Gender Relations in the Private Sphere
(2009-2010)

Coordinators: Elena Zdravomyslova (CISR) and Anna Temkina (European University at St. Petersburg).
The project investigates class, regional, and ethnic-based gender inequality production and reproduction of distinctions in the private sphere in contemporary Russia. It aims to study the distribution of gender roles in young families (or long-term de facto couples) and relationships between various generations.
The three main topics of empirical research are as specified:
1) domestic sphere and relations of caring (including care for children, sick, and elderly people);
2) tendencies in changes in sexual life;
3) reproductive and sexual health care benefits.
The project is a comparative study of several cases in different regions (Arkhangelsk, Kazan, and Samara). The study employs the methods of biographically-oriented in-depth interviews and participant observation.
Participants from CISR: Elena Zdravomyslova, Olga Tkach.
Supported by the Ford Foundation.

Little Mothers: Between the Liberalization of Sexuality and the Battle for Morality
(2009)

Partners: NITS "Region", Center for Gender Research of Samara, EU in St. Petersburg.
Project director: Nadya Nartova.
This research is a part of the "umbrella" project entitled "Youth of the 21st Century: New Challenges in Gender Perspectives," carried out by NITS "Region" and directed by Elena Omelchenko.
Underage mothers "traditionally" fall under the categorization of "bad" mothers and their families are generally considered disadvantaged, insofar as they fail to fit with the needed norms of the middle-class family model. Pathologizing and stigmatizing public debates discursively produce the teenage mother as an element of society's moral degeneration, sexual liberalization and the burgeoning of social dependency. While teenage pregnancies often end with abortion, a birth rate in these pregnancies is also very high. Given that pregnancy and motherhood are both complicated and resource-demanding experiences even for adult mothers, not to mention teenagers, the central question of this research is formulated as follows: "In what form are life strategies being (re)organized by underage mothers in connection with pregnancy and the birth of a child?" Research has shown that pregnancy and the birth of a child bring a variety of important "biographical redefinitions" into the life of an underage mother. Underage mothers incorporate the maternal role into their lives, formulate "conduct with a minimal level of harm," develop strategies for the organization of desired results and demonstrate responsibility for themselves and for their children.
Project participant from CISR: Nadya Nartova.
Project supported by Heinrich Boell Foundation.

Gender-based Discrimination in the Employment Sphere
(2008)

Joint project with the Legal Centre "Petersburg EGIDA" (association for social protection).
Coordinator: Irina Olimpieva (CISR).
The basic question, which has become a starting point for carrying out sociological research, is why do women in their current situation of inequality in the employment sphere not approach legal and human rights organizations for help? The object of the research is women who deal with hazardous employment conditions. Two dissimilarly developed St. Petersburg enterprises of the shipbuilding industry were selected for a case study.
Participants from CISR: Lubov Ejova, Nadya Nartova, Irina Olimpieva.
Supported by the Nordic Council of Ministers.

New Reproductive Technologies and theљMaking of Bodies, Persons and Families in Russia and Switzerland
(2006-2009)

Collective international project.
Organisers: CISR, University of Zurich (Switzerland).
Coordinators: Prof. Dr.љWillemijn de Jong (University of Zurich), Olga Brednikova (CISR).
Theљgoal of theљproject is to investigate theљimpacts of New Reproductive Technologies (NRT) on ideas and practices related to bodies, persons, and families - aљnew field of research in theљsocial sciences in Russia and Switzerland. Theљmain research questions are:
1) What are theљprocesses of development and distribution of reproductive technologies in Russia and Switzerland? Who are theљagents involved in theљproduction of theљdiscourse on NRT? What are theљdiscursive fields and theљmain narratives through which theљsocial knowledge on NRT is created?
2) How have theљmeanings and practices related to theљbody, theљperson, family and kinship changed under theљinfluence of NRT? To what extent do issues of citizenship (subnational, national, transnational) and religion come into play?
3) What is theљrole of NRT, theљbody, theљperson and theљfamily in theљcontext of "enterprise culture", both from theљproducers' and consumers' perspectives? In which economic and political contexts is theљdevelopment of NRT embedded, nationally and transnationally?
Theљmain research methodology is discourse analysis.
Participants from CISR: Olga Brednikova, Nadezda Nartova, Olga Tkach.
Supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SCOPES programme: Scientific Co-operation between Eastern Europe and Switzerland).

