scholarly journals Intersecting Human Development, Social Justice and Gender Equity: A Capability Option

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beatrice M'mboga Akala
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Human Development ◽  
South African ◽  
Gender Equity ◽  
Capability Approach ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Human Capabilities ◽  
And Gender ◽  
South African Higher Education

The greatest achievement of any education system lies in its ability to harness and develop human capabilities indiscriminately. This paper aims to show that the development of capabilities is crucial in bolstering individual well-being while at the same time propelling human beings to function adequately at various levels in society. I argue that, for a symmetrical development of capabilities to be attained for all, institutionalised unfreedoms that are perpetuated through entrenched classism, racism and sexism need to be addressed. The claims in this paper respond to the dilemma of continued marginalisation of women in South African higher education by arguing that a capability approach (CA) to human development should be considered as a possible framework through which gender and gendering can be investigated and evaluated. The paper has adopted a critical exploration methodology in discussing theories of social justice and a capability approach to human development. The paper concludes that education is an essential component of human development that should be enjoyed by all regardless of their creed, gender, race or social class.  

scholarly journals Student accounts of space and safety at a South African university: implications for social identities and diversity

2017 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tamara Shefer ◽  
Anna Strebel ◽  
Sisa Ngabaza ◽  
Lindsay Clowes
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
South African ◽  
Student Activism ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Diverse Classroom ◽  
African Higher Education ◽  
Social Justice Pedagogies ◽  
And Gender ◽  
South African Higher Education

Transformation efforts in South African higher education have been under increased scrutiny in recent years, especially following the last years of student activism and calls for decolonization of universities. This article presents data from a participatory photovoice study in which a group of students reflect on their experiences of feeling safe and unsafe at an urban-based historically disadvantaged university. Findings highlight the way in which historical inequalities on the basis of social identities of race, class, and gender, among others, continue to shape experiences, both materially and social-psychologically, in South African higher education. However, and of particular relevance in thinking about a socially just university, participants speak about the value of diversity in facilitating their sense of both material and subjective safety. Thus, a diverse classroom and one that acknowledges and recognizes students across diversities, is experienced as a space of comfort, belonging and safety. Drawing on feminist work on social justice, we argue the importance of lecturer sensitivity and reflexivity to their own practices, as well as the value of social justice pedagogies that not only focus on issues of diversity and equality but also destabilize dominant forms of didactic pedagogy, and engage students’ diverse experiences and perceptions.

Feminist Perspective in Shashi Deshpande's “That Long Silence”

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 8
Author(s):  
Mohammad Ahashan ◽  
Dr. Sapna Tiwari
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equity ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Fundamental Rights ◽  
Feminist Movement ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Simone De Beauvoir ◽  
Equal Rights ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Key Aspects

Man has always tried  to determine  and tamper the image of woman and especially her identity is manipulated and orchestrated. Whenever a woman is spoken of, it is always in the relation to man; she is presented as a wife , mother, daughter and even as a lover but never as a woman  a human being- a separate entity. Her entire life is idealized and her fundamental rights and especially her behaviour is engineered by the adherents of patriarchal society. Commenting  on the Man-woman relationship in a marital bond Simone de Beauvoir wrote in her epoch-making book entitled The Second Sex(1949): "It has been said that marriage diminishes man,  which is often true , but almost always it annihilates women". Feminist movement advocates the equal rights and equal opportunities for women. The true spirit of feminism is into look at women and men as human beings. There should not be gender bias or discrimination in familial and social life. To secure gender justice and gender equity is the key aspects of feminist movement. In India, women writers have come forward to voice their feminist approach to life and the patriarchal family set up. They believe that the very notion of gender is not only biotic and biologic episode but it has a social construction.

scholarly journals A Poset-Generalizability Method for Human Development Indicators

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Flavio Comim
Keyword(s):  
Human Development ◽  
Capability Approach ◽  
Generalizability Theory ◽  
Well Being ◽  
New Method ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Development Indicators ◽  
Development Policies ◽  
Development Analysis ◽  
The Capability Approach

AbstractThe paper introduces a poset-generalizability perspective for analysing human development indicators. It suggests a new method for identifying admissibility of different informational spaces and criteria in human development analysis. From its inception, the Capability Approach has argued for informational pluralism in normative evaluations. But in practice, it has turned its back to other (non-capability) informational spaces for being imperfect, biased or incomplete and providing a mere evidential role in normative evaluations. This paper offers the construction of a proper method to overcome this shortcoming. It combines tools from poset analysis and generalizability theory to put forward a systematic categorization of cases with different informational spaces. It provides illustrations by using key informational spaces, namely, resources, rights, subjective well-being and capabilities. The offered method is simpler and more concrete than mere human development guidelines and at the same time it avoids results based on automatic calculations. The paper concludes with implications for human development policies and an agenda for further work.

