Premium
The Strategic Uses of Gender in Household Negotiations: Women Workers on Mexico’s Northern Border
Author(s) -
Gates Leslie C.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
bulletin of latin american research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.24
H-Index - 33
eISSN - 1470-9856
pISSN - 0261-3050
DOI - 10.1111/1470-9856.00057
Subject(s) - negotiation , perspective (graphical) , identity (music) , power (physics) , gender studies , gender identity , political science , gender relations , sociology , law , quantum mechanics , artificial intelligence , acoustics , computer science , physics
The study illustrates the potential of the ‘doing gender’ perspective to explain why employment does not always improve women’s household–power. Eighteen in–depth interviews with women maquiladora workers in Mexico suggest that, depending on the gendered meanings of household negotiations, employment may help women gain new rights and extend the limits of respect accorded them by male companions and parents. Nevertheless, women were more successful when they used negotiating strategies that conformed to their gender identity, such as making offers , than when they used negotiating strategies that challenged traditional gender norms, such as withdrawing services or making threats .