Masculinities can change! : perceptions on projects and initiatives in Nicaragua which involve men in order to achieve gender equality

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U n i v e r s i t e i t v a n A m s t e r d a m

Nienke Krens

10712496

MSc thesis IDS

First supervisor: Annelou Ypeij

Second supervisor: Jacobijn Olthoff

26-01-2015

Wordcount: 30,488

2014

Masculinities can change!

Perceptions on projects and initiatives in

Nicaragua which involve men in order to

achieve gender equality

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Acknowledgements

There are several people who I would like to thank for their help and support during the process of research and thesis writing. First of all, I want to warmly thank Annelou Ypeij, my thesis supervisor in Holland who has done an excellent job in guiding me through the process of writing my thesis. I also want to thank Douglas Mendoza, my local supervisor in Nicaragua who made this research possible by bringing me in contact with the local NGO’s I worked with in Nicaragua along with introducing me to many respondents in the field. I am very grateful to the people working for local NGO’s Samaritanas and Movimiento Comunal, who welcomed me into their organization from the start, made it possible for me to witness the projects with men and brought me in contact with the participating fathers and their family members. I want to thank all my respondents in the field for participating in this research project and for their honesty and trust, without which I would not have been able to write this thesis. Last but not least, I want to thank my boyfriend Carlo, who greatly supported me throughout the whole research and thesis writing process.

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Abstract

In development, the interpretation of gender as a ‘women’s domain’ causes many interventions aimed at achieving gender equality to have a central focus on women’s issues concerning choices and agency while men and masculinities are excluded. Instead of

providing more gender equality, this exclusion of men from gender equality interventions can generate or even intensify divisions between men and women. This thesis analyzes

perceptions on the ‘Voz sos mi Papa’ campaign in Nicaragua, a localized international intervention which focuses on fatherhood and the active involvement of men in childcare in order to achieve gender equality. A closer examination of this campaign shows that the inclusion of men has a positive effect on the creation of alternative masculinities which support gender equality. Most of the men who participated in the Voz sos mi Papa campaign spent more time with their children, showed more affection toward them, disciplined them in another way and took more responsibilities in the household. These results support the

theoretical approach that active male participation in child rearing enhances gender equitative behavior, like being less aggressive, less domineering, more empathetic and more open to equitable divisions of child care and household labour. There were only two negative remarks about the campaign from both practitioners and participants. First, there is no follow up program due to a lack of finance, causing the positive transformation of participants to stop or slow down. Second, the men’s partners could be involved more in the program so that both parents can support each other in the creation of a gender-equitative environment. These results lead to the recommendation for the international community to support and do more research on interventions that involve both men and women in order to achieve gender equality.

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Acronyms

Acronym Term

REDMAS Red de Masculinidad- Spanish for masculinity network

MCN Movimiento Comunal- Spanish for communal movement

SNUN Sistema de Naciones Unidas en Nicaragua-Spanish for

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1. Introduction

In the year 2012, I did an internship with ‘Educar es Fiesta, a local NGO in Cochabamba, Bolivia which aims to contribute to the positive personal development of women, children and adolescents through art, music and theatre. During this internship, the activity that has stayed with me most was participating in a women’s empowerment group in ‘San Francisco’, Ushpa Ushpa, a deprived neighborhood on the outskirts of Cochabamba. As in most of Bolivia and South America, men in this neighborhood enjoyed a dominant position over women. Within the home, men were considered the head of the household because of their expected breadwinning task in the family while women’s expected tasks were to look after the household and take care of the children. In practice, however, most men spent their wages on alcohol, which forced women to work in the informal economy additional to their domestic responsibilities. Even though this often made women both the primary caregivers and the primary breadwinners of the family, they suffered a marginal position with little authority in both their homes and in society. Women were not allowed to speak in neighborhood meetings when their husbands were present, and the neighborhood board consisted mostly of men. In the domestic sphere, women often fell victim to physical abuse, sexual abuse and abandonment by their husbands, and sexual abuse of young girls by their teachers or other men in society also happened frequently.

In an attempt to improve women’s marginalized position and quality of life, the women’s empowerment group in San Francisco organized different workshops for women in the neighborhood in order to ‘empower’ them to change their situation. During these

workshops, women received education about practical skills (like reading, writing, using the computer, and social organization skills) and held awareness raising discussions about women’s rights and sexuality. Even though most participating women visibly got more agency through these workshops, real changes in their situations at home and in society remained small. In my opinion, this was largely due to the fact that men were not included in these projects, which withheld them from reflecting, learning about and understanding different perceptions and ideas about gender behavior that the women were learning about. Men therefore continued to think about gender tasks in the same way they had before, which limited possibilities to achieve changes towards more gender equality in the family.

The realization that the exclusion of men in gender interventions limited possibilities for achieving gender equality led me to question why most gender-based interventions focus only on women. Cornwall (2000: 7-9) notes that in development, gender is often interpreted as a women’s domain, which causes gender related projects and education to have a central focus on ‘women’s issues concerning choices and agency. Men are generally seen as the cause of women’s underdevelopment, and are therefore often excluded from interventions aimed at achieving gender equality (Cleaver 2002: 1). Although projects using this discourse are well-intentioned initiatives to decrease gender inequality problems, the outcomes are often limited due to the fact that they are based on a problem solving approach to a particular gender model which extracts gender inequality problems from its broader social context (Cox

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7 1997, pg 85-86)1. This abstraction from social reality allows ‘men’ and ‘women’ to be treated as static, homogenous identities, in which particular aspects of gender inequality are

highlighted while lived gender realities, such as differences between women and connections between men and women, are ignored. Abstracted from the local and contextual reality, men thus become portrayed as the oppressors while women are portrayed as the victims, creating a dichotomization between ‘men’ and ‘women’ which can lead to a conservation, generation or intensification of gender inequality problems (Cornwall 2000: 9-10). Because gender equality interventions aim to decrease instead of increase gender inequality problems, it is therefore important to look at alternative ways to reduce gender inequality problems.

