardens, which contribute to the richness of species but not to the evenness in terms of the cultivated area. Furthermore, we estimate a positive association between women’s decision-making regarding household expenditures (that include food, clothing, and household and agricultural assets) and dietary diversity indicators. In light of these results, we conclude that development programs could promote production diversification in remote rural areas where markets and non-farm income are hardly accessible, but even then, the viability of this strategy is very questionable due to the marginal effects that demand mostly unrealistic changes. We recommend that more attention and effort be directed toward gender-inclusive social and economic development policies together with infrastructural and market development projects to achieve sustainable returns to nutrition. We contribute to the agriculture and nutrition literature by highlighting an important covariate, that is gendered decision-making, and calling attention to an in-depth approach to the analyses of this kind to better assist practitioners. Overall, the main contribution of this dissertation is that the gender dynamics in intra-household decision-making is an important socio-economic factor in the agriculture and nutrition framework. The findings prove that gender sensitive policies and programs will contribute to this component and sustain the linkages between agriculture and nutrition in rural areas. It is observed that women’s empowerment in farming and household-related decision-making positively contributes to various components like varietal adoption, diversification, and household-level dietary diversity in the agriculture and nutrition framework. However, extensive contextual knowledge is necessary to ensure that gender bias is correctly approached and treated to yield positive and sustainable outcomes in different societal settings.
Development potential of smallholder livestock production in Zambia
(2019) Lubungu, Mary; Birner, Regina
The continued increase in the demand for livestock products in Africa presents a development opportunity for smallholder livestock farmers. If this opportunity is harnessed well, it can contribute to rural poverty reduction. However, translating this opportunity into reality requires unlocking smallholder farmers productivity potential, considering that livestock performs numerous functions beyond just serving as an income source. To support this development opportunity for smallholder livestock farmers, it is essential to enable a large share of small-scale farmers to engage in livestock farming and increase the productivity of smallholder livestock farming systems in an equitable and environmentally sustainable way. Taking Zambia as an example, this thesis aims to identify and analyze factors that have been obstacles to livestock development. Based on two rounds of panel data collected from smallholder farm households in Zambia, it was observed that the share of farmers who keep cattle is limited and that farmers move in and out of cattle production, despite the many benefits that livestock offers. Therefore, there is a need to identify what enables and disables farmers to keep livestock. There is also a need to identify the driving factors of livestock herd growth since small herd size is one factor that prevents farmers from participating in the market for livestock products. To better understand how livestock production systems can be developed equitably, it is also necessary to understand the gender dimensions of livestock farming to ensure that women will not be left out of the growth process. Moreover, to be able to support livestock production effectively, it is also essential to identify the governance challenges that are likely to occur in the implementation of livestock development interventions. Against this backdrop, the thesiss overall goal was to identify options to promote sustainable livestock production systems. The thesis focused on cattle, which is the most valuable large asset among smallholder farmers in Zambia. The thesis had four specific objectives, which are addressed in separate chapters: (i) To unravel the mystery of moving in and out of cattle keeping; (ii) to identify the factors determining the livestock herd size among smallholder farmers in Zambia; (iii) to understand the gender dimensions in cattle production; and (iv) To uncover the governance challenges of implementing the vaccination campaigns in Zambia To achieve these objectives, a mixed-method research approach was used, involving both quantitative and qualitative methods. The quantitative analysis was based on an existing household survey data set, which is representative at the national level. Various econometric techniques were applied, including probit, correlated random effect, and zero-one inflated beta regressions. For the qualitative component of the study, a combination of empirical data collection methods