tenet of ubuntu in South (African) ethics

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vhumani Magezi ◽  
Clement Khlopa
Keyword(s):  
Pastoral Care ◽  
South African ◽  
Moral Theory ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Christian Ethics ◽  
African Philosophy ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
African Ethics ◽  
Contemporary Christian ◽  
African Worldview

The notion of ubuntu as a moral theory in the South African and African contexts presents attractive norms of an African worldview that can be articulated and applied to contemporary Christian ethics. The proponents of ubuntu perceive it as an African philosophy based on the maxim, “a person is a person through other persons”, whereby the community prevails over individual considerations. It is not merely an empirical claim that our survival or well-being is causally dependent on others but is in essence capturing a normative account of what we ought to be as human beings. However, ubuntu has shortcomings that make it an impractical notion. Despite its shortcomings, ubuntu has natural ethic potential that enforces and engenders hospitality, neighbourliness, and care for all humanity. This article contributes to further conceptualisation and understanding of the notion of ubuntu and its relationship with hospitality in order to retrieve some principles that can be applied to effective and meaningful pastoral care. The principles drawn from ubuntu are juxtaposed with Christian principles and pastoral care to encourage embodiment of God by pastoral caregivers.

scholarly journals Why Affordable Clean Energy Is Not Enough. A Capability Perspective on the Sustainable Development Goals

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 2485 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafaela Hillerbrand
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Capability Approach ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The Capability Approach

This paper reflects on criticisms raised in the literature on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These have been criticized as creating a dichotomy between the environment and human beings that fails to address the multiple interconnections between the two. This paper focuses on SDG7—“affordable and clean energy”—and suggests that there is in fact a tripartite distinction between the environment, human beings and technology underlying the SDGs. This distinction, we argue, does not adequately represent the multiple interconnections among the various SDGs and hampers their implementation. We contend that the formulation of SDG7 produces a circular definition of sustainability, a difficulty that is currently resolved at the level of the targets and indicators in a way that regards energy technologies primarily as artifacts. By contrast, the literature on ethical aspects of energy systems largely agrees that energy is a paradigmatic example of a sociotechnical system. We contend that, by not considering this sociotechnical nature, the SDGs run the risk of implicitly defending a certain variant of technological optimism and determinism. We argue that this is disadvantageous to the environment, human well-being and technological development. In line with recent critical evaluations of the SDGs, we argue that these (and other) shortcomings can be addressed by better connecting the SDGs to human well-being. Building on recent literature that expands the scope of the Capability Approach as an alternative measure of well-being so as to include considerations of sustainability, we articulate a framework that allows us to elucidate this connection and thus to take advantage of synergies between human well-being and the environment. On the basis of the Capability Approach, we argue that equating sustainable energy with renewable energy—as is done in the transition from SDG7’s goal to its targets—is indefensible because, as part of the overarching energy systems, energy technologies cannot be classified as simply right or wrong. Rather, the indicators and targets within a framework focused on sustainability need to be (more) context sensitive, meaning that, among other things, they may vary by country and with the available technology.

scholarly journals Conceptualizing the Impact of MDRO Control Measures Directed at Carriers: A Capability Approach

2020 ◽  
pp. 203-224
Author(s):  
Morten Fibieger Byskov ◽  
Babette Olga Rump ◽  
Marcel Verweij
Keyword(s):  
Capability Approach ◽  
Ethical Dilemmas ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Multidrug Resistant ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Human Capabilities ◽  
Multidrug Resistant Organisms ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Specific Control

Abstract Many countries have implemented specific control measures directed at carriers of multidrug-resistant organisms (MDRO) in order to prevent further introduction and transmission of resistant organisms into hospitals and other healthcare related settings. These control measures may in many ways affect the lives and well-being of carriers of MDRO, resulting in complex ethical dilemmas that often remain largely implicit in practice. In this chapter, we propose to conceptualize the impact of MDRO control measures on the well-being of individual carriers in terms of capabilities and functionings. A capabilitarian framework for the ethical treatment of MDRO carriers commits us to conceptualize the harm done to carriers in terms of the impact that MDRO control measures have on what they are able to do or be. Adopting and adapting Nussbaum’s list of ten central human capabilities, we present a taxonomy of capabilities and functionings that are normatively relevant for the design and evaluation of MDRO control measures.

