IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/socmed/v283y2021ics0277953621004652.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Visualizing drivers of gender health disparities: Ongoing participatory action research following the 2011 disaster in Japan

Author

Listed:
  • Yoshihama, Mieko

Abstract

As part of an ongoing participatory action research project initiated following the 2011 Great East Japan Disaster to improve disaster policies and responses, this study examines social factors and processes that affect women's well-being in and after disasters. Using PhotoVoice methodology, the project has engaged women affected by the Great East Japan Disaster in participatory assessment and analysis over the last ten years. Begun in three sites in June 2011, the project is currently operating in seven locations: four in the coastal areas affected by the tsunami in the Iwate and Miyagi prefectures; two in Fukushima Prefecture; and one in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area, where the largest number of out-of-prefecture evacuees reside. Participating members, recruited in collaboration with local NGOs, are women affected by the disaster aged from in their 20s to over 70 years. They take photographs of their lives and attend facilitated group discussions on an ongoing basis. Participatory analysis of their photographs and narratives by members and group facilitators (including the author) uses the analytical approach of grounded theory's open and focused coding with constant comparison. The analysis identifies various ways the disaster affected women, compromising their livelihood, safety, and well-being. It reveals an interconnection between the evacuation of children and women of reproductive age, loss of employment in the female-dominated occupational sectors, and increased dependent care responsibilities, which in turn compromises women's financial and emotional well-being. The analysis also elucidates the gendered division of labor in private and public spheres, shortages of maternal and infant health care, and gender-based violence in the post-disaster context. Notably, many of these issues and connections correspond to known social determinants of health disparities. The study findings add a valuable but often neglected local perspective and call for increased policy attention to eliminating gender disparities in disasters.