An alternative way to address gender inequality focusses on the social construction of gender and uses a critical theory approach in order to find the roots of gender inequality problems. Rather than treating men and women as fixed homogenous identities, this approach understands gender as a temporary social construct created by the broader political, economic, social and historical contextual reality (Butler 1998, Cornwall 2000, Odame 2002, Forrest 2002). When gender is understood as a social construction, this implies that gender inequality problems such as violence cannot be seen as an intrinsic characteristic of male identity, but rather as a social temporality which can be changed. Over the last 25 years, this approach has been used in some initiatives and interventions that focus on men in order to create alternative gender relations and masculinities based on gender equality (Kimmel, Hean & Connell 2004: 3, Swain 2005: 225). One of these interventions is the ‘Voz sos mi Papa’ campaign in

Nicaragua, a localized international intervention which focuses on fatherhood and the active involvement of men in childcare in order to enhance gender equality in Nicaraguan families. Because working with men to achieve gender equality is still a relatively new approach in the development sector and because many international organizations still focus their

development projects on women, I decided to investigate the perceptions of participating men and facilitators on the relationship of this campaign with notions of fatherhood and other aspects of gender relations in Nicaragua. This investigation aims to bring more insight into the importance of including men in gender equality interventions.

This thesis consists of several chapters. Chapter two contains the theoretical

framework in which all theories needed to understand the background of the research project are explained. In chapter three, the research design is presented which involves the main research question and sub questions along with an explanation of the methodology and techniques of research. In chapter four I will discuss my research context in Nicaragua and I will elaborate on REDMAS2 and the ‘Voz sos mi Papa’ campaign. Chapter five presents the data and results needed to answer the first sub-question, which aims investigate what notions of fatherhood and gender relations existed among respondents before and after their

participation in campaign ‘Voz sos mi Papa’. In chapter six, I will explain how the ‘Voz sos mi Papa’ campaign had influence on the changes in fatherhood notions and gender relations of many fathers who participated in the campaign. A summary of the most important results and conclusions is provided in chapter seven.

1_{This is further explained in the theoretical framework} 2

REDMAS is a coordinating body in Nicaragua which brings together 22 local NGO’s who work on gender and masculinities with men of different ages and social conditions in order to address gender inequality problems. This will be further explained in section 4.3

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2. Theoretical Framework

In this chapter, the theories will be presented that are important to understand the background and content of the research project. In section 2.1 I will explain the theory behind the need to involve both women and men in gender related interventions instead of women alone. In section 2.2 I will define and analyze the concept masculinity and explain problems with contemporary masculinity. Section 2.3 will discuss the relation of alternative

masculinities and fatherhood with gender equality.

2.1 Why do men need to be involved?

2.1.1 Gender models

In development, gender is often interpreted as a women’s domain in which the central focus lies on ‘women’s issues concerning choices and agency (Cornwall 2000: 7-9). This understanding of gender was initiated in development studies in the early 1970’s by the WID, or “women in development” approach, which, as its name suggests, only focused on women (Vermeulen 2011: 37). In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, this approach was criticized by the GAD (Gender and development) approach with the argument that a focus on women alone would not reduce gender inequalities (Vermeulen 2011: 41). The GAD approach suggested instead that the focus should lie both on women and men in development (Cornwall 2000: 18). However, the focus of GAD on socially and historically constructed relations between men and women still did not address or analyze male identities in the same way as women’s identities were addressed (Cornwall 2000: 18). Gender was thus still addressed as a women’s domain in the GAD approach.

Today gender equality interventions in development often use the same woman-centric gender model as the WID and GAD approaches. In this model, gender is treated as a separate, static and homogenous identity of ‘men’ or ‘women’ which causes men to be seen as

oppressors and obstacles to development while women are depicted as the victims:

“operational frameworks tend to treat ‘women’ and ‘men’ as if they constituted immediately

identifiable groups by virtue of their sex alone. ‘Women’ are often represented as if their relationships with men consisted of competing claims and conflicting interests, in which they are invariably the weaker party. ‘Men’ become powerful, shadowy figures who need somehow to be countered (Cornwall 2002: 9)”. By defining gender as an identity, gender inequality

problems become seen as an intrinsic characteristic of men themselves which allows ‘men in general’ to be framed as the problem.

In contrast to the women-centric gender model described above, scholars like Connell, Chant and Butler define gender not as a fixed identity but rather as a social temporality which is constructed by the broader context in which people are situated (Chant 1998: 9, Connell 2009: 94, Butler 1998: 519). This argument is supported by Cornwall (1997: 10), who

explains that all men and women have many identities which constantly shift according to the context they are in. “consider, for example, the contrast between the different masculinities

and femininities in the subject positions of power-dressed career women, loving mother, or devoted wife, or between doting father, beer drinking lad, and dutiful son (Cornwall 1997:

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10)”. When gender is understood as a social temporality which is constructed by the broader

social context, this implies that gender inequality problems such as violence can no longer be seen as an intrinsic characteristic of male identity: “A man is a man, he only becomes a

worker, a husband, a soldier, a playboy, a prostitute or a human mechanical producer in certain relations. Torn from these relations, he is no more the oppressor of women or other men than gold is in itself money (Forrest 2002: 88-89). This second gender model thus states

that gender is a domain of both women and men, which can only be understood in consideration of the political, economic, historical and social context.

2.1.2 Linking gender models to gender approaches

Depending on which of the two gender models above is used in development, gender-equality interventions adopt either a problem solving- or a critical theory approach to

development. The problem solving approach can be defined as an approach which addresses a certain problem by abstracting it from its broader social and contextual relations (Cox 1997, 85-87). Novelli and Lopez Cardozo (2008: 481) explain that “this approach is often linked to

the needs of policy makers and practitioners who face particular problems and seek workable solutions”. This implies that frameworks and interventions based on a problem solving

approach are often created by the understandings and interests of the international community while the voices and interests of local and national stakeholders are ignored (Novelli & Lopez-Cardozo 2008: 482). According to this definition of a problem solving approach, it can be argued that the women-centric gender model described above is rooted in a problem solving approach: by treating ‘men’ and ‘women’ as static, homogenous identities, particular aspects of gender inequality are highlighted while other aspects of gendered reality, such as differences between men and connections between men and women, are ignored (Cornwall 2000:10). Abstracted from the local and contextual reality allows men to be portrayed as the oppressors while women are portrayed as the victims (Cornwall 2000: 9-10).