scholarly journals A multidimensional model of healthy ageing: proposal and evaluation of determinants based on a population survey in Ecuador

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
María Fernanda Rivadeneira ◽  
María José Mendieta ◽  
Jessica Villavicencio ◽  
José Caicedo-Gallardo ◽  
Patricio Buendía
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Gender Equity ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Healthy Ageing ◽  
World Health ◽  
Multidimensional Model ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Intrinsic Capacity ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Individual

Abstract Background Healthy ageing is a complex construct which involves multiple dimensions. Previous studies of healthy ageing have focused only on measuring the intrinsic capacity of the older person. The objectives of this study were to design a multidimensional model of healthy ageing and to identify its determinants from national data in Ecuador. Methods A cross-sectional analytical study was carried out from the National Survey of Health and Well-being of the Older Adult, 2010. Sample was 1797 adults aged 65 years or more. A multidimensional model was designed based on the World Health Organization’s concept of healthy ageing. For the analysis, two groups were created: a healthy ageing and a less healthy ageing group. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions were performed to analyze the probability of belonging to the healthy group according to sex, age, area of ​​residence, level of education, perceived health status, perceived life satisfaction, and poverty by income level. Results The 53.15% of the sample was classified in the healthy ageing group. Women and the poorest older adults were less likely to be in the healthy ageing group (OR 0.58; 95% CI 0.464–0.737; OR 0.44; 95% CI 0.343–0.564). Older adults with secondary education or higher, who considered their health as excellent and who were satisfied with their life, had a greater probability of being in healthy ageing group (OR 2.61; 95% CI 1.586–4.309; OR 28.49; 95% CI 3.623–224.02; OR 0.23; 95% CI 0.165–0.341). Conclusions This study contributes with a multidimensional approach to healthy ageing. It proposes to evaluate the intrinsic capacity of the individual, the social and political environment and the interaction with it, through indicators that discriminate who are ageing in a healthy way and who are not. By using this model, it was identified that gender and economic situation seem to play an important role on heathy ageing of the Ecuadorian population. Public policies are necessary to promote healthy ageing, especially focused on improving socioeconomic conditions and gender equity.

scholarly journals Nancy Fraser and participatory parity: Reframing social justice in South African higher education, edited by Vivienne Bozalek, Dorothee Hölscher, and Michalinos Zembylas

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 144
Author(s):  
Sergio Celis
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
South African ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Scholarship Of Teaching ◽  
Creative Commons ◽  
African Higher Education ◽  
South African Higher Education ◽  
Nancy Fraser

In this review of Nancy Fraser and participatory parity: Reframing social justice in South African higher education, edited by Vivienne Bozalek, Dorothee Hölscher, and Michalinos Zembylas, book reviewer Sergio Celis discusses why this book is an invitation to reimagine our participation in the higher education field, as scholars, teachers, and citizens. Keywords: Nancy Fraser, Participatory parity, South Africa, Higher education, Book review How to cite ths article: Celis, S. 2021. Nancy Fraser and participatory parity: Reframing social justice in South African higher education, edited by Vivienne Bozalek, Dorothee Hölscher, and Michalinos Zembylas. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in the South. 5(1): 144-148. DOI: 10.36615/sotls.v5i1.178. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Customary Marriages and Gender Equality : Zimbabwean and South African Perspectives

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 41-58
Author(s):  
Leah Gwatimba ◽  
Nanga Raymond Raselekoane ◽  
Anthony O. Nwafor
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Health ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
South African ◽  
Narrative Analysis ◽  
Sexual And Reproductive Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Health Rights ◽  
Negative Health Outcomes

Patriarchy continues to place limitations on women’s rights in many societies. This is manifested by the unequal gender power relations between sexes, which also adversely impact women’s sexual and reproductive health rights. Using the key human rights principles of non-discrimination and gender equality, the study aimed to analyse gender equality within the sexual and reproductive health domain in customary marriages from the Zimbabwean and South African perspectives. The study was qualitative, conducted in Makwarela (South Africa) and Concession (Zimbabwe) with 16 participants using semi-structured interviews to collect data which were analysed using narrative analysis. The study established that there are restrictive gender norms that negatively affect the interaction of women with the health system, thereby producing negative health outcomes. The study recommends that women be empowered educationally, politically and financially so that they can make their own decisions regarding their health and well-being.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document