This book explores the nature and type of prevalent collective behavior that influences women empowerment, women workforce participation and behavior change in sanitation. The influence of collective norms and customs have been investigated through a series of studies throughout India. There are very few research works on understanding social norms that distinguishes it from a range of other collective behaviors. This understanding would not only improve analytical clarity on collective behavior in general and social norms in particular, in the context of gender and sanitation, but also improve development practice in these areas. This book is also novel as it would expound the social network in the context of sanitation behavior in India. The tools and techniques discussed in the book are replicable and hence would be helpful for other researchers and development practitioners to analyse other collective behaviours.

On Norms and Agency explores some of the power dynamics of gender relations within the household and communities in different contexts. These processes are analyzed from the perspectives of groups of men and women and boys and girls who participated in focus groups in 97 communities around the world. From gender differences and inequalities to intra-household decision making, more than 4,000 women and men in 500-plus single-sex focus groups reflected on how social norms that define what it means to be and act as a woman or a man affect their life outcomes and their access to opportunities. The analysis reveals not only how little gender norms have changed and how similar they are across countries, but also how change in norms and in individual empowerment and capacity to act and decide takes place. Change takes place at private as well as community and society levels -- and adjustments within one of these realms shape the pace and direction of change in the other. The process of gender-norm change appears to be uneven and challenging. The easy coexistence of new and old norms means that households in the same community can vary markedly in how much agency women can exercise; women feel less empowered when opinions and values of families and communities stay within traditional norms. This book seeks to understand the pathways toward greater gender equality by looking at the deepest constraints present for women and men alike. Unlike men, women are less dependent on the economic conditions of their environment. Men's power and agency are tightly intertwined with their identity and capacity as breadwinners. The main pathways for women to gain agency are education, employment, and decreased risk of domestic violence. A safer space encourages women to negotiate for more participation and equality in household discussions and decisions. Women's ability to contribute to family finances and to control (even partially) major or minor assets helps them gain more voice at home and in public spheres. Women's aspirations and empowerment to break gender barriers can be observed almost everywhere, even when economies are stagnant. These evident aspirations are partly due to women's perceptions of having more power and freedom in their lives and a greater ability to make decisions. Yet many women around the world, the study shows, still face norms and practices that limit them.

This book explores collective consciousness and how it is applied to the pursuit of gender justice in international law. It discusses how the collective mode of behaviour and identity can lead to unconscious role-playing based on the social norms, expectations or archetypes of a group. Alexandra Walker contends that throughout history, men have been constructed as archetypal dominators and women as victims. In casting women in this way, we have downplayed their pre-existing, innate capacities for strength, leadership and power. In casting men as archetypal dominators, we have downplayed their capacities for nurturing, care and empathy. The author investigates the widespread implications of this unconscious role-playing, arguing that even in countries in which women have many of the same legal rights as men, gender justice and equality have been too simplistically framed as ‘feminism’ and ‘women’s rights’ and that giving women the rights of men has not created gender balance. This book highlights the masculine and feminine traits belonging to all individuals and calls on international law to reflect this gender continuum.

Women perform 66% of the world's work, produce 50% of the food, but earn 10% of the income and own 1% of the property. To shed light on why this grim statistic still holds true, Women, Business and the Law aims to examine legal differentiations on the basis of gender in 143 of the world's economies. Women, Business and the Law tracks governments' actions to expand economic opportunities for women across six key areas: accessing institutions, using property, getting a job, providing incentives to work, building credit and going to court. The report uncovers legal differentiations for women and married versus unmarried women such as being able to register a business, open a bank account and work at night. These issues are of fundamental importance. When, because of tradition, social taboos or simple prejudice, half of the world's population is prevented from making its contribution to the life of a nation, the economy will suffer. The empirical evidence does suggest that, slowly but surely, governments are making progress in expanding opportunities for women. It is our hope that data presented in Women, Business and the Law will both facilitate research on linkages between legal differentiation and outcomes for women, and promote better informed policy choices on what governments can do to expand opportunities for women.

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Large scale behavioral interventions work in some social contexts, but fail in others. The book explains this phenomenon with diverse personal and social behavioral motives, guided by research in economics, psychology, and international consulting done with UNICEF. The book offers tested tools that mobilize mass media, community groups, and autonomous "first movers" (or trendsetters) to alter harmful collective behaviors.