Gender and social movements - Gender processes in women's self-help movements

Mainstream theory and research in the field of social movements and politic al sociology has, by and large, ignored the influence of gender on social p rotest. A growing body of feminist research demonstrates that gender is an explanatory factor in the emergence, nature, and outcomes of all social mov ements, even those that do not evoke the language of gender conflict or exp licitly embrace gender change. This article draws from a case study of the postpartum depression self-help movement to outline the relationship betwee n gender and social movements. Linking theories of gender to mainstream the ories on social movements allows res to recognize gender as a hey explanato ry factor in social movements and, in turn to identify the role that social movements play in the social construction of gender.