The articles collated in this text explore: how social policy constructs gendered relations; the difference/equailty debate; representations and discourses in social policy; the tensions and issues associated with restructuring domestic relations; and feminist alternatives to mainstream social policy solutions. The book adopts a comparative and international perspective taking on board the importance of global changes as well as illustrating its argument with practices and research from a number of countries. Overall, the text raises issues for students, academics and practitioners dealing...

"Lesley Doyal has done it again By making a political, cross-cultural analysis the core of every topic she covers, she makes us change the way we think about and act on critical issues in women's health. Students in public health and in women studies will find this intelligent, accessible book a unique and enlightening resource." --Nancy Worcester, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and National Women's Health Network What makes women sick? To an Ecuadorean woman, it's nervios from constant worry about her children's illnesses. To a woman working in a New Mexico electronics factory, it's the...

Lesley Doyal draws on a wide range of disciplines to highlight the limitations of medical models in understanding global patterns of health and disease in women. Examining in detail the impact of sexuality, fertility control, reproduction, domestic labour and waged work on women's well-being, she shows how gender divisions in economic and social life affect their experiences of illness, disability and mortality. A concluding chapter illustrates the multiplicity of ways in which women around the world are challenging the threats to their health.