Francesca Refsum Jensenius

• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Suryanarayan, Pavithra (2022). Party System Institutionalization and Economic Voting: Evidence from India. Journal of Politics. ISSN 0022-3816. 84(2). doi: 10.1086/716297. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  It is well established that a country’s institutional features can weaken economic voting because voters find it hard to attribute performance to specific parties. We argue that local-level party system institutionalization similarly moderates the link between the economy and vote choice. We focus on one manifestation of party system institutionalization: the strength of party-candidate linkages in elections, operationalized by manually tracing the rerunning patterns of some 80,000 candidates in Indian state elections between 1986 and 2007. Using rerunning patterns to measure party-candidate linkages and rainfall data to measure the state of the economy, we show that voters were more likely to reward incumbent parties for economic performance when parties and candidates were aligned in consecutive elections. We address concerns of endogeneity in rerunning patterns, by showing that the results are robust to alternate measures of local-level party system institutionalization. They are also robust to alternative measures of the state of the economy and to using individual-level survey data.

• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2022). Expressive Power of Anti-Violence Legislation: Changes in Social Norms on Violence Against Women in Mexico. World Politics. ISSN 0043-8871. doi: 10.1017/S0043887121000186. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  We know more about why laws on violence against women (VAW) were adopted than about how much and in what ways these laws affect society. The authors argue that even weakly enforced laws can contribute to positive social change. They theorize the expressive power of VAW legislation, and present evidence for a cautiously optimistic assessment of current trends on violence against women and the ways that VAW laws affect social norms. Focusing on a time of major legal change related to VAW in Mexico, this article explores trends in behavior and attitudes related to violence by analyzing four waves of the National Survey on the Dynamics of Household Relations (ENDIREH), which include detailed interviews with thousands of Mexican women. The authors find that over this period, the share of women experiencing intimate-partner abuse declined, attitudes condoning violence shifted, reporting rates rose, and most women learned about legislation to protect their rights. These changes are consistent with the authors’ expectations about the expressive power of anti-violence legislation.

• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2021). Comparative Analysis for Theory Development. In Simmons, Erica S. & Smith, Nicholas Rush (Ed.), Rethinking Comparison : Innovative Methods for Qualitative Political Inquiry. Cambridge University Press. ISSN 9781108966009. p. 190–207. Full text in Research Archive
• Auerbach, Adam Michael; Bussell, Jennifer; Chauchard, Simon; Jensenius, Francesca Refsum; Nellis, Gareth & Schneider, Mark [Show all 12 contributors for this article] (2021). Rethinking the Study of Electoral Politics in the Developing World: Reflections on the Indian Case. Perspectives on Politics. ISSN 1537-5927. 20(1), p. 250–264. doi: 10.1017/S1537592721000062. Full text in Research Archive
• Carpena, Fenella & Jensenius, Francesca Refsum (2021). Age of marriage and women’s political engagement: Evidence from india. Journal of Politics. ISSN 0022-3816. 83(4), p. 1–52. doi: 10.1086/712141. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Although decades have passed since most women in the democratic world gained the right to vote and run for election, a large gender gap in political participation persists, particularly in developing countries. This short paper considers an important—and previously overlooked—factor limiting the political engagement of many women in the developing world: marriage age. Drawing on nationally representative data from India and instrumenting marriage age with menarche age, we find delaying marriage has substantial positive effects on women’s everyday political participation. A standard deviation increase in marriage age makes a woman 25 percent more likely to attend local council meetings, and 8 percent more likely to discuss politics with her husband. Exploring mechanisms, we show that education and time—rather than employment, mobility, and household decision-making power—appear to be the main channels. These findings underscore the critical role of early marriage in impeding women’s participation in the political sphere.

• Chhibber, Pradeep; Jensenius, Francesca R. & Ostermann, Susan (2021). Missing Girls: Women’s Education and Declining Child Sex Ratios in India. Economic and Political Weekly. ISSN 0012-9976. 56(6), p. 52–60. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Sex ratios in India have been declining for decades, and “missing girls” are a serious social and political problem. Drawing on subdistrict-level data from the 2001 and 2011 Censuses and detailed data on women’s education and fertility, we show that more-educated mothers have fewer girl children than less-educated mothers, but that these girls are also more likely to survive. The policy implication of these findings is that among uneducated mothers, the focus should be on child treatment and survival; among educated mothers, attitudinal campaigns that emphasise the value of having girl children are likely to be more successful.

• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2020). Aspirational Laws as Weak Institutions Legislation to Combat Violence against Women in Mexico. In Brinks, Daniel M.; Levitsky, Stephen & Murillo, Maria V. (Ed.), The Politics of Institutional Weakness in Latin America. Cambridge University Press. ISSN 9781108776608. p. 141–160. doi: https%3A/doi.org/10.1017/9781108776608.006. Full text in Research Archive
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2020). Political Change, Women’s Rights, and Public Opinion on Gender Equality in Myanmar. European Journal of Development Research. ISSN 0957-8811. 32, p. 457–481. doi: 10.1057/s41287-020-00266-z. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Myanmar’s introduction of competitive elections after decades of military rule raised expectations for progress in economic and social development, including in the area of women’s rights. In this paper, we draw on data from two national surveys, interviews, and existing qualitative studies to explore public opinion on women’s rights and gender equality. Do Burmese people support gender equality? How are their views on gender related to other aspects of political culture, such as traditional values and views toward authoritarianism and democracy? Our objective is to gain better understanding of the opportunities and obstacles to egalitarian social change and democratic consolidation. Our analysis of survey data reveals that attitudes toward gender roles are conservative, traditional and anti-democratic beliefs are widespread, and these views are strongly associated. Our findings imply that tendencies in public opinion provide a resource for Burmese nationalist groups and politicians and an obstacle to activists seeking greater alignment with global norms on gender equality.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Htun, Mala (2019). Fighting Violence Against Women: Laws, Norms & Challenges Ahead. Daedalus. ISSN 0011-5266. 249(1(2020)), p. 144–159. doi: 10.1162/daed_a_01779. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  In the 1990s and 2000s, pressure from feminist movements and allies succeeded in pushing scores of states to reform their laws to prevent and punish violence against women (VAW). Even in states with progressive legislation, however, activists face challenges to induce citizens to comply with the law, compel state authorities to enforce the law, and ensure the adequate allocation of resources for social support services. In this essay, we take stock of legislative developments related to VAW around the world, with a focus on the variation in approaches toward intimate partner violence and sexual harassment. We analyze efforts to align behavior with progressive legislation, and end with a discussion of the balance activists must strike between fighting VAW aggressively with the carceral and social support dimensions of state power, while exercising some restraint to avoid the potentially counterproductive effects of state action.

• Bhavnani, Rikhil & Jensenius, Francesca (2019). Voting for development? Ruling coalitions and literacy in India. Electoral Studies: an international journal on voting and electoral systems and strategy. ISSN 0261-3794. 62, p. 1–13. doi: 10.1016/j.electstud.2019.102069. Show summary

  Across the world, governments skew the distribution of state resources for political gain. But does such politicisation of resource allocation affect development trajectories in the long run? We focus on the long-term effects of voting for the ruling coalition on primary education in India. Using a close-election instrumental variable design and drawing on a new socio-economic dataset of India's state assembly constituencies in 1971 and 2001, we examine whether areas represented by members of ruling coalitions experienced greater increases in literacy over 30 years. We find no evidence of this being the case, in the overall data or in relevant sub-samples. The null results are precisely estimated, and are consistent across OLS and 2SLS specifications and several robustness checks. These findings suggest the politicised distribution of some funds in the short run does not affect long-term development trajectories.