Discrimination against Women in theљArea of Reproduction Rights: New Reproductive Technologies
(2006-2007)

Joint project with theљDepartment of Political Science and Sociology (European University at St.љPetersburg); and "Probirka", theљPublic Association of Users of Reproductive Technologies (website: www.probirka.ru).
Coordinator: Nadezda Nartova (CISR).
Our country has at present one of theљhighest infertility rates in theљworld, since theљnumber of women of childbearing age in Russia experiencing difficulty in conceiving and delivering children has increased significantly over theљlast ten years. In this case theљproblem remains shrouded by silence - virtually no academics, feminist activists or media representatives are interested in by what means and at what price aљhuge number of Russian women come by their babies. Theљproblem is similarly excluded from state social policy, for this concentrates solely on assisting mothers and children, providing material support for them, and fighting poverty. And what is more, much noise is made by both academics and theљgeneral public about theљdemographic crisis in Russia. Accordingly, theљeconomic and social barriers and emotional and physical difficulties for women who want to have children, but are unable to, turn out to be 'unworthy' of public, political and academic attention. This in turn facilitates aљviolation of women's rights and discrimination against them.
For this reason theљaim of this project is to expose and analyse theљmain methods and mechanisms of discrimination against women using New Reproductive Technologies in contemporary Russia and to propose various possibilities for overcoming discrimination.
Participants from CISR: Nadezda Nartova, Olga Brednikova, Elena Zdravomyslova.
Supported by theљHeinrich Boell Foundation.

Public Discussion in theљMuslim Community of Russia and Ukraine and theљPerspectives for Defense of Muslim Women's Rights
(2006-2007)

Joint project with theљInstitute for Humanities and Political Studies (Moscow).
Coordinator: Alexander Osipov (CISR).
Theљbasic goal of theљproject is theљstudy of how theљcurrent public discussion within theљRussian and Ukrainian Muslim communities addresses gender issues and affects theљstatus and rights of women. Theљproject is also aiming at examination of what kind of opportunities for women activism and for theљdefense of women rights within theљMuslim community this discussion provides for. Theљresearch methods include examination of theљMuslim printed and electronic media in Russia and Ukraine in Russian and Turkic languages for analyzing theљgender dimension of theљIslamic mainstream ideologies. Additionally, in-depth problem-oriented interviews with Muslim community leaders as well as biographical interviews with role model women activists are envisaged.
Participant from CISR: Alexander Osipov.
Supported by theљJohnљD. and CatherineљT. MacArthur Foundation.

From theљExclusion of "OTHERS" to theљAcceptance of "VARIATIONS". Overcoming Discrimination in theљSexual Sphere through theљInclusion of Young People in Creative Social Initiatives
(2006)

Organisers: CISR, Research Centre "Region" (Ulyanovsk).
Coordinators: Elena Omelchenko (Research Centre "Region"), Nadezda Nartova (CISR).
In today's Russia it is essential for theљconsolidation of democratic principles, tolerance and diversity recognition politics that certain projects are created and developed. These include projects aimed at involving active young people (researchers and leaders of civil initiatives) in new practices helping to overcome resistant gender/sexual stereotypes, to increase their competence in gender and feminist theories and practices, and to develop individual and group skills for civil activity aimed at overcoming discrimination. For this reason, theљaims of this project are: to problematize theљfield of sex/gender/sexuality; to reveal theљmain discriminatory trends; to teach methods of working within theљ'new' critical perspective on how sex/gender/sexuality is viewed; to teach effective strategies for theљrealization of social projects, orientated towards contemporary Russian youth, young 'theorists' and 'practicians'; and to jointly create and develop concrete non-discriminatory social projects in theљarea of sexuality etc.
Participant from CISR: Nadezda Nartova.
Supported by theљHeinrich Boell Foundation.

