Master thesis | Classics and Ancient Civilizations (MA)
open access
This thesis provides an examination of the representation of gender roles in the Salmacis and Hermaphroditus scene in Ovid's Metamorphoses. Ovid thoroughly plays with gender roles and expectations...Show moreThis thesis provides an examination of the representation of gender roles in the Salmacis and Hermaphroditus scene in Ovid's Metamorphoses. Ovid thoroughly plays with gender roles and expectations of gender roles in the scene. The scene is examined in the light of intertextuality with other stories in Ovid's Metamorphoses, Odysseus' speech to Nausicaa in Homer's Odyssey and several similes.Show less
Working in teams has become common in many organisations. In studies about the performance of teams, psychological safety has become an popular topic. Psychological safety describes an atmosphere...Show moreWorking in teams has become common in many organisations. In studies about the performance of teams, psychological safety has become an popular topic. Psychological safety describes an atmosphere were employees feel comfortable speaking up about their concerns and new ideas. As the performance of an organisation is often dependent on innovation and innovative behaviour, we propose that psychological safety can positively predict innovative behaviour. Additionally, diversity was studied, specifically the characteristics age, gender, and work experience, and their individual influences on innovative behaviour and psychological safety. Previous research has shown mixed results about the performance of diverse teams, therefore it is necessary to extent research in this field. Data was collected using an online survey with questions regarding innovative behaviour and perceived psychological safety by employees from a Dutch organisation (N = 375). First, we used a simple linear regression to map the relationship between innovative behaviour and psychological safety. Second, we performed a simple linear regression to find the individual influences of age, gender, and work experience on respectively innovative behaviour and psychological safety. Additional analyses were performed to extend insight into the relations and internal structures of these constructs. Results showed that psychological safety is a positive predictor of innovative behaviour and that work experience can predict innovative behaviour in certain circumstances. We conclude that psychological safety can predict innovative behaviour and that diverse characteristics are unlikely to influence both constructs separately. However, further research is necessary to explain the role of diversity in this relationship, as this study has not been able to measure diversity as a team characteristic. Further suggestions and limitations are discussed.Show less
Morally responsible and ethical conduct has become more important for companies in recent years. The present study (N = 178) examines whether perceived brand traits differentially influence the...Show moreMorally responsible and ethical conduct has become more important for companies in recent years. The present study (N = 178) examines whether perceived brand traits differentially influence the purchase intentions of consumers. Additionally, the moderating effects of type of organization (for-profit versus non-profit) and gender are examined. The results partly support the hypotheses and indicate that perceived competence and perceived morality both relate to purchase intentions. In addition, for non-profit organizations, purchase intentions are mostly predicted by morality, whereas for for-profit organizations, competence most strongly predicts purchase intentions. The results further show that women’s purchase intentions are most strongly related to perceived morality, whereas men’s purchase intentions are related to perceived competence. Lastly, organization type and gender seem to have important moderating influences on the relationship between brands’ trait dimensions and consumers’ purchase intentions. Importantly, advertising organizational morality and competence appears to be an effective strategy for companies to keep consumers interested.Show less
Individuals with hearing loss (HL) have a range of social difficulties. Previous studies are suggesting that individuals with HL have fewer communication opportunities in comparison to typically...Show moreIndividuals with hearing loss (HL) have a range of social difficulties. Previous studies are suggesting that individuals with HL have fewer communication opportunities in comparison to typically hearing (TH) individuals, therefore have problems developing social strategies and competence. However, research is still lacking for prosociality in (pre-)adolescence with HL. The current study investigated spontaneous helping behavior in (pre-)adolescents with and without hearing loss, while also taking looking and smiling behaviors into account as prerequisite non-verbal communicative cues. 233 (pre-)adolescents between the ages of ten and sixteen took part in the study (Mean age= 146.71 months, SD=17.04), out of which 177 were TH and 56 had HL. Our results demonstrated that individuals with and without HL did not differ in their looking, smiling and spontaneous helping behaviors. There was no difference found in the target prosocial behavior between the different genders, parental education levels, or school types. Furthermore, age at amplification was found unrelated to looking and helping behaviors. Given our non-significant findings, we discuss the possible limitations of our research design such as group imbalances and lack of emphasis on certain individual differences, and address the literature gap in this particular clinical group during (pre-)adolescence.Show less
