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Refusing Racist Gender Stereotypes
by Deborah L. Tolman, Hunter Kincaid, Bridget Woods, Jennifer Chmielewski and Anthony Freeman The US is finally starting to have a real conversation about racial (in)justice. In this TookKit, we present research to explain, debunk and complicate racist gender stereotypes about Black Americans, focusing on how they are utilized and perpetuated by research on Black masculinity and femininity, revealing how they impact Black women and men, whether they are cisgender or transgen
The double-edged sword of the “Strong Black Woman” schema
By Tabassum Shama The Strong Black Woman (SBW) schema is the role of invincibility that black women take up both voluntarily and involuntarily. Black women are taught from a young age to do everything by themselves (and for others). Historically, from the time of slavery, Black women were seen in the same light as Black men (needing to carry out a masculine role), and due to the current and continued “oppressive and limited socioeconomic mobility” of Black men, Black women ar
Gender matters in LGBQ discrimination experiences
How does someone’s gender expression impact the discrimination that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ) people face? Is racial...
Shifting the objectifying gaze: Focusing on women's personality disrupts sexual objectification
By Marisa Ragonese I had a baby three summers ago, and she’s been hanging around me a lot ever since. One of the best parts about this...
What is sexual & reproductive health, rights, and justice?
What is sexual and reproductive health? Reproductive health is a term that has generally referred to an array of concerns and capacities...
What is rape culture?
Illustration by Hanna Barczyk What is rape culture? Rape culture is a term that describes the normalization and pervasiveness of sexual...
What is LGBTQ+ Lives & Issues?
What does it mean to be LGBTQ+? LGBTQ+ is an abbreviation that encompasses a variety of different sexual and gender identities. We use...
What is positive sexuality?
What is positive sexuality? Positive sexuality has several meanings. The first is understanding sexuality as a positive force —be it...
What is toxic masculinity?
What is masculinity? Masculinity is a constellation of human behaviors, qualities, roles and characteristics that have been socially...
Lesbian and bisexual women remember their firsts. Let’s talk about sexual attraction!
By Elise Bragard The passing of Valentine’s Day this year had me thinking about all my past loves and experiences of...
Gender bias for girls and women in STEM
By Allison Cabana *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled organization...
Women in Academia Burdened with Student's Gendered Expectations: Women are Nurturing, Men are Assert
By Jessica Lin Women are nurturing and men are assertive – at least, that is what society teaches us. Even with more women in leadership...
Non-binary identities in binary times: What does it mean to identify as queer, bisexual or pansexual
By Bridget Woods Illustration by Lydia Ortiz “Are you, like, a real bisexual , though?” I cannot count how many times I have had to hear...
Teasing, self-objectification, and body image for adolescent athletes
By Steph Anderson *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled organization working...
Listen to your heart: Focusing on your heart beat can protect against self-objectification for women
By Marisa Ragonese *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled...
Ben Carson Doubles Down on Transphobic 'Logic' behind Policing Gendered Spaces
By Laura Hooberman On September 19th, The Washington Post reported that United States Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson had, in an internal meeting, expressed concern about “big hairy men” infiltrating women’s homeless shelters. Carson later, bizarrely, doubled down on his comment, insisting the remark was not – and to be clear, it absolutely is – transphobic. What’s striking about this instance, besides the fact that it adds yet another episode to
“Boys can be anything,” Or how Barbie limits girls’ career dreams
By Jenn Chmielewski *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled organization...
Are gender stereotypes evolving with the times?
By Laura Hooberman Illustration by Paul Windle In 2018, when the French men’s soccer team won the World Cup, the players reacted...
6-pack abs & thigh gaps: Objectification, body image, & eating disorders for adolescent girls & boys
#teengirlsy Jenn Chmielewski *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled...
Having an abortion doesn’t negatively impact mental health. Being denied an abortion does.
By Laura Hooberman In the event that you’ve somehow been mercifully spared from the onslaught of news stories over the past month...
Why do people objectify women’s bodies?
By Marisa Ragonese Illustration by Neil Webb I had a baby three summers ago, and she’s been hanging around me a lot ever since....
Gender stereotypes in children's toys and media
By Julia Leask Illustration by Renee Klahr As we progressed through the lectures in my social psychology and human sexuality...
Sexualized music videos, self-objectification, and wellbeing for girls
By Christin Bowman *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled organization...
How do gender stereotypes affect girls' interest in pursuing STEM careers?
By Kim Belmonte *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled organization working...
Too sexualized to be taken seriously? How sexualization affects judgments about girls accomplishment
By Jenn Chmielewski *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled...
Does exposure to sexual media impact attitudes and beliefs about sex?
By Laura Hooberman At a recent family event, I was talking to a twelve-year old relative, who asked me, unprompted, if I had seen the...
Self-objectification discourages activism: "Objects don't object"
By Christin Bowman *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled organization...
How does trans-based discrimination affect romantic relationships?
By Bianca Valle Growing up in a strict latinx household, romantic relationships with boys and talks of sexuality were a bit of a...
How do bullying and sexual harassment impact girls' feelings about school?
By Kim Belmonte *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled organization working...
Hate crimes against LGBTQ+ people do happen and have real impacts
By Tasnia Ahmed In a society where unjust double standards about victimization exist, white, straight people and men in particular,...
Imposter Syndrome and Women of Color: How race and gender stereotypes impact high achieving women
By Kim Nguyen Illustration by Jon McCormack I’m in my fourth year of a Ph.D. program and have been harboring a shameful secret – that I...
Twitter Contributes to Misinformation on Sexual Assault
By Laura Hooberman Illustration by Eleni Kalorkoti Hibernating from the cold last month, I binge watched the excellent new...
Open Relationships: Questioning tradition and creating your own connections
By Maria Owen When I say “open relationship,” what comes to your mind? For me, this label used to be the equivalent of settling. It...
How do women deal with sexualized work environments?
By Christin Bowman *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled organization...
Tensions between Spiritual and Sexual Identities
By Maria Owen My Lebanese background defined my childhood in a lot of ways. It meant exciting stories from my grandmother about...
How does porn shape girls' understandings of sex
By Laura Hooberman A few months ago, I was with a group of friends, discussing what we recalled of the sexual education we...
Sexual objectification as everyday trauma
By Jenn Chmielewski *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled...
Resilience from child sexual abuse trauma
By Tasnia Ahmed Trigger Warning. I read the two words as I was scrolling through Instagram and paused to look at the post of a young girl...
Sexualization in social media profile pictures
By Marisa Ragonese *From the SPARK Research! Blog Archive: This blog was originally written for SPARK, a girl-fueled organization...
Oh, Playboy: Sexual objectification and the playboy ideal
By Maria Owen James Bond, Tony Stark, Chuck Bass – all these characters have one big thing in common: they are playboys. Not only do they...
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