was applied, which included focus group discussions, individual household in-depth interviews, key informant interviews, and a participatory mapping method called Process-Net-Map. Analytical methods for the qualitative component of the study included content analysis as well as causal narratives. The analysis showed that moving in or out of cattle production is influenced by human population growth, climatic variability, livestock population density, male household labor availability, and institutional support. The findings indicate that household-level factors and regional factors and their interaction influence households ability to take up cattle production and continue this activity over time. One can derive from this analysis that regional incentives, such as an increase in the demand for draft power, are important to encourage cattle production, but household level challenges, such as labor availability, need to be addressed, as well. The analysis also indicated that loss of cattle due to death, rather than cattle sales, was a major reason for the reduction in herd size. Mortality rates were found to be responsive to animal health interventions, which underlines the need for effective animal health services as a precondition for improved productivity in livestock production. The analysis also showed that farmers mainly increased their herd size by keeping the off-spring of their herd rather than by buying animals. Low conception rates due to limited feed resources during the dry season were identified as a major obstacle to a faster increase in herd size. Farmers who were able to enter into cattle production typically used their income from crop farming to acquire the first stock. This finding indicates that, in the absence of well-functioning rural financial markets, smallholders who cannot generate a surplus from crop farming will not be able to move into cattle production. The analysis also threw light on the factors that enable women to own cattle. These factors included financial independence and the accumulation of other assets. Women were also more likely to own cattle in households with larger herd sizes. Perceived intra-household conflicts were identified as an obstacle to female cattle ownership. Considering the important role of livestock support programs, an in-depth analysis of a program was carried out that supported livestock vaccination campaigns. The Process Net-Map method served to identify the governance challenges faced by the program. The findings established that the complexity of the procurement procedure, the limited capacity of the central actors, and a lack of urgency from influential actors resulted in procurement delays, and a diversion of funds caused delays in the release of funds. Lack of influence by the farmers also contributed to the inefficiency of the implementation procedure. The findings are likely to be relevant for implementing other livestock development programs that involve the distribution of publicly procured inputs. Overall, it was concluded that the problems identified in the thesis need to be addressed. Otherwise, smallholder livestock farmers will not be able to exploit the opportunity of rising demand for livestock products. A number of policy recommendations were derived from the findings. These include the provision of institutional and technical support for the intensification of smallholder cattle production, strategies to bridge the gender gap in cattle production in a way that does not result in household conflicts; and innovative approaches to improve the efficiency in the implementation of livestock development programs.
Do sexist comments hinder participation in online political discussions?
(2023) Reich, Sabine; Bachl, Marko
Women who visibly engage in politics online experience a lot of backlash. The presented study investigates sexist incivility against women in online political spaces as a possible explanation for the gender gap in online political discussion and expression. Online sexism solidifies the masculine norm in online political spaces. Drawing on social cognitive theory and the theory of normative social behavior, we understand online incivility as communication mechanisms that enforce gender norms in online political discussions. We use a preregistered online survey experiment with German Internet users to investigate how sexist comments in online political discussions affect women’s participation in the discussion, perceived social norms about participating, and their internal political efficacy. We found no effects of sexist comments on the propensity to engage in the discussion or the political efficacy to contribute. However, the presence of sexist comments increased the fear of sanctions in both men and women. The null findings of the preregistered experiment occurred despite sufficient statistical power and a successful treatment check. We discuss several possible explanations for the null effects and ways forward.