In contrast to the problem solving approach described above, the critical theory approach addresses problems as a component of a broader, interrelated social and contextual reality (Cox 1997: 85). The understanding of a problem within the broader contextual reality exposes the roots of the problem, which can then be addressed in order to create a new social reality: “Critical theory sees ‘parts’ as connected to ‘larger wholes’, which necessitates

problematizing the roots of emerging problems and relocating any issues within broader frameworks of understanding. In this sense, critical theory has less of a system maintenance bias, and allows for the possibility of imagining alternatives to the status quo (Novelli & Lopes- Cardozo 2008: 481-482)”. It can be argued that the second gender model described

above, which defines gender as a social temporality constructed by the broader context, is rooted in a critical theory approach. Instead of treating gender as fixed homogenous identities, this model states that the multiple gender identities of women and men can only be

understood within their political, economic, social and historical contextual reality (Butler 1998, Cornwall 2000, Odame 2002, Forrest 2002). According to this approach, gender inequality problems such as domestic violence cannot be seen as an intrinsic characteristic of male identities, but rather as products created by an interrelation of social relations and the political, economic and social context.

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2.1.3 Problematizing a problem-solving approach to gender

Scholars with a more critical approach towards gender often criticize problem solving approaches to gender in development. As has been explained above, the women-centric problem solving approach to gender identifies ‘men’ and ‘women’ as fixed homogenous identities, causing ‘men in general’ to be seen as the producers of women’s victimization. Cornwall (2000: 20) argues that one of the problems of this definition of gender is that it does not describe lived gender realities. In reality, ‘men’ and ‘women’ are not homogenous groups but rather a mix of heterogeneous individuals who all have different interests and identities (Cornwall 2000: 20-23). Apart from not addressing differences between women or men, the women-centric problem solving approach also ignores non-heterosexual and non-oppressive relations between and in between men and women, such as relationships between brothers and sisters, mothers and sons and between female bosses and male employees (Cornwall 2000: 20). A problem solving approach to gender only highlights aspects of gendered disprivilige, creating a dichotomization between ‘men’ and ‘women’ which leads to the exclusion of men from gender interventions.

Instead of providing more gender equality, the exclusion of men from gender equality interventions can generate or even intensify divisions between men and women. This can be linked to segregated education in refugee camps and religious education, where different ethnic and religious groups often have their own schools. While separate education can be positive in some cases, Davies argues that segregated religious and cultural education can also foster segregation, as isolation often reinforces stereotypes and differences, promoting

misunderstanding, extremism and bitterness (Davies 2011: 87). This argument can also be made in a gender context: when men are excluded from gender-related projects, this could foster segregation between men and women.

Lopez & Cardozo argue that the biggest danger of using a problem solving approach in the field of gender interventions is that by not linking the problem to its contextual reality, the root causes of the problem are not addressed, which prohibits the possibilities to change the problematic situation in the long run and might even intensify the problems (Novelli & Lopez-Cardozo 2008: 482). This theory can also be applied to a women-centric gender approach: by treating gender as a static, homogenous identity of men and women, gender inequality problems often become seen as an intrinsic characteristic of men themselves. This causes men to be excluded from gender interventions which often leads to an intensification of gender inequality problems. Because in reality, gender is not a static identity but a socially constructed temporality, I believe that a critical theory approach, which addresses the roots of the problems by analyzing them in their broader social and contextual relations, is a better basis for a gender equality intervention. This means that in order to achieve gender equality, men and masculinities must also be involved in development. This will be further explained in section 2.2 and 2.3 below.

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2.2 Men & Masculinities

2.2.1 What is Masculinity?

Even though WID and GAD approaches defined gender as a women’s domain, men and masculinity have always played an important role in feminist theories. Throughout the 20th century, radical feminist theories saw masculinity as an intrinsic characteristic of men which was oppressive and limiting to women and other men and therefore had to be

combatted (Kimmel, Hean & Connell 2004: 5, Gardiner 2005: 40). In opposition to radical feminists, cultural feminists understood masculinity as something which was created by the social context, such as the way in which a child was brought up by his or her parents

(Gardiner 2005: 41). Rather than labeling masculinity as bad and femininity as good, cultural feminists saw masculinity and femininity as being complementary to each other and believed each to have both good and bad characteristics. Feminists of color and Marxist feminists took this a step further and looked beyond the binaries of masculine and feminine by looking at larger structures and hierarchies in society - like social class, ethnicity, nationality and sexuality - to explain inequalities between men and women (Gardiner 2005: 44).

The definitions and interpretations presented above are only a few of the many different approaches to masculinity (Kimmel, Hean & Connell 2004: 3-4). In this thesis I chose to use Connell’s definition of masculinity because it builds forth on the definition of gender as a social temporality which is constructed by the broader context in which people are situated. “Rather than attempting to define masculinity as an object (a natural character type,

a behavioral average, a norm), we need to focus on the processes and relationships through which men and women conduct gendered lives. ‘Masculinity’, to the extent the term can be briefly defined at all, is simultaneously a place in gender relations, the practices through which men and women engage that place in gender, and the effects of these practices in bodily experiences, personality and culture (Connell 1995: 68). As is the case with gender,

which is not a fixed identity but rather as a socially constructed temporality, masculinity is created through an interplay between gender, race, class and the broader contextual reality (Connell 1995: 77, Kimmel, Hean & Connell 2004: 3). This implies that in all places on earth, there are many kinds of masculinities which have relations with each other and are constantly subject to change (Connell 1995: 76).

Within the different types of masculinities, there is usually one dominant, or

hegemonic form of masculinity, which is culturally considered to be superior to all others and shows how to be a ‘real man’ in society ( Connell 1995: 77, Swain 2005: 220). Connell defines hegemonic masculinity as the configuration of gender practice which embodies the

currently accepted answer to the problem of the legitimacy of patriarchy, which guarantees (or is taken to guarantee) the dominant position of men and the subordination of women (Connell 1995:77). Because of the fact that hegemonic masculinity is culturally considered to

be superior to the rest, many men feel pressured to meet its characteristics (Swain 2005: 200). Because not all boys have the qualifications needed to belong to this highest rang, however, many boys construct different forms of masculinities which try to meet the demands of the hegemonic form as much as possible. This does not mean that all men want to conform to the hegemonic type, however, which allows other, ‘softer’ masculinities to exist alongside the hegemonic form and its following types. All these different masculinities form a hierarchy on

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12 the basis of a contrast with femininity, in which men at the bottom of the pyramid are seen as similar to women while men at the top of the pyramid are seen as polar opposites of women (Swain 2005: 221). The characteristics of and problems with contemporary hegemonic masculinity today are discussed in the next section.