A dysfunction in conditioned pain modulation (CPM) is believed to be an important mechanism in chronic pain. Few studies investigated the role of expectations in pain modulation, while there are...Show moreA dysfunction in conditioned pain modulation (CPM) is believed to be an important mechanism in chronic pain. Few studies investigated the role of expectations in pain modulation, while there are indications that pain sensitivity can be affected by expectations. The present study examined whether expectations modulated the effect of conditioned pain stimulation. Since earlier research indicated gender differences and physiological stress levels might play a role in CPM as a response to positive or negative information, the present study will take gender differences and objective stress levels (heartrate and skin conductance levels) into account. Healthy participants (57 of each sex) between 18 – 35 years of age were randomly assigned to three experimental groups: 1) participants were told positive expectations, that holding the non-dominant hand in a cold-water bath will decrease the pain intensity of the test stimulus (analgesia group), 2) participants received the information that the conditioned stimuli will increase the pain intensity of the test stimulus (hyperalgesia group), 3) participants received no information about the effect (control condition). Results were analyzed with a mixed ANOVA. The results show that positive or negative expectations modulated the CPM effect compared to the control condition (p = .006). This effect was not dependent on gender. Conditioning stimulation increased skin conductance levels, but not heart rate in the hyperalgesia group. Higher skin conductance levels as a response to negative information were more visible in males compared to females. The present study suggests that inhibitory CPM can be influenced by verbal suggestions, and that a dysfunction of descending inhibitory pathways seems not the only possible cause of a reduced inhibitory CPM. Future research could examine if positive expectations can influence the altered CPM efficacy in patients with chronic pain.Show less
Brown and Levinson (1978, 1987) state that although interaction is co-operative, a person’s face can be unintentionally attacked through face-threatening acts (FTAs). Culpeper (1996) disagrees,...Show moreBrown and Levinson (1978, 1987) state that although interaction is co-operative, a person’s face can be unintentionally attacked through face-threatening acts (FTAs). Culpeper (1996) disagrees, stating that people can also intentionally attack someone’s face, and devised “impoliteness superstrategies” (pp. 356-357) that are used for this purpose. However, little research has been done on intentional impoliteness, and even less on gender and intentional impoliteness. Therefore, the research question is: do men and women use different face-threatening acts, and do they respond to these FTAs differently? I aimed to analyse adult men and women’s language, behaviour and paralinguistic features on FTAs and their responses to FTAs, focusing on the differences. This was done through analysis of a total of ten forty-minute episodes from three different reality television series: Can’t Pay? We’ll Take It Away! (n.a., 2014-2018), Supernanny (Frost, 2004-2008) and Jo Frost: Extreme Parental Guidance (Frost, 2010-2012), using a schedule based on the FTAs and impoliteness superstrategies by Brown and Levinson (1978, 1987), Culpeper (1996) and Bousfield (2008), respectively. The responses to FTAs were also recorded. Men and women seemed to use similar FTAs. However, the context in which the FTAs were spoken seemed to affect who was expressing which FTAs. A total of twelve different response types were recorded. These results can be used in different contexts (i.e. language teaching) to predict what kind of FTAs might be present in which contexts. They may also be used to add to both politeness and impoliteness theory.Show less