Food and men in cinema : an exploration of gender in blockbuster movies
(2009) Parasecoli, Fabio; Bellows, Anne
The goal of this dissertation is to examine how popular movies, often called ?blockbusters? when referring to their international success at the box office, portray masculinity and men?s interactions around food and eating. The common and mundane objects, attitudes, and practices that revolve around food play an important role in men's personal development and social interactions. More specifically, the research is aimed at investigating how food representations in film embrace, naturalize, or question cultural assumptions about masculinity and gender relations. On the base of the relevant literature in masculinity studies, food studies, and film studies, I developed two hypotheses: 1. Food-related scenes provide an apparently neutral and natural space for representations of masculinity to be conveyed. For this reasons these scenes tend to be overlooked by viewers, despite their frequency. 2. The analysis of food-related scenes can help us identify a set of recurrent traits that outline diverse masculinity models offered to audiences around the world. In order to test my hypotheses, I identified a sample constituted by of all the movies (excluding cartoons) that earned more than 250 million US dollars outside the United States between 1990 and 2007. I applied content analysis - a methodology often used in media and communication studies ? to this sample, pinpointing and quantifying all the food-related scenes I observed in each movie. Furthermore, by coding these scenes according to recurrent categories based on theme and content, I was able to gauge their statistical frequency in order to determine the most recurring ones, which can also be considered the most relevant in the cultural perceptions of masculinity. The analysis of the sample, which consists of 58 movies, originated a taxonomy of 151 coding categories (?situational scripts?) that cover 940 food-specific scenes (?occurrences?) involving men and food. The analysis also allowed me to identify 5 broad narrative arcs (?interpretive types?) describing the development (or lack thereof) of the male protagonists in the 58 movies. The examination of the function of the scenes within the different story lines indicates that most food-related occurrences, due to their secondary role, are perceived as natural and normal, thus becoming virtually invisible to the viewers. Their apparent ordinariness and familiarity offers an apt environment for the representation of values, attitudes and behaviors that reflect widely accepted and culturally sanctioned templates of what a man should be like and act like. Most food scenes offer images of strong, determined, and powerful males, ready to assert themselves over other men and over women. White, adult, middle or working class masculinities are equated with mainstream, acceptable, hegemonic masculinities. The absence of scenes featuring women around food without men confirms the role of food as a tool for control and negotiation among genders and their established social roles. The data also show that food is often featured in scenes where men share and celebrate, underlining its social significance and its function as a cultural marker to identify groups and to exclude outsiders. However, the emotional and more intimate values connected to food and ingestion are not totally erased, revealing aspects of masculinity less connected to power and social performance but still relevant for the males? personal lives. It is also intriguing that many scenes refer to the fear of being ingested, showing deeply ingrained insecurities. In sum, food related scenes involving men in the movie sample on one side reiterate well-established models of masculinity, while on the other they reveal aspects of fragility and anxiety that otherwise would not be traceable in other kinds of scenes, especially in action movies.
Gender and equity in market-based environmental programs : case studies from Kenya
(2016) Kariuki, Juliet; Birner, Regina
Reconciling global environmental goals with local community needs has been the focus of conservation approaches for several decades now; however scant attention has been paid to the role of gendered – men’s and women’s - dynamics within these environmental contexts. Although well-intentioned, the tendency has been to direct practical attention to only women, which offers an inadequate account of the gender-differentiated access to, and control over natural resources. Against this background, the objective of this thesis is to analyse how formal and informal institutions interact with the design of market-based environmental programs to influence gender and equity outcomes. Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES), a new addition to the suite of environmental conservation approaches, are market-based instruments that include “Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation - plus - sustainable management of forests, conservation of forest carbon stocks and enhancement of forest carbon stocks” (REDD+). PES/REDD+ are considered promising tools that reward resource users financially or in-kind, on the condition that conservation of natural resources and/or a reduction in carbon emissions is achieved through the adoption of stipulated resource-use regulations. PES/REDD+ programs are therefore heralded for their ‘win-win’ potential to overcome the flaws of previous coercive state-led and community-based approaches. The case studies analyse four PES/REDD+ programs in Kenya, namely the Kitengela Wildlife Lease Program, the Mara North Conservancy, the Kasigau Corridor REDD+ Project and Imbirikani Group Ranch. The study sites host mainly pastoral and agro-pastoral communities and are adjacent to some of the most prominent protected areas in the country. The thesis concludes that more attention to the historical processes leading up to PES/REDD+ establishment is required if more equitable outcomes are to be achieved. Deliberate efforts by implementing agencies that consider the multi-dimensional nature of equity can play a crucial role in addressing distributional and procedural equity, especially in contexts where land is unevenly distributed. However, as secure land tenure is not the only determinant of equity outcomes, the study advocates for a nuanced understanding of gendered norms in an effort to contribute to selecting suitable gender strategies for PES/REDD+ programs. Ultimately, greater effort is also required to challenge prevailing—yet flawed—gender discourses if participation in, and benefits from PES/REDD+ are to become more gender balanced.