2.2.2 Problems with contemporary hegemonic masculinity

As has been explained above, Connell defines hegemonic masculinity as ‘the

configuration of gender practice…which guarantees (or is taken to guarantee) the dominant position of men and the subordination of women (Connell 1995:77)’. Even though just a small

amount of men belong to this dominant position, most men profit from the patriarchal dividend, or the advantage men in general gain from the overall subordination of women (Conell 1995: 79). Today patriarchy, or the overall subordination of women and dominance of

men (Connel 1995: 74), exists in many parts of the world. Its power derives from the idea

that men and women are polar opposites, partially due to the different tasks they often have in society: Men, oriented to the public sphere, are understood to be active, strong, independent,

powerful, dominant, aggressive, with masculinity signifying ‘being in control’, women, associated with the private sphere, are seen as passive, weak, dependent, powerless, subordinate and nurturing (Adams & Coltrane 2005: 232).

An important aspect of hegemonic masculinity today is to not be feminine, which allows inequality and oppression to coexist (Adams & Coltrane 2005: 233). Relying on the idea of separate spheres and stereotype gender identities, families raise male and female children in different ways. Fathers for example are inclined to stimulate more physical activity in their boys while encouraging more verbal activities and nurturance in their girls. Specific gender behavior is also enforced through toys and different behavior expectations for girls and boys: while girls are taught to express their emotions and pay attention to other people’s feelings, boys are discouraged to show their emotions by being taught not to cry and not to express their feelings. As children grow up, the teachings from their parents and gendered messages in the broader society cause them to see and replicate a world in which men and women are opposites and in which heterosexual hegemonic masculinities have more privileges than women and subordinate masculinities (Adams & Coltrane 2005: 234-235, Matta & Knudson-Martinez 2006: 20).

The polar differentiation between men and women causes problems for both sexes. More than mothers, fathers often want to make sure that their sons do not become gay. This often leads to the behavior of mocking and denigrating women and homosexual men in order to maintain gender boundaries (Connell 1995). By linking the expression of emotions to femininity, men could also be more inclined to use violence instead of talk about their problems. Also, the relation of the domestic sphere and family with femininity and the definition of masculinity as ´not feminine´ drives men away from family relations, causing fathers to be less emotionally related to their children and to expect their families to ´serve´ them3 (Adams & Coltrane 2005: 237-239). This creates inequalities between men and women in the household, which often leads to domestic violence.

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13 Gender hierarchies and the dominance of men have also been institutionalized in broader society in many parts of the world, which has various negative consequences for both women and men. In male dominant societies, females tend to have less public authority and participate less in community decisions (Coltrane 1988: 1088) Worldwide, salaries of men are higher than women’s salaries, even when they do the same type and amount of work as men, creating inequalities between men and women on the basis of their sex alone. In the home, gender inequality is expressed in domestic violence and less opportunities for women (Engle 1997:35). The violence that members of the hegemonic group often use in order to stay in power has become a way of claiming masculinity which victimizes both women and men around the world (Connell 1996: 82). Suggestions as to how these problems could be dealt with are discussed in section 2.3 below.

2.3 Creating gender equality through alternative masculinities and fatherhood

2.3.1 Alternative masculinities and gender equality

As we have seen in the sections above, gender is not a static identity but rather a socially constructed temporal reality created through an interplay between gender, race, class and the broader contextual reality (Connell 1996: 77, Kimmel, Hean & Connell 2004: 3). The fact that gender relations and masculinity are socially constructed implies that they can also be changed: as behavior is learnt, it can also be unlearnt and relearnt (Cornwall 1997: 12). In fact, gender relations and masculinities have always been subject to change. Imperial conquest, neocolonialism and trade for example brought gender orders from different communities and countries in contact with each other, which created new gender divisions and gender orders world round (Connell 2005: 73). Gender relations also change from within, as the dominant group wants to stay in power while the subordinate groups want change. This is exactly what happened in the 1970’s, as women initiated a global movement for the

emancipation of women and gender equality.

In my thesis, I use Kandirikirira’s definition of gender equality: Gender equality is not

a struggle of women against men, or young people against adults, but rather a question of everyone taking responsibility for deconstructing domination and building equal relations (Kandirikirira 2002: 127). With equal relations, I refer to a relation between people (both

men and women) in which no one has rights over the other and in which everyone has the right to live free from poverty and oppression (Cleaver 2002: 2, Connell 1996: 127). Even though the broad arrange of social circumstances which have an influence on gender limits possible interventions to achieve gender equality and makes it difficult to control outcomes, the social construction of gender provides opportunities to create alternative gender relations and masculinities based on gender equality (Kimmel, Hean & Connell 2004: 3, Swain 2005: 225). One theory amongst many is that these alternative masculinities can be created through the active involvement of fathers in childcare, which will be explained further in section 2.3.2 below. The operationalization of gender relations in my research is based on this theory, and can be found in section 3.3 of the research design.

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2.3.2 The relation of fatherhood notions with gender relations

In many families around the world, the relation of the domestic sphere with femininity and the definition of masculinity as ´not feminine´ drives men away from family relations, causing fathers to be less emotionally related to their children and to expect their families to ´serve´ them4 (Adams & Coltrane 2005: 237-239). In the 1960’s, Feminism was initiated as a movement which pleaded for a change in these family relations. As women started to work in the public sector alongside men, they had much less time for the domestic tasks and needed their husbands to become more involved with the family (Adams & Coltrane 2005: 241). The absence of an involved father meant that women had less time and opportunities to work in the public sphere, which continued to make them dependent on the salaries of their husbands. According to Matta & Knudson-Martin (2006) the absence of an involved father due to his breadwinning role also causes him to be less aware of the needs of women and children and limits the influence of his wife in the family. Research from a variety of scholars on

fatherhood shows that active paternity, or fatherhood in which the fathers is actively involved in childcare, has a positive influence on gender equality. These influences will be discussed in the paragraphs below.

