TUM Library

This book provides a critical and decolonial analysis of gender and development theory and practice in religious societies through the presentation of a detailed ethnographic study of conjugal violence in Ethiopia. Responding to recent consensus that gender mainstreaming approaches have failed to produce their intended structural changes, Romina Istratii explains that gender and development analytical and theoretical frameworks are often constructed through western Euro-centric lenses ill-equipped to understand gender-related realities and human behaviour in non-western religious contexts and knowledge systems. Instead, Istratii argues for an approach to gender-sensitive research and practice which is embedded in insiders' conceptual understandings as a basis to theorise about gender, assess the possible gendered underpinnings of local issues and design appropriate alleviation strategies. Drawing on a detailed study of conjugal abuse realities and attitudes in two villages and the city of Aksum in Northern Ethiopia, she demonstrates how religious knowledge can be engaged in the design and implementation of remedial interventions. This book carefully evidences the importance of integrating religious traditions and spirituality in current discussions of sustainable development in Africa, and speaks to researchers and practitioners of gender, religion and development in Africa, scholars of non-western Christianities and Ethiopian studies, and domestic violence researchers and practitioners.

Cover -- Half Title -- Series Page -- Title Page -- Copyight Page -- Table of Contents -- Preface -- Acknowledgements -- Chapter 1: Introduction: the metaphysics of gender and development -- A brief genealogy of feminist thought around gender -- Gender theory as a reflection of deeper metaphysics of humanity and gender -- Western Euro centrism in the paradigm of gender and development -- Religion in gender and development discourse -- Domestic violence in gender and development and public health theory -- A closer look at the epistemological premises of gender based violence research

Social norms and public health approaches -- Accounting better for religious systems and the interface with human behaviour -- Conducting gender sensitive research within local religious societies -- The study in Aksum and its approach -- Concluding thoughts -- Notes -- Chapter 2: Linguistic and cosmological translation -- Revisiting feminist epistemologies in cross cultural gender studies -- A closer look at gender and religious studies -- Integrating theology in religious studies -- Theology informed investigations in Ethiopia

Researching intimate partner violence in a safe and inclusive manner -- Addressing the epistemological issues -- Learning local languages -- Making the 'I' visible in the research process -- Integrating dialogical research methods -- Notes -- Chapter 3: Intimate partner violence, gender and faith in Ethiopia -- Directions in the scholarship and unaddressed questions -- Women's status in Ethiopia historically and in post revolution Tigray -- Gender specific socialisation and the influence of the clergy -- The legal framework on domestic violence and reported cultural influences

An eclectic tradition with internal tensions -- Notes -- Chapter 5: Conjugal abuse conceptualisations and attitudes -- Researching conjugal abuse without a predefined terminology -- Data on conjugal abuse -- Participants' discourses of harmful conjugal behaviour and situations -- Situational or interactional abuse -- Gender related asymmetries -- Physical violence -- Serious conjugal crimes -- Sexual coercion: a hardly ever discussed issue -- Local attitudes toward harmful conjugal situations and behaviour -- Notes -- Chapter 6: Marriage in the local normative framework

OCLC-licensed vendor bibliographic record.