A gendered perspective on online privacy and self-disclosure
(2024) Frener, Regine; Trepte, Sabine
In research on online privacy and self-disclosure, gender is commonly included as a potentially predictive variable. The results are heterogeneous and sometimes controversial; explanations are often lacking or based on stereotypical assumptions. With this dissertation, I seek to provide a gender-focused perspective on online privacy and self-disclosure by taking a closer look at gender effects in privacy-related outcomes, studying the implementation of gender as a research variable, and investigating how gender is related to people’s inherent need for privacy. To this end, I present a short introduction in the first chapter, followed by four publications: a book chapter on privacy and gender (Study 1), a systematic literature review (Study 2), an empirical investigation of gender effects in privacy behavior (Study 3), and the development of the Need for Privacy Scale (NFP-S; Study 4). In Study 1, the book chapter, I summarize key theoretical advancements in gender and privacy research in line with the feminist movement. Further, empirical findings on gender disparities are presented from a communication science perspective. I discuss the ongoing gender-based digital divide as well as risks associated with automatic gender categorization. Lastly, I address the problems of conceptualizing gender as a binary, static variable, and propose alternative perspectives for more equitable treatment. In Study 2, my co-author Prof. Dr. Sabine Trepte and I examine how scholars in the field of online privacy incorporate gender into their research. For n = 107 articles reporting gender effects (or a lack thereof), we assess whether gender theory is included, to what extent it is referred to, and what function it serves. The results show that in most studies, gender is undertheorized, resulting in reduced explanatory power and the risk of gender essentialism. To meet the need for gender theorization in online privacy research we identified in Study 2, I present an empirical investigation of the social web gendered privacy model (Thelwall, 2011) in Study 3. The model aims to link gender differences in online privacy concerns, data protection behavior and online self-disclosure and explain them via gender differences in offline factors. Using longitudinal data (n = 1,043), I found partial support for the relationships between the privacy-related variables as well as for the transfer from offline to online contexts. The expected gender differences did not arise consistently, which challenges the model’s claim that women constitute an especially vulnerable population regarding social media usage. To offer added value for the broader field of privacy-related research, my co-authors Jana Dombrowski and Prof. Dr. Sabine Trepte and I present the Need for Privacy Scale (NFP-S) in Study 4. The NFP-S is a concise measure of the need for privacy as a personality trait, developed to be applied in any context. Against the theoretical backdrop of Burgoon’s (1982) privacy dimensions, we propose a second-order model with informational, psychological, and physical need for privacy as the first-order factors. In two large-scale surveys (Study 1: n1 = 3,278; n2 = 1,226; Study 2: N = 1,000), the scale was validated with regard to relevant personality traits, privacy-related cognitive criteria and behaviors as well as socio-demographic variables. With the goal of disentangling (biological) sex and gender, we include self-assessed femininity and masculinity. We find that congruity between participants’ perception of their femininity/masculinity and their sex is related to a higher need for privacy. In the overall discussion, I combine insights from the studies, provide ideas for future research, and offer societal and practical implications. Taken together, the four studies contribute to the field of online privacy by emphasizing the psychological perspective of gender as a socially constructed, multifaceted, and dynamic construct. Adopting this view is desirable for privacy researchers, as it helps to better understand privacy-related attitudes and decision-making, hence increasing overall validity. Furthermore, a differentiated understanding of gender is needed to prevent oversimplifications and stereotyping and to promote ethical and fair research.
