Psychology Of Women Conference Discusses Women's Rights, UK

Main Category: Psychology / Psychiatry
Also Included In: Women's Health / Gynecology;  Conferences
Article Date: 17 Jul 2008 - 2:00 PDT

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'Hot lesbians' and 'vengeful lovers'; are these depictions of women in advertising sexist or empowering? Must women police officers become 'one of the boys' to be accepted and respected in the police service? These are just some of the topics being discussed at The British Psychological Society Psychology of Women Section Annual Conference, in Windsor.

Over 80 psychologists and feminist academics from the UK and abroad are meeting at the conference, themed 'rights and change' which runs until 18 July 2008. Keynote Speaker Associate Professor Nicola Gavey from the University of Auckland, New Zealand, will talk about the how the way rape is discussed has changed from trivial to traumatic, and the impacts this change has had both on rape victims and rape prevention.

Dr Rosalind Gill from the Open University will discuss how the depictions of women in advertising have changed from passive objects of male gaze, to active and sexually powerful 'vengeful lovers' and 'hot lesbians', and questions whether these images are empowering or sexist.

Based on her experiences as a clinical psychologist working with women seeking refuge in the UK, Dr Nimisha Patel, from the Medical Foundation for care of victims of torture, examines current psychological theories and treatments for female survivors of rape and sexual torture.

Dr Bridgette Rickett from Leeds Metropolitan University will be presenting her research on gender identity of female police officers, in which she discovered that 'the accepted policewoman is one of the boys', and that female police officers curb their femininity in order to be accepted and respected.

A study of the experiences of five women seeking breast augmentation on the NHS for mental health reasons will be presented by Katie Trickey from Canterbury Christ Church University. This research found that a lack of criteria for breast augmentation and guidance for health professionals on who could benefit, resulted in an incoherent and difficult journey for these women.

The full programme of the Psychology of Women Section Annual Conference can be viewed in the Conference and Events Section.

British Psychological Society