Gender Equity
In Comparative Cultural Studies: European and Latin American Perspectives, we aim to break with the patriarchal and androcentric gender biases present in scientific production and to disseminate knowledge that promotes gender equality. To this end, the journal incorporates a cross-cutting gender approach throughout the editorial process, as well as in the writing and publication of articles, positively valuing those contributions that incorporate women's knowledge and analysis against gender discrimination.
a) Editorial participation.
It is important for the journal Comparative Cultural Studies to achieve a balanced composition of women and men in its editorial management bodies. To this end, we aim to achieve as equal a balance as possible among the members of the Editorial Team and the peer reviewers.
The percentages of men and women in the editorial management bodies will be published annually on the journal's website.
b) Promotion of research with a gender perspective.
In order to promote a gendered approach, the Comparative Cultural Studies Journal includes a number of considerations in its editorial guidelines and proposes a guide to be taken into account in the preparation and writing of academic papers. In turn, reviewers will consider the use of inclusive language in their review process.
One of the issues to be considered will be the references used; in the citation process, it will be taken into account in the writing process to indicate whether the authors are women or men, in order to make visible the contributions and knowledge of women in each field of knowledge.
For more information on the gender approach in research, please consult
European Commission (2011). Gender in research. Directorate-General for Research and Innovation. Publications Office. https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2777/23655
In line with these recommendations, the Comparative Cultural Studies Journal aims to promote principles and values related to gender equality, interdisciplinarity and commitment to the betterment of society.
c) Inclusive language.
The use of inclusive language will be one of the criteria set out in the writing standards and peer review. The following are recommendations for the use of non-sexist and inclusive language:
1.- Preferably, use gender-neutral terms when referring to both sexes
According to the recommendations of the European Parliament (2018), the general trend is "to reduce as far as possible the use of gender-specific terms, [...] (using instead) gender-neutral terms, i.e., words that are not gender-specific and refer to people in general, without reference to women or men." (p.5).
Other recommendations we consider important are those made by the Linguistic Society of America (2023):
2.- Do not use the generic masculine in representation of a group that is not masculine, i.e., avoid terms that ignore women and their experiences. Name them wherever they appear.
3.- Whenever possible, use terms that avoid sexual stereotyping. Such terms as server, professor, and nurse can be effectively used as gender neutral; marked terms like waitress, lady professor, and male nurse cannot.
4.- Make women and their contributions visible and use parallel forms of reference for women and men, e.g., do not cite a male scholar by surname only and a female scholar by first name or initial plus surname.
5.- In constructing example sentences, avoid gender-stereotyped characterizations.
6.- Avoid peopling your examples exclusively with one sex.
7.- Alternate the order of appearance of masculine and feminine forms.
Finally, we recommend:
8.- Pay attention to images and/or audiovisual messages (advertising, among others) that are not in accordance with the use of inclusive language and that, consequently, contribute to the construction of stereotypes of women or men.
References
European Parliament. (2018). Gender-neutral language in the European Parlament. European Parliament. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/cmsdata/151780/GNL_Guidelines_EN.pdf
Linguistic Society of America. (2023). The LSA Guidelines for Nonsexist Usage. Linguistic Society of America. https://www.linguisticsociety.org/resource/lsa-guidelines-nonsexist-usage