Active paternity can prevent violence, child abuse and gender violence

One of the most important socialization agents of gender is the family. Relying on the idea of separate spheres and stereotype gender identities, families raise male and female children in different ways (Adams & Coltrane 2005: 233-235). In the family children also learn gendered behavior by identifying with their mother and father as male and female role models (Gardiner 2005: 42). As children grow up, these teachings and examples from their parents allow them to see and replicate a world in which men and women are polar opposites and perform different tasks (Adams & Coltrane 2005: 234-235, Matta & Knudson-Marticez 2006: 20). In many families in Nicaragua, young boys do not have to help with domestic chores while girls are expected to help their mothers with her tasks. Many of these boys also have a father who does not have any domestic chores and is ‘served’ by the women. When growing up with these examples, it is not surprising that these boys often replicate the same behavior in their own families when they grow up (Adams & Coltrane 2005: 241).

Men often replicate the behavior they have learned from their own families and role models during their childhood and adolescence. Various studies for example state that men who experienced or who were victims of violence are more likely to be violent against women (Buka et al 2001, Contreras 2012, Carlson 1990 in REDMAS et al 2013: 16). According to Coltrane (1988), fathers who are involved in childcare behave more like traditional mothers than traditional fathers while interacting with their child. These fathers tend to verbally

interact with their children and treat their sons and daughters more equally. In an investigation on approaches of men and women to masculinity, Barker et al (2011) suggest that children who have a positive role model in their homes are more likely to have ‘gender equitable attitudes’ and are less likely to use violence against their partners. This is supported by Adams and Coltrane (2005: 235), who show that when men take care of and have close relationships with their children, these children turned teenagers and young adults will perform less

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15 stereotype gender behavior. In this light, active paternity could reduce gender violence in their children.

Active paternity can increase the social status of women

Coltrane’s study based on a representative cross-cultural sample of ninety

nonindustrial societies shows that the involvement of the father in routine childcare increases the social status of women: paternal proximity, affection and responsibility for routine child

care were positively associated with female involvement in community decision making, greater positions of authority for women and female origin symbolism (Coltrane 1988: 1060).

He also found that many societies with high paternal involvement were characterized by similar gender roles between men and women, more female participants in community

decision making and public discussion and allow women to have authority. Societies with less paternal involvement showed more exclusion of women from public activities (Coltrane 1988: 1073, 1085, 1088). The fact that female public participation in these societies was specifically influenced by the father involved in childcare and not by other caregivers shows that the sex of the person who takes care of the children is important to the public status of women (Coltrane 1988: 1088).

According to Coltrane the sharing of child care activities between men and women probably causes men and women to work together in other activities as well, such as working in the public sphere. This might increase the opportunity for women to have more public authority. In this approach, gender equality could be approached when the attention no longer lies on differences between women and men, but on the ways they can share activities in order to help each other.

Active paternity during pregnancy supports the wellbeing of both mother and child.

Various studies show that active participation of the father or male caretaker during the prenatal processes is very important for the health and wellbeing of both the mother and child. Research by Fisher et al. (2006) shows that mothers who are supported and

accompanied by their partners during pregnancy and health care visits experience less pregnancy related stress than women who are not accompanied by their partner. Various studies show that women who are accompanied by their partners while giving birth tend to have a more positive experience of labor than women who are not (REDMAS et al 2013: 17). This is supported by a younger study by Tarkka (2000 in REDMAS et al 2013: 17), which shows that women who are accompanied by their partner during child labor often experience a less painful and shorter delivery. A study by Barclay & Lupton (1999) shows that fathers who are involved in taking care of the baby are more likely to develop an emotional bond with their child (Barclay & Lupton 1999). This early involvement of the father also greatly reduces the probability of the child to be sexually abused (Pruett 1993). These studies show that the active participation of the father or male caretaker during prenatal processes is important for the health and wellbeing of both the mother and child.

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Active paternity increases the wellbeing of all family members

Various studies show that men who take care of their children are changed physically and emotionally by this experience (Matta & Knudson-Martinez 2006: 19-23, Coltrane 1988). Through both qualitative and quantitative studies Barker et al. (2011) show that men who are involved in childcare report being happier with their lives and take more care of their own health (Barker et al. 2011). Involved fathers also have a higher chance to live longer, get sick less, consume less drugs and alcohol, have less stress, have less accidents and participate more in the community (Allen & Daly 2007, Ravanefra 2008).

Children also benefit from having an involved father. In a review of 16 studies (22.300 cases and 24 publications), Sarkadi et al. (2008) found that children with an involved father tend to have less behavior problems, less conflicts with the law, less economic vulnerability in later periods of their lives, better cognitive development and school performance and lower levels of stress when they are adults. Children with actively involved fathers also tend to develop better physically and mentally, have more motivation to go to school, develop better social and behavioral skills, have a higher tolerance level to stress and have a higher self-esteem (Allen & Daly 2007, Barker 2003, Nock & Einolf 2008). Adolescents who had

involved fathers during their childhood tend to have better mental health, are less likely to use drugs, have less problems with the law and take less risks in sexual and reproductive health (Allen & Daly 2007, Nock & Einolf 2008). From the perspective of children’s rights, fathers can be valuable allies in support of the rights of their children by preventing physical

punishment and assuring access to good education and medical attention. Children with actively involved fathers also have more chances to spend time with both their parents in case of a divorce (REDMAS et al 2013: 20).

Apart from the children and the fathers themselves, involved paternity also has a positive impact on the wellbeing of the mother or partner of the fathers. Partners of involved fathers are less overloaded with domestic and childcare work, have better mental and physical health and report being happier with their relationship (Allen & Daly 2007, Barker 2003).

The examples from the different studies above show that the involvement of fathers or male caregivers in childcare can make the relations between men and women in the family more equal. Even though both men and women profit from involved paternity, many fathers do not take part in childcare because gender models and male power in society and in the family limit their awareness and eagerness to change their parental roles (Matta & Knudson-Martin 2006: 32-34). Caring for others is often not seen as a characteristic of the male gender model, which makes it difficult for fathers to change. There are ways to make this change possible and easier, however, which will be discussed in the next section.

