CALL FOR ABSTRACTS/PAPER SUBMISSIONS
Gender, Work and Organization 13th International Interdisciplinary Conference 28–30 June 2023, Stellenbosch, Cape Town, South Africa
Conference theme Marginalized gender identities – how can intellectual activism transform work and organization?
STREAM TITLE: Gender and health at work
STREAM LEADERS: Sarah Stutterheim, Global North Lilith Whiley, Global North Ameeta Jaga, Global South Ciarán McFadden-Young, Global North Grace Ese-osa Idahosa, Global North and South Isidora Paiva Mack, Global South
This stream is offered by the Specialized Network on Gender and Health at Work and focusses on any topic related to health and (a)gender at work, in particular topics focussing on pluralist perspectives, including but not limited to intersectionality, critical femininities and postcolonial/decolonial approaches (Hoskin and Blair, 2022; Jaga, 2020; Manning, 2021).
Gendered health issues are often othered at work, with the nonmasculine being subjugated (Butler, 2020; Mavin and Grandy, 2016; Ryan, Ussher and Hawkey, 2022; Steffan, 2021). Such health issues are thus discounted, discredited, marginalised and often stigmatised (McFadden and Crowley-Henry, 2016; Porschitz and Siler, 2017). They are also often taboo in organisations (Grandey, Gabriel and King, 2020; Hardy, Griffiths, Thorne and Hunter, 2019; Lee, 2018) and hold inherent tensions with different aspects of our lives (Whiley, Sayer and Juanchich, 2021), including identity, relationships, work-life balance and employment relations. Similarly, healthcare issues specific to trans employees, such as those related to transitioning, are often unacknowledged, stigmatised or discredited. It has also been noted that those who are neurodivergent (e.g. those who have autism and/or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) face differing outcomes based on their gender (Hayward, McVilly and Stokes, 2016; Smyth, Dipeolu, Davies, Hargrave and Stevenson, 2015). These negative characterisations of gendered healthcare issues and the outcomes associated with them often lead to ignorance, judgement or disbelief on the part of managers and colleagues (Armour, Ciccia, Stoikos and Wardle, 2021; Porschitz and Siler, 2017) and deepen the sense of unbelonging for those who occupy such positionalities.
In this stream, we invite research that explores gender and health experiences at work. We are interested in these experiences at the intrapersonal, interpersonal and organisational levels and welcome submissions that cover the psychological, social, economic and structural aspects of gendered health issues at work. Qualitative intersectional approaches and ethnographic/autoethnographic studies that give voice to marginalised and understudied communities and topics are especially welcome (Stutterheim and Ratcliffe, 2021). Possible topics include (but are not limited to) the following: • (In)fertility and pregnancy • Miscarriage and child loss • Abortion and decisions to be childfree • Parenthood and division of (un)paid labour • Menstruation and menopause • Breastfeeding • Pumping • Chest feeding and bottle feeding • (A)sexuality • Sexual health • Gender identity • (A)gendered illness experiences • (A)gendered occupational risks • Gender-based violence • Gender-sensitive health policies • Gender and neurodiversity • Gender and mental health • Gender-responsive health legislation • Hegemonies and health, for example neoliberalism, patriarchy, cisnormativity and heteronormativity • Health and identity
For stream enquiries, please contact the Specialized Network on Gender and Health at Work core team: Sarah Stutterheim, Global North, stutterheim@maastrichtuniversity.nl.
Abstracts of approximately 500 words should be submitted directly to the GWO2023 conference website in a ONE-page (A4-size, single-spaced, excluding references, with no headers, footers or track changes) Word document, NOT PDF. Abstracts are invited by the end of day 7 November 2022 (Central Africa Time – CAT), with decisions on acceptance to be made by stream leaders by December 2022. Prospective contributions will be independently refereed. Abstracts should include full contact details, including your name, institutional affiliation, mailing address and e-mail address. We are hoping to circulate abstracts prior to the 2023 GWO conference to those attending the conference.
Subject to full peer review, this stream may select suitable full papers for a special issue of the Gender, Work and Organization journal post the conference. If your abstract is accepted for this stream, authors are encouraged to submit a full paper (5 000 to 7 000 words excluding references) by 28 February 2023, which may be considered for such a GWO journal special edition. More information about the conference can be found at: https://www.usb.ac.za/usb_events/gender-work-organization/
Follow us at: Twitter: @GWO2023_CT Facebook: GWO 2023 LinkedIn: GWO2023-Conference
More information about the Gender, Work and Organization journal can be found here: Gender, Work and Organization is a scholarly journal published by Wiley and edited by Alison Pullen and Banu Ozkazanc-Pan. The journal has an Impact Factor of 5.428 (2021) ISI Journal Citation Reports and a ranking of 2/44 (Women’s Studies); 95/226 (Management).