Perceived effects of farm tractors in four African countries, highlighted by participatory impact diagrams
(2020) Daum, Thomas; Adegbola, Ygué Patrice; Kamau, Geoffrey; Kergna, Alpha Oumar; Daudu, Christogonus; Zossou, Roch Cedrique; Crinot, Géraud Fabrice; Houssou, Paul; Mose, Lawrence; Ndirpaya, Yarama; Wahab, A. A.; Kirui, Oliver; Oluwole, Fatunbi Abiodun
Agricultural mechanization is on the rise in Africa. A widespread replacement of manual labor and animal traction will change the face of African agriculture. Despite this potentially transformative role, only a few studies have looked at the effects of mechanization empirically, mostly focusing on yields and labor alone. This is the first paper that explores perceived agronomic, environmental, and socioeconomic effects together, thereby revealing linkages and trade-offs, some of which have been hitherto unknown. Data were collected using a novel data collection method called “participatory impact diagrams” in four countries: Benin, Kenya, Nigeria, and Mali. In 129 gendered focus group discussions, 1330 respondents from 87 villages shared their perceptions on the positive and negative effects of agricultural mechanization, and developed causal impact chains. The results suggest that mechanization is likely to have more far-reaching agronomic, environmental, and socioeconomic consequences than commonly assumed. Most perceived effects were positive, suggesting that mechanization can help to reduce poverty and enhance food security but other effects were negative such as deforestation, soil erosion, land-use conflicts, and gender inequalities. Accompanying research and policy efforts, which reflect variations in local agro-ecological and socioeconomic conditions, are needed to ensure that mechanization contributes to an African agricultural transformation that is sustainable from a social, economic, and environmental perspective.
Die Persistenz der geschlechtsspezifischen Arbeitsteilung im Haushalt : eine Analyse auf Basis der Zeitbudgeterhebungen des Statistischen Bundesamts
(2008) Gwozdz, Wencke; Seel, Barbara
This study evaluates couples? time use behaviour with regard to housework in Germany with data from the 2001/02 and 1991/92 German Time Use Survey. Despite the fact that women did reduce their hours worked within the household context in the last decades, the unequal division of housework between men and women still persists. This study aims both at analyzing the determinants of the allocation of time spent on housework, as well as why gender differences in household time use behaviour exist. With the aid of structural equation modelling, it is shown that the decrease in time spent on housework by women can largely be explained by changes in the effects that wages, household goods consumption and the aspiration for market goods consumption have on time spent on housework. Men?s time allocation behaviour has remained remarkably constant. It is also observed that women?s time allocation behaviour with regard to household work is becoming more similar to that of men?s.
Sentiment and institutional investors
(2023) Klingler, Linda; Gehde-Trapp, Monika
Institutionelle Investoren, in dieser Arbeit vertreten durch US-Fondsmanager, sind ein wichtiger Teil des globalen Finanzsystems, und ihr Verhalten hat Auswirkungen auf das Vermögen der Fondsanleger. Außerdem sind sie anfällig für Verhaltensverzerrungen und Sentiment. In dieser Dissertation analysiere ich daher die Beziehung zwischen Sentiment und Fondsmanagern aus verschiedenen Blickwinkeln empirisch. Ein Schwerpunkt liegt auf demografischen Merkmalen der Fondsmanager und wie diese ihre Reaktion auf bestimmte Umstände beeinflussen. Diese Umstände bilden den zweiten Schwerpunkt dieser Arbeit: Das Sentiment. In zwei Kapiteln wird untersucht, wie Fondsmanager auf die Stimmung reagieren, die auf Marktebene durch den bekannten Volatilitätsindex VIX gemessen wird. Das letzte Kapitel wechselt die Perspektive und betrachtet die in Aktionärsbriefen ausgedrückte Stimmung auf der Ebene der einzelnen Fondsmanager und wie Fondsanleger auf diese Stimmung reagieren. Kapitel 2 befasst sich mit möglichen Unterschieden zwischen männlichen und weiblichen Fondsmanagern in ihren Reaktionen auf die Marktstimmung. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass weibliche Fondsmanager bei schlechter Stimmung weniger unsystematisches Risiko eingehen als ihre männlichen Kollegen. Außerdem führt das höhere unsystematische Risiko, das männliche Fondsmanager eingehen, nicht zu einer besseren Performance, sodass die Fondsanleger keinen Ausgleich für das höhere Risiko erhalten. In Kapitel 3 analysiere ich die Auswirkungen der Kultur auf das Verhalten von Fondsmanagern und konzentriere mich auf das Bedürfnis nach Sicherheit, das ein Fondsmanager an den Tag legt. Fondsmanager mit einem hohen Sicherheitsbedürfnis gehen weniger unsystematisches Risiko ein als Fondsmanager mit einem geringen Sicherheitsbedürfnis. Da bei der Analyse das Geschlecht und andere demografische Merkmale berücksichtigt werden, ist Kultur ein anderes Element der erhöhten Risikobereitschaft aufgrund schlechter Stimmung. Auch hier hat dieser Unterschied in der Reaktion keine Auswirkungen auf die Performance. Kapitel 4 ändert die Art und Weise wie Sentiment gemessen wird. Mein Mitautor und ich konzentrieren uns auf die (durch Negativität ausgedrückte) Stimmung in Aktionärsbriefen, die von männlichen und weiblichen Fondsmanagern verfasst wurden, und analysieren, wie die Fondsanleger darauf reagieren. Wir stellen fest, dass sich männliche und weibliche Fondsmanager in ihren Briefen unterscheiden und dass das Geschlecht eine wichtige Determinante der Negativität ist. Darüber hinaus bestrafen Fondsanleger weibliche Fondsmanager stärker für zunehmende Negativität, nicht aber ihren männlichen Kollegen. Bei weiblichen Fondsmanagern gehen die Mittelzuflüsse zurück, bei männlichen Fondsmanagern kann keine Reaktion der Fondsanleger beobachtet werden. Da der geschlechtsspezifische Tonfall keine signifikante Vorhersagekraft für die künftige Fondsperformance hat, ist eine geschlechtsspezifische Voreingenommenheit der Fondsanleger eine wahrscheinliche Erklärung für unsere Ergebnisse.
Small-scale irrigation and womens empowerment : lessons from an irrigation intervention in Northern Ghana
(2022) Basauri Bryan, Elizabeth; Zeller, Manfred
This dissertation uses a mixed-methods approach to explore issues related to women’s empowerment and small-scale irrigation from several different angles: conceptually, based on a literature review, qualitatively and quantitatively, based on a case study in Northern Ghana, and qualitatively, as part of a larger effort of development organizations to promote adaptation to climate change. The analysis relies on a conceptual framework that illustrates the linkages between small-scale irrigation and the domains of women’s empowerment as well as the broader opportunity structure shaping these relationships. It then uses qualitative and quantitative data from the case study area to identify what aspects of women’s empowerment are salient in this context and how the irrigation intervention influences outcomes for women. Finally, the dissertation draws lessons from a capacity needs assessment of development organizations to identify areas for strengthening the delivery of gender-sensitive programs. Thus, the main research questions addressed by this dissertation are: 1) What are the linkages between small-scale irrigation technologies/systems and dimensions of women’s empowerment? 2) What aspects of women’s empowerment emerge as the most salient in the context of Northern Ghana where small scale irrigation is practiced and modern technologies (motor pumps) are being introduced? 3) How does the introduction of small-scale irrigation technologies (specifically motor pumps) affect indicators of women’s empowerment? 4) What are the gender-related capacity needs of development organizations working to promote climate change adaptation (of which small-scale irrigation is an important practice)? The findings in this dissertation suggest that there are many factors to consider in the design and dissemination of small-scale irrigation technologies to ensure that these are equitably distributed and that both men and women have the opportunity to engage in and benefit from irrigation. These include gendered preferences for the type of irrigation technology or system, the underlying socio-political environment shaping the barriers that men and women face, and implementation approaches. Moving beyond simply reaching women (that is, counting their participation in program activities) to benefitting and empowering women (increasing their