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2.3.3 Creating alternative masculinities in practice.

Before a problem can be tackled, it must first be recognized and understood as a problem. In a world where contemporary hegemonic masculinity is institutionalized in both family relations and the society as a whole, many young boys and men do not come in contact with alternative gender models and masculinities. Without consciousness about these other gender models and about the risks and problems of contemporary hegemonic masculinity for both women and men, it is unlikely that these men will construct alternative masculinities. Such consciousness can be achieved through education. This can be linked to Freires theory of ‘Conscientizao’, which argues that people can change their social realities through

education that facilitates critical thinking and consciousness (Goulet in Freire 1973: ix). Paolo Freire, a famous Brazilian educator and writer, developed his theory at a time in Brazil when the elite class owned most of the resources and had all the power while the oppressed lower classes were powerlessness and had few belongings (Beder 1996: 73). Freire believed that this inequality could only be tackled through a conscientization process in which the oppressed would come to understand the sociocultural forces and processes that produce and sustain oppression (Beder 1996: 73). This understanding would empower the oppressed to

collectively rise against the unequal structures and change their reality. Conscientization is achieved through a process called ‘popular education’, a method in which the learning process is based on a dialogue between the personal experiences, lived realities and knowledge of the participants and the facilitators. Through critical reflection on their own and each other’s realities, participants become aware of how their personal problems and experiences are connected to larger structures and problems in the broader society, allowing them to address the roots of the problem and change their social realities. In essence, Conscientizao can be seen as a critical theory approach, because it also addresses problems as a component of a broader, interrelated social and contextual reality and exposes the roots of the problem, which can then be addressed in order to create a new social reality.

In the case of fatherhood, stereotypic constructions of gender models based on polar differences between men and women discourage many men from taking part in childcare and other domestic tasks. Because there are no schools in which men learn how to be fathers and what the benefits and possibilities of involved fatherhood are, many men replicate the gender models that they have seen in their own families and in broader society, thereby

unintentionally replicating gender inequality (Matta & Knudson-Martin 2006: 35). Popular education can help to make the unequal patterns and problems visible, which gives men a choice whether they want to change or continue them. Change is a difficult and long term process because it requires breaking free from old behavior and patterns and learning new ways that are in conflict with the institutionalized gender models in the broader society. Long term support and training which helps men become conscious of the problem and which teaches them the necessary skills to become more involved fathers (like how to take care of children) encourages and helps men to make this change (Matta & Knudson-Martin 2006: 35, REDMAS 2013: 25). These initiatives do not rule out other factors that influence gendered behavior, such as the willingness of men and women to share parental duties and social circumstances in the broader society (Dienhart 1998).

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18 As I have said before, the broad arrange of social circumstances which have an

influence on gender limits possible interventions to achieve gender equality and makes it difficult to control outcomes (Kimmel, Hean & Connell 2004: 3, Swain 2005: 225). In this thesis, I will investigate the relationship between a new initiative called ‘Voz sos mi Papa’, which is a campaign which aims to involve fathers more in childcare through popular education, with fatherhood notions and gender relations in Nicaragua. I chose to investigate this through perceptions on the campaign of participating community members and

practitioners who facilitated the campaign, because these people had the most personal experience with the campaign and were therefore likely to know more about its intention, implementation and relationship with gender relations in Nicaragua. More details about the way in which research was done will be explained in chapter 3 below.

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3. Research Design

In this chapter all aspects concerning the research design, such as the research questions, the methodology and the techniques of research will be discussed.

3.1 Research Questions

As has been explained above, this research investigates the perceptions of participating community members and practitioners on the relationship between campaign ‘Voz sos mi Papa’ and gender equality trends in Nicaragua. For this I used the following main research question:

What are the perceptions of practitioners and community members on the relationship between campaign ‘Voz sos mi Papa’, notions of fatherhood and other aspects of gender relations in Nicaragua?

The underlined concepts in the main research question can be defined in the following way: Perception: the way in which something is regarded, understood or interpreted by a person5. Practitioners:

1. Facilitators working for REDMAS and local NGO’s in Nicaragua. 2. Community leaders who replicated the campaign to their communities

Community members:

1. Participating fathers & their family members (partner, children) 2. Participating men (not fathers) & their family members

3. Non-participating men in the community. Sub Questions

1. What were the perceptions of community members and practitioners on

fatherhood notions and gender relations before and after campaign ‘Voz sos mi Papa’?

This sub question can be divided in the following themes and questions:

Childcare & family life

1. What are the perceptions around what the tasks of the mother and of the father in the family are, and if this was different before the campaign?

5

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20 2. What are the perceptions around how much time the father/male caretaker spends with

his children and what activities he does with them, and if this was different before the campaign?

Household

3. What are the perceptions around what the tasks of the mother and father in the household are, and if this was different before the campaign?

Affection & expression of emotions

4. What are the perceptions around how often fathers show affection and express their emotions towards their families and if this was different before the project?

Domestic violence

5. What are the perceptions around what the rate of domestic violence by the father and mother in the household are, and if this was different before the campaign?

6. What are the perceptions around how fathers and mothers discipline their children, and if this was different before the campaign?

Expectations

7. What are the perceptions around what is expected of a man & father in society, and if this was different before the campaign? (how did men themselves perceive fatherhood & masculinity before and after the program, how does society perceive it?)

8. What are the perceptions around what participation in the campaigns and adopting an active paternity mean for relationships with other men in the community?

2. What are the perceptions of community members and practitioners on the influence of the campaign on fatherhood notions and gender relations in Nicaragua?

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3.2 Conceptual scheme

3.2.1 Description of Diagram

As I have explained in section 1.1, gender can be defined as a social temporality which is created by the broader contextual reality. Both fatherhood notions, gender relations and the ‘Voz sos mi Papa’ campaign are influenced and created in this contextual reality, which is represented in the diagram by the orange circle. A small black arrow facing two directions has been placed between fatherhood notions and gender relations in order to show that these develop in each other’s context and mutually influence each other6. With fatherhood notions and gender relations, I refer to co-responsibility in childcare and the household as well as alternative masculinities7. The large black arrow facing two directions shows that the campaign ‘Voz sos mi Papa’, fatherhood notions and gender relations also develop in each other’s context and mutually influence each other. In this thesis, I will investigate the relationship between the campaign, fatherhood notions and gender relations through the perceptions of practitioners and community members, which is represented in the diagram by the red line. People’s perceptions are also influenced by the broader contextual reality, which is why they are also placed inside the orange circle.