This thesis sought to answer the question: to what extent are documentary viewers consuming an androcentric image of the Palaeolithic? In order to reach a conclusion, it first examined several...Show moreThis thesis sought to answer the question: to what extent are documentary viewers consuming an androcentric image of the Palaeolithic? In order to reach a conclusion, it first examined several prominent models of human evolution and early subsistence, noting the roles of males and females in each, and any bias or stereotyping that arose. Secondly, ethnographic evidence was cautiously evaluated to determine the extent to which anthropological models of early hunter-gatherers accurately reflect modern hunter-gatherer lifestyles. In addition, representations and depictions of Palaeolithic life, and in particular Palaeolithic women and their work, from various popular media sources were examined. Evolutionary theory, ethnographic and archaeological evidence, and common themes in the representation of Palaeolithic women were examined together to devise a definition of ‘androcentrism’ in this context. This definition was then compared to the treatment of women in five documentaries depicting Palaeolithic life, chosen for their perceived scientific authority and influence over the public’s understanding of the Palaeolithic. The results of the analysis of these documentaries showed they firmly adhered to the definition of androcentrism previously devised. Across all documentaries, women were vastly underrepresented compared to men. Where women were represented, they were shown engaging in a much more limited range of activities than men, and these activities perpetuated a modern, Western notion of women’s ‘place’. Women were tied to activities associated with nature such as gathering and childcare, and were excluded from activities related to culture including stone tool use, ritual and art. Activities that were most commonly carried out by females, such as gathering, were also significantly underrepresented in comparison to perceived male activities such as large game hunting. Having established the significant overrepresentation of males and a privileging of their activities across all documentaries examined, this thesis concluded by offering advice for future documentaries to avoid presenting such an overtly androcentric view of the Palaeolithic.Show less
This thesis aims to show that vampires of Bram Stoker’s Dracula are the victims of a patriarchal society, as well as a reaction to the upcoming feminist ideal of the New Woman during the fin de...Show moreThis thesis aims to show that vampires of Bram Stoker’s Dracula are the victims of a patriarchal society, as well as a reaction to the upcoming feminist ideal of the New Woman during the fin de siècle. Additionally, this thesis will show that the framework of the gothic empowers gender nonconforming men and women by subverting Victorian expectations surrounding marriage and gender. Stoker did not denounce the New Woman, but instead recognized the patriarchal Victorian society as a gothic structure that oppressed any man or woman who did not conform.Show less
This thesis focuses on human rights film festivals, in particular Movies that Matter Festival (MTMF) – a relatively small yet significant human rights film festival based in the Netherlands....Show moreThis thesis focuses on human rights film festivals, in particular Movies that Matter Festival (MTMF) – a relatively small yet significant human rights film festival based in the Netherlands. Alongside the festival itself, I investigate the MTMF 2019 film program and the process of film programming leading to its creation. As a film festival with a focus on human rights issues, one can expect MTMF to attempt a varied and all-encompassing approach to its selection of themes and films. Although MTMF does not centre its film programming (and consequently its film program) to gender and genre inclusivity, it is precisely this that offers an opportunity for the study of gender and genre. In this thesis, I examine how MTMF, and specifically the film programming undertaken in 2019, draws on recent developments in contemporary human rights theory in order to implement inclusivity and diversity. As I shall establish, inclusivity and diversity are pillars of both critical film festival studies and human rights film festivals. To achieve this goal, I have organized this thesis into three main chapters. In the first chapter, I study the significance of the “Universal Declaration of Human Rights” (1948) to human rights theory and human rights film festivals today. Moreover, I investigate the fundamental theoretical concepts from human rights theory that apply to the field of human rights film festivals. In the second chapter, I closely examine 50502020 Pledge for Gender Parity and Inclusion in Film Festivals (2018) and study the MTMF 2019 film program from the perspective of gender and genre. I question the impact a film programmer’s, as well as filmmaker’s gender, may have on a film, especially given that the majority of films released in both commercial and art-house cinemas present the male gaze, as I shall demonstrate. I end with a third chapter that offers a close analysis of the process of film programming, an area which my research reveals to be sadly under-examined by film festival scholars. Here, I delve into the methods and power structures of film selection, deriving from film programmers’ presupposed ideas of on what a human rights film and a human rights film festival could be.Show less
Analysis of the imagery on the covers of the Soviet women's magazine Rabotnitsa and a comparison to the societal trends of the given period (1960-1985) concerning the reprivatising of women's lives...Show moreAnalysis of the imagery on the covers of the Soviet women's magazine Rabotnitsa and a comparison to the societal trends of the given period (1960-1985) concerning the reprivatising of women's lives and the double burden.Show less