Sexual and Fertile Practices in Russia: Freedom and Responsibility
(St. Petersburg, Beginning of the 21st Century)
(2005-2006)

Project of the European University at St. Petersburg.
Coordinators: Anna Temkina (European University at St. Petersburg), Nadezda Nartova (CISR - European University at St. Petersburg).
This project has the following objectives: the description and analysis of practices in the sphere of sexuality, and sexual and reproductive behaviour/health; the analysis of age- specific and generational differences in the sphere of sexuality and the reproductive sphere (including separating out age groups characterised by different experiences); discovering the changes and differences in sexual and reproductive behaviour in relation to the Soviet and early post-Soviet periods. The project is coupled with research on sexuality being conducted in Saint-Petersburg with the support of the Academy of Sciences of Finland in the years 1994-1996, and the current project "Fertility Patterns and Family Forms" (2004-2007).
Participants from CISR: Elena Zdravomyslova, Nadezda Nartova, Olga Brednikova, Olga Tkach, Boris Gladarev.
Supported by the European University at St. Petersburg, the Ford Foundation.

The Denial of Motherhood
(2005-2006)

The individual project was initiated as an offshoot of the project, "Sexual and Fertile Practices in Russia: Freedom and Responsibility" (2005-2006, supported by the European University at St. Petersburg and the Ford Foundation). The goals of the project are toљreconstruct theљsocial mechanisms of the coercion of women to obligatory motherhood; to understand the reasons for the denial of motherhood; and toљanalyse theљeveryday conceptions of motivations to "have a child." In the course of the project interviews are being conducted, and Internet sites and different popular texts are being investigated (manuals/recommendations for women, publications in women's magazines, information stands in women's maternity clinics and so forth).
Researcher: Olga Brednikova.
Initiative project.

Fertility Patterns and Family Forms
(2004-2007)

Joint project with the Gender Programme of the European University at St. Petersburg and the University of Helsinki (Finland).
Coordinators: Elena Zdravomyslova (CISR), Anna Rotkirch (Department of Social Policy, University of Helsinki).
At the centre of the investigation is the change in the models of family and reproductive behaviour in the young cohort of the population, theљprivatisation of life, and the commercialisation of the everyday. The research is being conducted in St. Petersburg. One of the measures of theљgender order are the relations of caring. Who exercises care, and how is it exercised in new conditions? How widespread are theљpossibilities to commercialise care and what are the social consequences of this process? The answers to these research questions presuppose the use of the method of biographical research and the technique of in-depth interviews. The project will include 25 in-depth interviews with family members representing the new generation of the middle class in Russia, and 50 interviews with domestic servants and nannies, who work for middle-class families.
Participants from CISR: Elena Bogdanova, Elena Zdravomyslova, Olga Tkach, Nadezda Nartova, Olga Brednikova, Anastasia Zolotova, Boris Gladarev.
Supported by the Academy of Finland.

Discovering Determinants of Reproductive Health through Comparative Research
(2003-2007)

Joint project with the National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health (STAKES, Helsinki), the University of Helsinki and theљSt.љPetersburg Medical Academy of Postgraduate Studies.
Coordinator: Elina Hemminki (STAKES).
This interdisciplinary project, through comparative research, studied changes in reproductive health indicators of men and women in three countries (Russia, Estonia, and Finland). The research included questioning men eligible for military service and young women (during visits to antenatal clinics) in St. Petersburg. The project aimed to strengthen cooperation among international research networks and to assist in theљformation of new networks, which would use an interdisciplinary approach (medicine, social sciences) in the study of problems of reproductive health and problems associated with risky sexual behaviour.
Participant from CISR: Natalia Fedorova.
Supported by the Academy of Finland and the Baltic Sea Task Force (Denmark).

The "Soldiers' Mothers" Movement in Russia
(Since 1995)

The purpose of the research is to analyse the factors of development, the motives for participation, the ideology, and the forms of activity of the human rights movement, "Soldiers' Mothers." The research is longitudinal. Until now the study's main object has been the St. Petersburg human rights organisation, "Soldiers' Mothers." The next step will be to expand the empirical field of research by including organisations in Syktyvkar and the Soldiers' Mothers Committee in Moscow. One of the basic research interests is the gender ideology of the movement.
Researcher: Elena Zdravomyslova.
Initiative project.

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