Suggested Citation

  • Yoshihama, Mieko, 2021. "Visualizing drivers of gender health disparities: Ongoing participatory action research following the 2011 disaster in Japan," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 283(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:283:y:2021:i:c:s0277953621004652
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.114133
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953621004652
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.114133?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Castleden, Heather & Garvin, Theresa & First Nation, Huu-ay-aht, 2008. "Modifying Photovoice for community-based participatory Indigenous research," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 66(6), pages 1393-1405, March.
    2. Miyawaki, Atsushi & Tanaka, Hirokazu & Kobayashi, Yasuki & Kawachi, Ichiro, 2019. "Informal caregiving and mortality―Who is protected and who is not? A prospective cohort study from Japan," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 223(C), pages 24-30.
    3. Yoshihama, M. & Horrocks, J. & Kamano, S., 2007. "Experiences of intimate partner violence and related injuries among women in Yokohama, Japan," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 97(2), pages 232-234.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Flor Rivera Lopez & Fern Wickson & Vera Helene Hausner, 2018. "Finding CreativeVoice: Applying Arts-Based Research in the Context of Biodiversity Conservation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(6), pages 1-18, May.
    2. Kelli Chelberg & Lisa Bosman, 2019. "The Role of Faculty Mentoring in Improving Retention and Completion Rates for Historically Underrepresented STEM Students," International Journal of Higher Education, Sciedu Press, vol. 8(2), pages 1-39, April.
    3. Luisa Fernanda Tribiño & Leonardo Garavito, 2018. "Debates contemporáneos sobre turismo, tomo IV. Ética y buen vivir. Rflexiones actuales para la planificación y gestión del turismo," Books, Universidad Externado de Colombia, Facultad de Administración de Empresas Turísticas y Hoteleras, number 29, April.
    4. Paola A. Torres-Slimming & Carlee Wright & Cesar P. Carcamo & Patricia J. Garcia & IHACC Research Team & Sherilee L. Harper, 2019. "Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals: A Mixed Methods Study of Health-Related Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) for Indigenous Shawi in the Peruvian Amazon," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(13), pages 1-17, July.
    5. Fatima Ahmed & Eric N. Liberda & Andrew Solomon & Roger Davey & Bernard Sutherland & Leonard J. S. Tsuji, 2023. "Indigenous Land-Based Approaches to Well-Being: The Niska (Goose) Harvesting Program in Subarctic Ontario, Canada," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(4), pages 1-29, February.
    6. Switzer, S. & Guta, A. & de Prinse, K. & Chan Carusone, S. & Strike, C., 2015. "Visualizing harm reduction: Methodological and ethical considerations," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 133(C), pages 77-84.
    7. Jyotika Saksena & Shannon L. McMorrow, 2020. "Through their Eyes: A Photovoice and Interview Exploration of Integration Experiences of Congolese Refugee Women in Indianapolis," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 21(2), pages 529-549, June.
    8. Behdin Nowrouzi & Lorrilee McGregor & Alicia McDougall & Donna Debassige & Jennifer Casole & Christine Nguyen & Behnam Nowrouzi-Kia & Deborah McGregor, 2017. "Ethics of Biological Sampling Research with Aboriginal Communities in Canada," Global Journal of Health Science, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 9(4), pages 1-20, April.
    9. Mette Kirstine Tørslev & Dicte Bjarup Thøgersen & Ane Høstgaard Bonde & Paul Bloch & Annemarie Varming, 2021. "Supporting Positive Parenting and Promoting Healthy Living through Family Cooking Classes," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(9), pages 1-18, April.
    10. Yoshihama, Mieko & Horrocks, Julie & Bybee, Deborah, 2010. "Intimate partner violence and initiation of smoking and drinking: A population-based study of women in Yokohama, Japan," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 71(6), pages 1199-1207, September.
    11. Emel ESEN & Edibe ÖZBAY, 2023. "Descriptive Emotion Sharing: Photovoice," Yildiz Social Science Review, Yildiz Technical University, vol. 9(2), pages 73-83.
    12. Nico Irawan & Pratiwi Retnaningdyah & Ali Mustofa, 2022. "International Students' Experience of Learning to Speak Interculturally on an Online Platform," Studies in Media and Communication, Redfame publishing, vol. 10(2), pages 53-64, December.
    13. Samantha Teixeira, 2016. "Beyond Broken Windows: Youth Perspectives on Housing Abandonment and its Impact on Individual and Community Well-Being," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 9(3), pages 581-607, September.
    14. Rachel deHaan & Helen Hambly Odame & Naresh Thevathasan & Sarath P. Nissanka, 2020. "Local Knowledge and Perspectives of Change in Homegardens: A Photovoice Study in Kandy District, Sri Lanka," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-21, August.
    15. Lyndsay M. C. Hayhurst & Lidieth del Socorro Cruz Centeno, 2019. "“We Are Prisoners in Our Own Homes”: Connecting the Environment, Gender-Based Violence and Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights to Sport for Development and Peace in Nicaragua," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(16), pages 1-29, August.
    16. Ronzi, Sara & Puzzolo, Elisa & Hyseni, Lirije & Higgerson, James & Stanistreet, Debbi & Hugo, MBatchou Ngahane Bertrand & Bruce, Nigel & Pope, Daniel, 2019. "Using photovoice methods as a community-based participatory research tool to advance uptake of clean cooking and improve health: The LPG adoption in Cameroon evaluation studies," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 228(C), pages 30-40.
    17. Bria Willert & Krista Lynn Minnotte, 2021. "Informal Caregiving and Strains: Exploring the Impacts of Gender, Race, and Income," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 16(3), pages 943-964, June.
    18. Mikraszewicz, Kathleen & Richmond, Chantelle, 2019. "Paddling the Biigtig: Mino biimadisiwin practiced through canoeing," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 240(C).
    19. Samuel J. Spiegel & Sarah Thomas & Kevin O’Neill & Cassandra Brondgeest & Jen Thomas & Jiovanni Beltran & Terena Hunt & Annalee Yassi, 2020. "Visual Storytelling, Intergenerational Environmental Justice and Indigenous Sovereignty: Exploring Images and Stories amid a Contested Oil Pipeline Project," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-20, March.
    20. Sherren, Kate & Fischer, Joern & Fazey, Ioan, 2012. "Managing the grazing landscape: Insights for agricultural adaptation from a mid-drought photo-elicitation study in the Australian sheep-wheat belt," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 106(1), pages 72-83.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:283:y:2021:i:c:s0277953621004652. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/315/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.