engleski

Gendered Values and Attitudes among Rural Women in Croatia

This paper, based on ethnographic research in rural villages of Croatia, explores to what extent we can talk about a 'return to tradition' as observed in other studies of transition countries following the collapse of socialism. It asks whether there was ever really a departure from traditional gendered values and attitudes during socialism and whether these gendered values and attitudes have subsequently been given new meaning in these villages in the post-transition/war period. Principally based on rural women’ s accounts of their experiences, this paper presents the prevailing gendered values and attitudes by examining cultural patterns, expectations, roles, ideals and practices in these communities and questions whether they stem from the past. Research findings show that gendered values and attitudes have always been traditional in these rural villages and are sustained through patterns of residence, levels of education, attitudes towards employment, socialisation practices, ideals of femininity, and appropriate sociability. Moreover, public emphasis on retraditionalisation was understood, approved and more widely accepted in these rural communities giving traditional values and attitudes that have always been highly valued new meaning.

rural women; Croatia; values; attitudes

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