by Arturo C. Boquiren
1.
Gender-Sensitivity
1.1.
Gender-sensitivity
in research means that research must recognize the subordinate role of women in
societies, communities, and families. Centuries of subjugation by both class
and male oppressors also affected women values and attitudes such that there is
also a tendency for women to perform only a minor role in community
development. In many cases, women even have to express the views of the men
(e.g., their husbands) or that women do not express their views at all but ask
the researchers to ask their men. Sometimes, the response is from the women but
the response is merely an echo of the men’s perspective.
1.2.
Thus,
in surveys, group discussions, questionnaire administration, and other data
gathering techniques, what can be represented are only the views of the men
rather than of the whole population. Because of this, identification of
community priorities, problems, and needs will be inaccurate. Research or data
may not be reliable.
1.3.
Gender-sensitive
research methods, therefore, means that design of data gathering strategies and
analysis must recognize gender oppression or dominance in societies and take
this into account in developing research methodologies and techniques.
2.
Empowering Women
2.1. To empower communities, progressive research
methods must also empower women that compose roughly half of the community.
This imply that in addition to the use of methods that would maximize people’s
participation or make the community take “a” or “the” leading role in research
for their development, research must also maximize the participation of women
in research problem formulation, strategy determination, data gathering, and
analysis.
2.2.
Indicators of women empowerment include the % of women in the leading
positions of the organization as well as in the existence of functioning and active
women’s groups or organizations in the community.
3.
Gender Fair
3.1. The primary objective of gender sensitivity in
research is to make sure that women’s perspectives and women’s concerns are
factored in research problem identification, methodology, and data analysis.
3.2. Meanwhile, women
empowerment must be advanced to advance a gender fair order free from internal
and external oppression. Thus, research contributes to the advancement of a
world free from gender and other forms of oppression as it contributes to the
advancement of knowledge.
Prof. Art Boquiren February 2004