well-being outcomes and expanding their ability to make strategic life decisions) requires knowledge of the local context and dedicated attention toward ensuring that outcomes for women are achieved, even if this means expanding activities and opportunities outside of agriculture. Thus, greater efforts are also needed to build the capacity of implementing organizations to deliver gender-responsive programs. Creating platforms, like stakeholder consultation processes or dialogues, for setting goals and sharing information, approaches, and lessons learned is one way to build this capacity. Integrating gender-sensitive research tools into strategy development, project design, implementation, and monitoring and evaluation of implementing agencies would also support the development of more gender-responsive irrigation interventions and would contribute to fill remaining research gaps on the gendered implications of alternative agricultural technologies and practices. While this dissertation provides some evidence on the impacts of motor pumps for small-scale irrigation on women’s empowerment, this is only one of many types of irrigation technologies and approaches. More research is needed on the implications for women’s empowerment of alternative irrigation technologies, systems, and dissemination tactics, including group-based and service-based approaches.
Strategies to promote sustainable development: The gendered importance of addressing diminishing African Locust Bean (Parkia biglobosa) resources in northern Ghana’s agro-ecological landscape
(2022) Lelea, Margareta Amy; Konlan, Lydia Madintin; Ziblila, Rashida Chantima; Thiele, Lara Elena; Amo-Aidoo, Araba; Kaufmann, Brigitte
As the topic of gender and forests gains international attention through programs related to addressing the Sustainable Development Goals, we focus on a case study of the African Locust Bean (Parkia biglobosa) in the savannah landscape of northern Ghana. Although this tree holds high cultural significance for Dagomba women, it is unfortunately becoming scarcer in our study area near Tamale. We investigate the reasons for this decline in relation to the agricultural, ecological, and cultural landscape and discuss the gendered impacts of these changes. Research in these communities was conducted between 2018 and 2021 as part of a transdisciplinary action research approach to process underutilized species with women’s groups. The research started with a survey that included 27 women’s groups in 13 communities with 524 women participants. Out of a selected number of groups, our research team has worked more intensively with three women’s groups near Nyankpala, which selected for their processing focus the African Locust Bean, locally known as dawadawa. More than 45 group sessions were organized with seven groups in a collaborative learning process in 2019. Additionally, the three groups in Kpachi who chose to process the African Locust Bean sustained facilitation of group activities until the end of 2021. Specifically, on the topic of the decline of this tree, 19 semistructured interviews were conducted in August 2020 with 8 female farmers, 7 male farmers and 4 chiefs in the local governance system. Our results show the cultural significance of the African Locust Bean for women in the Dagomba culture as well as practical uses of all parts of the tree. Specifically, the seeds are used for making a fermented condiment and tea. Although seeds of the African Locust Bean are considered a women’s crop, their access to this tree is mediated by the local chiefs and often male land-users. Most farmers interviewed reported a reduction in trees in their fields. The reasons for the decrease can be summarized in six different categories, (1) aging tree populations, (2) challenge caring for saplings until maturity, (3) agricultural changes with increased mechanization and pesticide use, (4) over-use as a firewood resource, (5) usufruct rights between traditional chiefs, male land-owners, and women who should be granted access to the trees according to Dagomba cultural values, and (6) reduced water availability inhibits seed yield. In conclusion, there is an urgent need for action to protect and restore the African Locust Bean within northern Ghana’s savannah landscape to ensure continued access and benefits of the tree to women in the region.
