Feminist Psychologies

Book excerpt: This book aims to be a comprehensive resource that will apprise readers of the complex dynamics of the psychological interiors of women and others in the sex and gender spectrum, as they grapple with sociopolitical and cultural constraints. Going beyond the ambit of mainstream psychology, this volume draws from interdisciplinary fields of women’s/gender studies to highlight power imbalances, their intersectional nature, and the ways in which they shape the psychology of gender relations. The book illuminates three focal themes of identities, well-being, and relations, which illustrate the psychological, contextualised in the backdrop of social, political, and cultural developments in contemporary India. The first theme explores the building of identities in the changing dynamics of work–family interfaces, non-normative sexualities, and genders and the intersections of caste, gender, and social hierarchies. The second theme focuses on the gendering of mental health, including the intervention of feminist counselling. The third theme highlights conceptualisations and practices of masculinities and the role of agency, empowerment, and collective action in the pathways to equitable gender relations and social transformation. This book will be of interest to students, teachers, researchers of psychology, and of women’s/gender studies. It will also be useful for anyone who is interested to learn about recent psychological scholarship in India, informed and imbued with a feminist perspective on women as well as other genders.