6

See section 2.3.2

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3.3 Operationalization of concepts

Concept Dimensions Variables Indicators

Gender relations Co-responsibility Shared responsibility in child upbringing & caregiving

What are the tasks of the mother and the father in child upbringing, was this different before the project? How much time does the father/male caretaker spend with his children, was this different before the

project?

What activities does the father do with his children, was this different before the project?

How much time does the mother/ female caregiver spend with the children, was this different before the project?

What activities does the mother do with the children, was this different before the project?

How often do fathers listen to their children?

Does the father take care of the children when they are sick, was this different before the project?

Which parent takes the children to the doctor or hospital when that is needed, was this different before the project?

Equal contribution to household activities

What are the tasks of the mother and father in the household, was this different before the project? What does the father do in the household activities, was this different before the project?

Joint decision making

Which parent plays a major role in economic decisions in the household, was this different before the project?

Which parent plays a major role in the decisions around child care and upbringing, was this different before the project?

Which parent plays a major role in the decisions around the household, was this different before the project?

Alternative Masculinities

Domestic violence

What is the rate of domestic violence by the father and mother in the household, was this different before the project?

How do fathers and mothers discipline their children, was this different before the project?

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23 Affection &

expression of emotions

How often do fathers hug or kiss their children, was this different before the project?

How often do fathers tell their children that they love them?

How often do fathers have a conversation with their children, was this different before the project

How often do fathers complement their children, was this different before the project?

Has the relationship between the man and his partner changed in any way due to the campaign?

Expectations What does the wife expect of her partner in the family, was this different before the project?

What do the children expect of their father or male caregiver, was this different before the project? What do other men expect of a man in society, was this different before the project?

What are the fathers expectations around being a father, was this different before the project?

What does participation in the projects and adopting active paternity mean for relationships with other men in the community?

Decision Making

Which parent plays a major role in economic decisions in the household, was this different before the project?

Which parent plays a major role in the decisions around child care and upbringing, was this different before the project?

Which parent plays a major role in the decisions around the household, was this different before the project?

Due to time restrain and a lack of data in this area, I was not able to look at the variable ‘decision making’ in my research.

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3.4 Doing research in the field

In order to understand why I used certain methodologies and techniques in the field, it is necessary to explain how I came about my research and how research was conducted in the field. Prior to defining my research location, I knew that I wanted to do research on gender equality projects with men in a Spanish speaking country8. During a conference about SRHR9 and the involvement of men in gender equality interventions, one of the speakers showed a video about a gender-equality project with men in Nicaragua. In this video the main speaker was Douglas Mendoza, a regional coordinator of the MenEngage Alliance10 in Latin America and coordinator of the ‘Voz sos mi Papa’ Campaign in Nicaragua. Douglas also formed part of the coordinating team of REDMAS, a coordinating body which brings together 22 local Nicaraguan organizations who work on gender and masculinities with men of different ages and social conditions in order to address gender inequality problems11. The speaker explained that she had good contact with Douglas, and after the conference I asked her if she could bring me in contact with him in order to discuss the possibilities of doing research in

Nicaragua. Douglas replied that I was welcome to do research in Nicaragua around one of the projects with men that he was involved in. I chose the ‘Voz sos mi Papa’ campaign as my main focus, as I was interested in how fatherhood played a role in constructing alternative masculinities. I wanted my research to be useful for the project and its participants in Nicaragua, and because both acceptation and active participation of the community are

necessary for a project or campaign to be effective12, I chose to do my research on perceptions of people included in the campaign on the relationship between the campaign, fatherhood notions and gender relations in Nicaragua.

Before I travelled to Nicaragua, Douglas agreed to be my local supervisor and allowed me to stay in his house in Managua during my first two weeks in Nicaragua. During these weeks we discussed and organized my research plan and research methodology. As an anthropologist, I believe that in order to understand the perspectives of the local population the researcher must get closely connected with the people he or she studies. In my opinion the easiest ways to do this in the short period of two months in the field was to work together with local NGO’s who formed part of REDMAS and participated in the campaign. As will be explained further in chapter 4, these participating NGO’s gave workshops about fatherhood and gender equality to local fathers. As coordinator of the campaign in Nicaragua, Douglas had contact with each of the ten local NGO’s in Nicaragua that participated in the campaign. During the first two weeks, he brought me in contact with two of these local NGO’s who were willing to help me with my research. The first of these organizations was Samaritanas, a social project located in Managua which was directed at women and children who are victims

8_{I speak Spanish fluently due to the fact that I lived in South America for seven years during my youth. Doing}

research is much easier when you can speak the language of your research population.

9_{Sexual and reproductive health and rights.}

10_{The MenEngage is an alliance of NGO’s which work together with men and boys in order to promote gender}

equality.

11

http://www.redmasnicaragua.org/index.php/quienes-somos/antecedentes.

12

My experience of living in south America, the bachelor in Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology, and a prior research project in Bolivia have all showed me that in order to make development a success, it is key to adjust development projects to the culture, environment and opinions of the population in development countries.

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25 of or at risk of sexual abuse and violence. The second organization was Movimiento

Comunal, a social organization located in the city Somoto which was focused on coordination self-managed community projects in which the aim was to make local community members protagonists of their own development. Both Samaritanas and Movimiento Comunal formed part of the campaign by giving workshops about paternity to community leaders, participant fathers and participant men.

I worked with Samaritanas for a period of two weeks and with Movimiento Comunal for 4.5 weeks. During this time, I helped13 and participated14 in different workshops of the campaign and similar gender workshops of both organizations, which allowed me to get to know and gain the trust of the facilitators and the participants of the campaign while also collecting information about the broader gender context in the region. With help of Douglas, who knew everything about the methodologies used in the workshops of the campaign, and with use of different techniques I had learned during voluntary work with the NGO’s in Nicaragua and prior voluntary work in Bolivia15, I also organized and facilitated two

workshops in Managua in which I replicated some of the activities used in the campaign with local women and teenagers.

