The goal of Handbook of International Perspectives on Feminism is to present the histories, status, and contours of feminist research and practice in their respective regional and/or national contexts. The editors have invited researchers who are doing this work to present their perspectives on women, culture, and rights with the objective to illuminate the diverse forms that feminist psychological work takes around the world, and connect these forms with the unique positions and concerns of women in these regions.

What does "feminist psychology" look like in Japan? In South Africa? In Sri Lanka? In Canada? In Brazil? How did it come to look this way? How do psychologists in these countries or regions, each with unique political, economic, and cultural histories, engage in feminist work in the societies in which they live? How do they employ the tools of "psychology" - broadly defined - to do this work, and what tensions and challenges have they faced?

Handbook of International Feminisms

Perspectives on Psychology, Women, Culture, and Rights

 

Alexandra Rutherford, Rose Capdevila, U. Vindhya, and Ingrid Palmary, Editors

 

Although feminism has influenced psychological theory and practice across much of the world, their intersection has rarely been an easy one - particularly in post-colonial, and more recently, globalizing and transnational contexts.  The Handbook of International Feminisms offers a dynamic and nuanced picture of the diversity of feminism and its challenges around the world, both inside and outside of academia.

 

As seen in these pages, the very concept of 'feminist psychology' varies widely, as do the conditions under which it struggles or flourishes. Resistance to feminism may come from psychology in particular or the culture at large, in clashes between egalitarian ideals and longstanding cultural beliefs and practices that are inimical to women's interests. In some countries, the emergence of psychology and/or feminism is often seen as Western interference rather than welcome innovation. In others, activist psychologists are pressured to downplay aspects of their work or risk marginalization by the mainstream. Throughout this volume, the coverage is balanced between local context and global connection and commitment. Chapters analyze current and historical developments from:

 

• Brazil.                                                  ?Canada.
• India.                                                   ?Spain.
• Turkey.                                               ?Britain.
• China.                                                  ?Nordic region.
• South Africa.                                      ?Sri Lanka.
• Israel.                                                  ?Pakistan.
• New Zealand.                                     ?United States.

 

As a comparative study, a call for new lines of communication, or a springboard for future interventions within psychology, the Handbook of International Feminisms is a significant volume for  psychologists of women and gender, clinical, social, and developmental psychologists, researchers in women's studies, and upper-level students in women's studies and behavioral science courses.

"...The handbook is an original and significant contribution to the international literature on women's studies. It is not an easy read but it would be an accessible and important text for advanced students, scholars, and practitioners across a range of disciplines. Persons engaged in human rights education and activism would also find this book a useful resource. The book's message is complex but overall, positively stirring. Feminism and psychology are powerful forces around the world. They have been variously engaged with, and estranged from each other, at different times in history, and depending on cultural context. Separately and together, they have made and continue to make critical contributions, ideologically and practically, to the lives of women and men everywhere."
Silvia Sara Canetto
Sex Roles, DOI 10.1007/s11199-013-0299-7
June 13, 2013