Beyond the binary variable: feminist quantitative analyses of gendered inequalities

6 Sep 2021

All day

ONLINE

Description
Programme
Call for Papers

Description

Convenors

This conference is organised by the coordinators of FemQuant:

Jenny Chanfreau (UCL Social Research Institute)
Rose Cook (Policy Institute at King’s)
Youngcho Lee (Department of Sociology, University of Cambridge)
Sara Rose Taylor (Framework Convention Alliance for Tobacco Control)
Heini Väisänen (University of Southampton)

Speakers

Catherine D’Ignazio (MIT, Department of Urban Studies and Planning)
Lauren Klein (Emory University, Departments of English and Quantitative Methods)
Anna Lindqvist (Lund University, Department of Psychology)

Summary

The decades-old myth that quantitative research methods are ‘masculine’ and therefore antithetical to feminist goals has been debunked. However, still today the relationship between feminism and quantitative methods is rather distant, with many feminist researchers preferring qualitative methods and most quantitative research not being informed by feminist theories and methodologies. Bridging such disciplinary, epistemological, and methodological divides, we seek to bring together researchers committed to feminist research using quantitative methods to discuss and explore combinations of feminist theory/methods and quantitative methods.

In particular, much of current quantitative social science research tends to operationalise ‘gender’ as a binary variable with male and female representing fixed and oppositional classification. This often results in the failure to account for more complex gendered identities and processes, including the exclusion of the experiences of trans, non-binary, and other queer individuals. Building on an understanding of gender which is relational and intersectional, we would like to advance feminist quantitative research which goes beyond using gender as a binary variable. This would include recognition of gender identities beyond the male/female dichotomy as well as diverse and heterogeneous experiences within categories of gender.

This one-day online conference aims to provide an opportunity for participants to discuss and debate the possibilities of a feminist quantitative research, and to learn from each other’s successes and difficulties in integrating feminist theory with quantitative methods. Together, we hope to contribute to feminist quantitative methods and research which is not only interdisciplinary but furthermore committed to a more “ethical, collaborate, participatory, transformative, intersectional, accountable, accessible, and open” (Leung et al., 2019) production of knowledge.

Supported by:

@femquant

If you have specific accessibility needs for this event please get in touch. We will do our best to accommodate any requests.

Conference assistance: events@crassh.cam.ac.uk

Programme

All times are UK time zone (BST)
10.00 - 11.15	Welcome and Opening Keynote: Anna Lindqvist (Lund University) ‘What is gender, anyway: a review of the options for operationalising gender’ Chair: Jenny Chanfreau and Rose Cook
11.15 - 11.30	Break
	Session 1-A: Queering the census data collection 1. Kevin Guyan (University of Glasgow) ‘Pushing on closed doors: queer data, evidence and inaction’ 2. Kirstie English (University of Glasgow) ‘Data without assumption: the importance of trans representative census practices’ 3. Christina Pao (University of Oxford) ‘Queering the census: demographic considerations of adding (and changing) questions on gender and sexuality’ Discussant: Joe Strong Chair: Heini Väisänen Session 1-B: Beyond uni-dimensional measurement of gender 1. Zuzana Dancikova & Wendy Sigle (London School of Economics and Political Science) ‘Gendered context as a constraint on uptake of new Slovak leave policy for fathers’ 2. Irene Marta Brusini (London School of Economics – Bocconi University ‘Rethinking gender political representation in europe’ 3. Anne Laure Humbert (Oxford Brookes University) ‘Construction of a revised and improved set of gender indices on gender equality and women’s empowerment’ Discussant: Joseph Van Matre Chair: Jenny Chanfreau
12.45 - 13.45	Lunch break
13.45 - 15.00	Panel discussion: Catherine D’Ignazio (MIT) & Lauren Klein (Emory University), authors of Data Feminism (2020) Facilitated by Sara Rose Taylor
15.00 - 15.15	Break
15.15 - 16.30	Session 2 – A: Femininity/masculinity and gender identity 1. Lisa Wandschneider (Bielefeld University) ‘Exploring gendered practices by social position: the gender score applied to a German population sample’ 2. Lena Wangnerud (Department of Political Science, University of Gothenburg) ‘The subjective meaning of gender. How survey designs affect perceptions of femininity and masculinity’ 3. Elizabeth Yarrow (University of Cambridge) ‘Measuring gender diversity: the development and use of a new composite scale’ Discussant: Anne Laure Humbert Chair: Youngcho Lee Session 2 – B: Queer identities in surveys 1. Emma McKenna (University of Ottawa) ‘Real and imaginary gender in quantitative research on sex work’ 2. Joseph Van Matre (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam) ‘Gender expression and students’ lived experiences on college campuses’ 3. Nerilee Ceatha (University College Dublin) ‘Growing up in ireland highlights that youth in Ireland are questioning the idea of fixed, binary gender identities’ Discussant: Kevin Guyan Chair: Rose Cook
16.30 - 16.45	Break
16.45 - 18.00	Session 3-A: Intersectional quantitative research 1. Heather Shattuck-Heidorn (University of Southern Maine) ‘Beyond the binary: understanding gender/sex in COVID-19’ 2. Sabrina Saase (Technical University Braunschweig in Cooperation with Sigmund Freud University Berlin) ‘Intersectionality traveling into quantitative research or do we underestimate quantitative research?’ 3. Alexia Pretari, Sarah Barakat & Jaynie Vonk (Oxfam GB) ‘Intersectional feminist intent in research and evaluation? Sharing learning from quantitative impact evaluations’ Discussant: Zuzana Dančíková Chair: Youngcho Lee Session 3-B: Reflections on the research processes 1. Joe Strong (London School of Economics and Political Science) ‘Capturing relationality: a novel approach to understanding masculinities and sexual and reproductive health’ 2. Laura Sheppard (UCL) ‘Gendering the research pipeline’ 3. Alexis Henshaw (Troy University) ‘Gendered security and the technologies of data: where we are and where we could be going’ Discussant: Lena Wangnerud Chair: Sara Rose Taylor

Call for Papers

We welcome any researcher whose work involves feminist quantitative analysis and/or methodological reflections on the conceptualisation and operationalisation of gender beyond the binary variable to submit a 250-word abstract. This could include, but is not limited to works that recognise and conceptualise:

multiple, multidimensional and fluid gender identities;
diverse, heterogeneous, and intersectional experiences within categories of gender;
gender as a social structure operating on the micro, meso, and/or macro levels.

Those whose abstract is included in the conference programme will be asked to give a 15-minute presentation at the conference. They will also be asked to submit an extended abstract of around 2000 words before the conference. These will be shared with a session discussant who will engage with the presentation overall.