Apart from participating and helping in campaign workshops, the campaign

facilitators16 in each NGO’s brought me in contact with participants and accompanied me to their houses in order to interview them. A more detailed description of my activities during fieldwork is provided in annex 1.

13

With helping during workshops I mean that I supporting the facilitating team in preparing and giving gender workshops to the local population, for example by thinking of activities during the workshops, preparing materials, explaining certain activities to the local population, handing out papers or other materials and taking pictures and writing about the workshops for the memory files of the organization.

14_{With participating I mean that I participated in certain workshops as a participant, doing all the activities with}

the other participants during a workshop.

15_{In the year 2012, I did an internship of 4.5 months with a local NGO in Bolivia, where I learned various}

workshop and teaching techniques for groups of women and children, such as ice breaking activities and recreational activities with art and music.

16_{With ‘campaign facilitator’ I refer to people working for an NGO who have been capacitated by REDMAS in}

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3.5Methodology and techniques of research

3.5.1 Field Methods

Participant observation & field notes

During fieldwork in Nicaragua, participant observation was an important method in order to come in contact with, get to know and gain the trust of my informants. It allowed me to learn about the context of the campaign ‘Voz sos mi Papa’, but also of gender relations, masculinity and fatherhood in Nicaragua. Participant observation can be defined as a

technique in which the investigator stays with the group that is to be investigated for a longer period of time, causing him/her to be able to follow and study the population and their activities up close. Participating means that the investigator takes part in social activities and actions of the group, like everyday activities, festivities and meetings. Informal conversations also play a part in this method (Bernard & Spencer 2002: 616). Participant observation beholds many advantages when used during fieldwork. First of all, staying with a research population for a longer period of time allows the researcher to gain the trust of his/her

respondents, which reduces chances of ‘reactivity’, which can be defined as people changing

their behavior when they know that they are being studied (Bernard 2006: 354). The trust

between the researcher and his/her informants also increases the chance that informants are honest and allows the researcher to ask more sensitive questions (Bernard 2006: 355).

Participant observation also helps to see if the statements of informants in interviews match their behavior in practice and provides the investigator of crucial information which could not have been collected by interviews alone. This is due to the fact that the investigator is not familiar with certain ideas en norms in the community which are often so obvious or natural for locals that they will possibly not introduce or explain them themselves. For all these reasons, participant observation gives the researcher ‘an intuitive understanding of what

is going on in a culture and allows him/her to speak with confidence about the meaning of data’ (Bernard 2006: 355).

As has been explained in section 3.4 above, participant observation was used in both Somoto and Managua by volunteering in two local NGO’s that participated in the ‘Voz sos mi Papa’ Campaign, which allowed me to help and participate in various workshops, activities and meetings around campaign. In Managua I attended two workshop sessions of the campaign with community leaders. During these sessions I was able to observe and experience the various workshop activities while supporting the workshop facilitator with small tasks like handing out materials, drinks and snacks to the participants. I did the same in Somoto, where I supported the workshop facilitator during various workshops in rural

communities in which different exercises of the campaign were used. In Somoto I also

attended a 3-day workshop about paternity and masculinity in which different exercises of the campaign workshops were used. This time I experienced the activities as a participant, which allowed me to feel and be part of the individual and group impacts of the workshops myself. The campaign exercises and workshop activities will be explained in chapter four.

With help from Douglas and different workshop techniques I had learned from volunteering in projects both in Nicaragua and Bolivia, I was also able to organize and facilitate different focus groups myself with use of the same techniques and methods that are used in the campaign workshops. Apart from meeting many of my respondents and

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27 informants through these activities, volunteering in these organizations allowed me to very quickly gain the trust of my research population. By working together with two organizations that were both widely accepted, supported and trusted by the local population, respondents saw me as part of the organization and therefore also trusted me. My main position as a researcher was known to both the organizations and my respondents from the start. My local supervisor, who had arranged the possibility for me to volunteer with the two organizations, had been clear to them about my research task, and I was always clear to my respondents about my main task of doing research for my master thesis.

Apart from volunteering in the local NGO’s, participant observation was also used while living in a local Nicaraguan family in Somoto for five weeks. This venue had been arranged for me by Marlon Mendez Alvarez, the Representative of local NGO Movimiento Comunal in REDMAS who coordinated and facilitated the ‘Voz sos mi Papa’ campaign in Somoto. By living with this family, which consisted of a young husband and wife, their 5 year old son and the husbands mother, I was able to experience local family gender relations, including masculinity and fatherhood, up close. This experience also taught me more about the context of masculinity and fatherhood in Nicaragua. Direct observation on the street and the participation in a feminist strike against the increasing number of femicides in the country also provided information about the local context and gender relations in Nicaragua.

All observations and informal conversations have been documented with use of photographs, a notebook which I always had with me and a field diary in which I wrote down my experiences at the end of each day.

Semi-structured interviews

The second technique which has been used in research was the semi-structured interview. This type of interview consists of open questions with the objective that the

investigator says as little as possible and lets him/her be led by the informant. In this way, the informant has the possibility to talk about the topics and approaches which he or she thinks are important. Also, the informant will be able to phrase his/her answer in his/her own way. In order to get answers to certain questions and to make the interviews of the informants

comparable during data analysis, the semi-structured interview consisted of a few structured open questions. Other questions during the interview were asked on the basis of what the informant said. In total, thirty three interviews have been done, ranging from half an hour to three hours in length. Two of these thirty three interviews were done with two people at the same time, meaning that a total of thirty five people have been interviewed. A summary about the amount of interviews done in each research location with the different types of

respondents is summarized in the table below. A more detailed table of respondents is provided in annex 2.

As has been mentioned in section 3.1, respondents have been divided in different respondent groups. These are 1. Facilitators working for REDMAS and NGO’s, 2.

Community leaders who replicate the campaign to their communities 3. Participating fathers and their family members (partner, children), 4. Participating men (not fathers) & their family members and 5. Non-participating men in the community. The interviews were done in private at either the respondent’s house, at different workshop locations or at the main offices of the local NGO’s I worked with. In most cases I was accompanied by an NGO facilitator for