Gendered Work In Asian Cities

Do the new Asian economies encourage gender equality? Ann Brooks provides a unique insight into this question by assessing the impact of the new economy and the changing labour market on women in Asia. Theoretical debates around globalization, gender and social change are combined with empirical research on professional women in two cosmopolitan cities: Hong Kong and Singapore. The author's research shows that even in such cosmopolitan cities where women tend to have a strong advantage there is a 'new dynamic of inequality'. This makes the examination of women's labour market participation and ambition in these environments very different to previous research. The research is set against the backdrop of Southeast Asia more generally and international comparisons are also drawn. It will be of interest to scholars in sociology, economics, gender studies, business studies and Asian studies.

Do the new Asian economies encourage gender equality? Ann Brooks provides a unique insight into this question by assessing the impact of the new economy and the changing labour market on women in Asia. Theoretical debates around globalization, gender and social change are combined with empirical research on professional women in two cosmopolitan cities: Hong Kong and Singapore. The author's research shows that even in such cosmopolitan cities where women tend to have a strong advantage there is a 'new dynamic of inequality'. This makes the examination of women's labour market participation and ambition in these environments very different to previous research. The research is set against the backdrop of Southeast Asia more generally and international comparisons are also drawn. It will be of interest to scholars in sociology, economics, gender studies, business studies and Asian studies.

As a region, Southeast Asia has undergone enormous economic and social changes in the last few decades. Women as a collective have seen their lives transformed as a result of rapid development and economic growth. In exploring the progress made by Southeast Asian men and women, this book seeks to answer the following questions: (a) In what areas have women been able to achieve parity with men? (b) In what areas do women encounter specific disadvantages based on their gender as compared with men? and (c) How have womens concerns and problems been addressed by the governments in this region with the aim of encouraging gender equality? As the title of this book suggests, the chapters provide an analysis of the broad trends - including changes and continuities - in the experiences, interests and concerns of Southeast Asian women. The chapters examine the trends related to women in the following arenas: the family, economic participation, politics, health, and religion. In some arenas, the trends reflect the disadvantages women face, which in turn have led to gender gaps; in other areas, women's progress has been found to eclipse that of the men, although this tends to be the exception.

This volume examines the nature of married women's participation in the economies of three East Asian countries—Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea. In addition to asking what is similar or different about women's economic participation in this region of the world compared to Western societies, the book also asks how women's work patterns vary across the three countries.

This volume explores how migration is playing a central role in the renewing and reworking of urban spaces in the fast growing and rapidly changing cities of Asia. Migration trends in Asia entered a new phase in the 1990s following the end of the Cold War which marked the advent of a renewed phase of globalization. Cities have become centrally implicated in globalization processes and, therefore, have become objects and sites of intense study. The contributors to this book reflect on the impact and significance of migration with a particular focus on the contested spaces that are emerging in urban contexts and the economic, social, religious and cultural domains with which they intersect. They also examines the roles and effects of different forms of migration in the cauldron of urban change, from low-skilled domestic migrants who maintain a close engagement with their rural homes, to highly skilled/professional transnational migrants, to legal and illegal international migrants who arrive with the hope of transforming their livelihoods. Providing a mosaic of insights into the links between migration, marginalization and contestation in Asia’s urban contexts, Asian Cities, Migrant Labor and Contested Spaces will be of interest to students and scholars of Asian studies, migration studies, urban studies and human geography.

Concepts of emotion and emotional labour have largely been defined in European and American terms and according to Euro-American sensibilities with little attention given to the question of whether emotional work or emotional labour is different globally. In particular little has been written about the issue of what defines emotions and emotional labour in public work contexts and how it is configured in different cultural contexts. Gender, Emotions and Labour Markets considers how, and in what ways, emotional labour characterises formal and informal work environments in both Asia and the West. Key themes covered include: human rights issues and gender equity in formal and informal work contexts in Asia and the West; men, masculinity and emotional labour; impact on the work-life balance of professional women in Asian and Western contexts; the impact of the ‘feminization of migration’ in servicing high-end economic professionals; the impact of the new economy, organizational constraints on labour markets; and demographic patterns such as fertility, procreation, marriage, divorce in both Asian and Western contexts.

Exploring the relationship between place and identity, this book gathers 30 papers that highlight experiences from throughout the Asia-Pacific region. The countries profiled include China, India, Japan, Indonesia, and Thailand. Readers will gain a better understanding of how urbanization is affecting gender equity in Asian-Pacific cities in the 21st century. The contributing authors examine the practical implications of urban development and link them with the broader perspective of urban ecology. They consider how visceral experiences connect with structural and discursive spheres. Further, they investigate how multiple, interconnected relations of power shape gender (in)equity in urban ecologies, and address such issues as construction of Kawaii as an idealized femininity, diversity among homosexuals in urban India, and single women and rental housing. In turn, the authors present hitherto unexplored sub-themes from historiography and existentialist literary perspectives, and share a vast range of multi-disciplinary views on issues concerning gendered dispossession due to the impact of urban policy and governance. The topics covered include socio-spatial and ethnic segregation in urban spaces; intersections of gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, and caste in urban spaces; and identity-based marginalization, including that of LGBT groups. Overall, the book brings together perspectives from the humanities and the social sciences, and represents a valuable contribution to the vital theoretical and practical debates on urbanism and gender equity.

This book explores the unique socioeconomic challenges encountered by female leaders in China, India, Japan, Korea, and other Asian countries where traditional cultural expectations and modernized values coexist. It provides insight into gender inequality and underutilization of female talent as well as ways to develop highly qualified women in organizations. Chapters from expert contributors analyze the similarities and differences between each Asian country, the organizational and institutional challenges for women in the workplace, and how they balance work-family relationships. It will appeal to researchers and students in human resource development, management, leadership, Asia studies, women’s studies, and political science, among others.