Women in Power: World Leaders since 1960

(Hardback)

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Women in Power profiles 22 world leaders who have held the top positions of political power since 1960. Each chapter is devoted to a region of the world. In addition to providing an overview of the political careers of the women who emerged as leaders in these regions, the authors examine the political systems of each region in terms of the involvement of women in politics. Biographies of these political leaders are embedded within regional analyses that reveal not only the personal circumstances that each woman faced in her quest for power but also the political milieu from which she emerged. We learn about the obstacles as well as the advantages these women faced, and we derive insights into the structures that exist in our own societies regarding the power relations between men and women. Women in Power also devotes a chapter to differing theories of women's leadership and various theories of feminism around the world. Finally, in an effort to understand how the United States can appear to be the bastion of women's liberation around the world and yet have only 15 percent representation of women in power and no female president to date, the authors explore prospects for the upcoming 2008 U.S. presidential election and discuss potential candidates.

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Some can attribute their accession to authority to decades of political struggle. Others can point to a lifelong commitment to supporting tradition, albeit with a bit of difference in their cases. Some hold power through faith, others through family. Yet one significant element in these 22 leaders is the same: they are all women. Hodgensen and Solheim examine the lives and work of women from Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Europe and the Americas from the 1960s onward, analyzing their political and social impact as politicians, agents of change, and role models. They also provide an analysis of differing theories about women's leadership and feminist theories and describe potential candidates for the US presidency at theoretical and practical levels. * Reference & Research Book News *
Women in Power covers the obstacles as well as the advantages these women faced and offers insights into our societies' structures with regard to the power relations between men and women. It also considers differing theories of women's leadership and feminism around the world. * Library Media Connection Online *

Author Bio

Gunhild Hoogensen is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Tromso in Norway. Bruce O. Solheim is Professor of History at Citrus College in Glendora, California.