The approach exemplified by the UNCTAD study on ‘Women, Technology, and Sexual Divisions’, prepared by Amartya Sen “emphasizes the perceptual biases surrounding women’s contributions to the household. [It] notes people’s reluctance to face the powerful conflicts of interest within households, especially those between men and women, which are often hidden by the efforts of households to emphasize their common concerns. Inequality in the treatment of women is widely perceived as legitimate because women’s contributions are perceived as marginal or subsidiary and, consequently, their lesser ‘entitlements’ as justified.” (Bourque and Warren, 1987:185)
Sources:
Bourque, S.C. and Warren, K.B. (1987) ‘Technology, Gender, and Development’, Daedalus (Learning about Women: Gender, Politics, and Power) 116.4: 173-197
UN Conference on Trade and Development, Secretariat. Women, Technology and Sexual Divisions. Study prepared by Amartya K. Sen at the request of the UNCTAD secretariat and INSTRAW. New York: UN, 1985. UNCTAD/TT/79
See also:
Malcom, S.M., Morita-Lou, H., Boulware, P. and Burns, S.M. (1985) Science, Technology and Women: A World Perspective, Education and Human Resources Programs, American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Malcom, S. Knowledge, Technology & Development: A Gendered Perspective. Education and Human Resources Programs, American Association for the Advancement of Science. http://archive.wigsat.org/malcom.html
UN Commission on Science and Technology for Development (UNCSTD) and American Association for the Advancement of Science (1983) ‘Consideration of the reports of the 1983 panels of the Advisory Committee: S&T and women’; report of the Ad Hoc Panel of Experts on S&T and Women, http://www.wigsat.org/front_page
Bibliography on Women and ICT4D http://www.wigsat.org/node/21
Gender and the Knowledge Society http://www.wigsat.org/node/23