The role of informal institutions in agricultural development : case studies from Kenya, Pakistan and Malawi
(2017) Aberman, Noora-Lisa; Birner, Regina
Why have so many countries lagged behind in terms of agricultural development, structural transformation and poverty alleviation? This thesis is based on the proposition that a lack of attention to institutions and governance is partly responsible for the limited success in meeting food security and development goals in many developing countries, in spite of significant investments in agricultural development. In particular, the interplay between formal and informal intuitions has not been thoroughly explored, in part because this interplay is not well captured in the quantitative analytical approaches that dominate the literature on agricultural development. Informal and non-market institutions play an important role especially in early phases of agricultural development. Therefore, a better understanding of informal institutions and their interaction with formal institutions is expected to provide valuable insights on how to facilitate agricultural development more effectively and to better use its potential to promote food security, and poverty reduction. Institutions can be defined as the socially constructed formal and informal rules that constrain human behaviour and provide the framework of incentives that shapes economic, social and political life. In the literature on agricultural development, institutional analysis typically builds on the theory of neoclassical economics and draws on its analytical tools, but it appears useful to explore theoretical approaches developed in other branches of the social sciences and to apply their methodological approaches to analyse the role of institutions in agricultural development. Qualitative methods are particularly promising to provide new insights into the role of institutions in agricultural development, in particular with regard to informal institutions. The main objective of this thesis is the development and application of novel methodological approaches to analysing the interplay of informal and formal institutions in agricultural development. The thesis is based on four case studies conducted in three developing countries: Malawi, Pakistan and Kenya. The case studies deal with three selected themes of institutional development in agriculture, where the interplay of formal and informal institutions is particular important. Two themes relate to specific sub-sectors of agriculture: institutions for managing irrigation systems and institutions that facilitate agricultural exports. The third theme is cross-cutting and addresses the question how gender equity can be promoted in institutions that matter for agricultural development. Considering that institutions are nested, the case studies cover different levels, including the household, farmer group, local government and national government level. Together the case studies provide insights on how institutional analysis—with an emphasis on social institutions, informal rules, perceptions, and norms—affect agricultural development initiatives. The case studies make use of methodological approaches that are relatively novel in the field of agricultural development studies and thus serve to broaden the toolkit of methods for institutional analysis. These methods include two versions of a participatory mapping tool called Net-Map and Process Net-Map. As a third approach, qualitative interviews with the inclusion of tactile power mapping exercises have been applied. As the case studies cover different levels, the data collection methods have been applied with a wide range of participants that had highly diverse social and educational backgrounds, ranging from national-level policy actors to farmers residing in remote areas. Epistemologically, these methods support a social constructionist research approach, wherein the informal and socially constructed aspects of agricultural policy and governance can be assessed. Four distinct case studies are presented here, from Kenya, Pakistan and Malawi. Taken together, the case studies show that in a developing country context, the informal rules (described as “rules-in-play”), which are based on social norms, often play a more significant role in guiding the behaviour of economic actors than the formal rules and regulations of the state. Thus, the consideration of social norms is critical when devising policy reform strategies, devolution processes, and addressing corruption. The studies identified the following factors, which should be considered when undertaking policy development or policy reform: a) the capacity of the government to enforce rules and laws; b) social norms that determine the extent to which rules-are followed; and c) the impact of additional rules that aim to promote compliance on transaction costs. The case studies also provide insights on the role of that informal institutions play with regard to gender, power and community groups. The findings indicate that gender norms are slowly changing even in the remote area of Kenya where the case studies were conducted, which is confirmed by other empirical work. The findings indicate that such change is very slow due to internal societal pressures against it. However, a better understanding of when and how informal institutions are changing provides entry points for action. The studies indicate that there is a potential for community groups to serve as a parallel institution to that of the home, governed by constitutions and by-laws, that do enable women to push the boundaries of community gender norms, although both are embedded in the same community. And although gendered participation in groups is mixed, there are drivers that can be supported to flourish by development partners and government.