• Htun, Mala; Jensenius, Francesca R. & Nelson-Nunez, Jami (2019). Gender-Discriminatory Laws and Women’s Economic Agency. Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State and Society. ISSN 1072-4745. 26(2), p. 193–222. doi: 10.1093/sp/jxy042. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Recent years have seen widespread advances in women’s legal rights in many countries. In other places, restrictions on women’s autonomy remain entrenched. This study explores cross-country patterns in the association between gender-discriminatory legislation and various indicators of women’s economic agency. We find that restrictions on legal capacity predict women’s asset ownership and labor force participation, while discrimination in wage work and parental leave are associated with the size and direction of wage gaps. These findings highlight the importance of conceptualizing and measuring legal rights and their potential effects as multidimensional.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). India: A Contradictory Record. In Franceschet, Susan; Krook, Mona Lena & Tan, Netina (Ed.), The Palgrave Handbook of Women’s Political Rights. Palgrave Macmillan. ISSN 978-1-137-59073-2. p. 673–688. doi: 10.1057/978-1-137-59074-9. Full text in Research Archive
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). Kinship in Indian Politics: Dynasties, nepotism and imagined families. In Haugevik, Kristin M. & Neumann, Iver (Ed.), Kinship in International Relations. Routledge. ISSN 978-1-138-58055-8. p. 138–153. doi: 10.4324/9780429507267-8. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  While kinship is among the basic organizing principles of all human life, its role in and implications for international politics and relations have been subject to surprisingly little exploration in International Relations (IR) scholarship. This volume is the first volume aimed at thinking systematically about kinship in IR – as an organizing principle, as a source of political and social processes and outcomes, and as a practical and analytical category that not only reflects but also shapes politics and interaction on the international political arena. Contributors trace everyday uses of kinship terminology to explore the relevance of kinship in different political and cultural contexts and to look at interactions taking place above, at and within the state level. The book suggests that kinship can expand or limit actors’ political room for maneuvereon the international political arena, making some actions and practices appear possible and likely, and others less so. As an analytical category, kinship can help us categorize and understand relations between actors in the international arena. It presents itself as a ready-made classificatory system for understanding how entities within a hierarchy are organized in relation to one another, and how this logic is all at once natural and social.

• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2018). Comparative Analysis for Theory Development: Reflections on a Study of Women’s Empowerment. Qualitative & Multi-Method Research. ISSN 2153-6767. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Methodological texts about comparative work have focused overwhelmingly on controlled comparisons aimed at causal inference. To show the range of possible goals and approaches, this piece reflects on our own choices while studying the state and women’s empowerment in Norway, Japan, and the United States. We show how our research design evolved with our theoretical thinking, and explain that we did not select comparative “cases,” but rather diverse contexts with interesting variation in our main concept of interest. Finally, we discuss how we constructed multi-cultural research teams to take advantage of insider and outsider perspectives during fieldwork.

• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Htun, Mala; Samuels, David J.; Singer, David A.; Lawrence, Adria & Chwe, Micheal (2018). Benefits and Pitfalls of Google Scholar. PS: Political Science and Politics. ISSN 1049-0965. doi: 10.1017/S104909651800094X. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Google Scholar (GS) is an important tool that faculty, administrators, and external reviewers use to evaluate the scholarly impact of candidates for jobs, tenure, and promotion. This article highlights both the benefits of GS—including the reliability and consistency of its citation counts and its platform for disseminating scholarship and facilitating networking—and its pitfalls. GS has biases because citation is a social and political process that disadvantages certain groups, including women, younger scholars, scholars in smaller research communities, and scholars opting for risky and innovative work. GS counts also reflect practices of strategic citation that exacerbate existing hierarchies and inequalities. As a result, it is imperative that political scientists incorporate other data sources, especially independent scholarly judgment, when making decisions that are crucial for careers. External reviewers have a unique obligation to offer a reasoned, rigorous, and qualitative assessment of a scholar’s contributions and therefore should not use GS.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Verniers, Gilles (2017). Studying Indian Politics with Large-scale Data: Indian Election Data 1961–today. Studies in Indian Politics. ISSN 2321-0230. 5(2), p. 269–275. doi: 10.1177/2321023017727984. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  There has been a major shift in how Indian politics is studied, as large-scale data has become easier to access and analyze. In this research note, we describe some useful techniques and tools used for creating and merging large-scale datasets. We also introduce two datasets: constituency-level datasets of Indian State Elections and General Elections from 1961 until today. We describe the process of creating these datasets, the efforts involved in cleaning the data, and how the data can be utilized. In conclusion, we offer some reflections on the limitations of over-relying on quantitative data in research on Indian politics.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Wood, Abby (2016). Caught in the Act but not Punished: on Elite Rule of Law and Deterrence. Penn State Journal of Law & International Affairs. ISSN 2168-7951. 4(2), p. 686–717. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Most literature on criminal deterrence in law, economics, and criminology assumes that people who are caught for a crime will be punished. The literature focuses on how the size of sanctions and probability of being caught affect criminal behavior. However, in many countries entire groups of people are “above the law” in the sense that they are able to evade punishment even if caught violating the law. In this paper we argue that both the perceived probability of being punished if caught and the cultural acceptance of elites evading punishment are important parts of theorizing about deterrence, particularly about corruption among political elites. Looking at data on parking violations among diplomats in New York City 1997–2002, we explore how diplomats from different rule-of-law cultures respond to sudden legal immunity. The empirical observations provide clear evidence of both the stickiness and the gradual weakening of cultural constraints.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2016). A sign of backwardness? Where dynastic leaders are elected in India. In Chandra, Kanchan (Eds.), Democratic Dynasties State, Party and Family in Contemporary Indian Politics. Cambridge University Press. ISSN 9781107123441. p. 83–104. doi: 10.1017/cbo9781316402221.004.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2016). Competing inequalities? On the intersection of gender and ethnicity in candidate nominations in Indian elections. Government and Opposition. ISSN 0017-257X. 51(3), p. 440–463. doi: 10.1017/gov.2016.8. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Quotas for women and ethnic minorities are implemented to increase diversity in political institutions, but, as they usually target only one group at a time, they may end up increasing the inclusion of one under-represented group at the cost of another. Recent work has emphasized the institutional underpinnings of the variation in such outcomes. In this article I show how the intersectional effects of quotas may also vary within the same institutional context, as changes in the pressure to include excluded groups interact with the informal opportunity structures within political parties. Looking at the nomination of female candidates across India over time, I show that, as the efforts to include more women in politics intensified, much of the increase in female candidates occurred in constituencies reserved for ethnic minorities. This pattern may in part be the result of parties resisting changes to existing power hierarchies by nominating women at the cost of the least powerful male politicians, but can also be seen as evidence that minority quotas have created a political space that is more accessible to women.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Suryanarayan, Pavithra (2015). Fragmentation and decline in India's state assemblies: A review, 1967-2007. Asian Survey. ISSN 0004-4687. 55(5), p. 862–881. doi: 10.1525/AS.2015.55.5.862. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Tracing activity in 15 Indian state assemblies from 1967 to 2007, we find that overall legislative activity declined but there was also considerable variation across states. States with large electoral constituencies and politically fragmented assemblies showed the worst performance, which suggests a link between political fragmentation and institutional performance.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Bhavnani, Rikhil (2015). Socioeconomic Profile of India’s Old Electoral Constituencies, 1971-2001. In Sivaramakrishnan, K.C. & Alam, Mohd. Sanjeer (Ed.), Fixing electoral boundaries in India : Laws, processes, outcomes, and implications for political representation. Oxford University Press. ISSN 978-0-19-945844-8. p. 217–229.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2015). Development from representation? A study of quotas for the scheduled castes in India. American economic journal. Applied economics. ISSN 1945-7782. 7(3), p. 196–220. doi: 10.1257/app.20140201. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This paper estimates the constituency-level development effects of quotas for the Scheduled Castes (SCs) in India, using a unique dataset of development indicators for more than 3,100 state assembly constituencies in 15 Indian states in 1971 and 2001. Matching constituencies on pretreatment variables from 1971, I find that 30 years of quotas had no detectable constituency-level effect on overall development or redistribution to SCs. Interviews with politicians and civil servants in 2010 and 2011 suggest that these findings can be explained by the power of political parties and the electoral incentives created by the quota system.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2014). Mired in Reservations: The Path-Dependent History of Electoral Quotas in India. Journal of Asian Studies. ISSN 0021-9118. FirstView, p. 1–21. doi: 10.1017/S0021911814002162. Full text in Research Archive
• Jensenius, Francesca Refsum (2014). The Fieldwork of Quantitative Data Collection. PS: Political Science and Politics. ISSN 1049-0965. 47(2), p. 402–404. doi: 10.1017/S1049096514000298. Full text in Research Archive
• Hsueh, Roselyn; Jensenius, Francesca Refsum & Newsome, Akasemi (2014). Fieldwork in Political Science: Encountering Challenges and Crafting Solutions. PS: Political Science and Politics. ISSN 1049-0965. 47(2), p. 391–393. doi: 10.1017/S1049096514000262. Full text in Research Archive
• Jensenius, Francesca Refsum (2013). Was the Delimitation Commission Unfair to Muslims? Studies in Indian Politics. ISSN 2321-0230. 1(2), p. 213–229. doi: 10.1177/2321023013511625. Full text in Research Archive
• Chhibber, Pradeep; Jensenius, Francesca Refsum & Suryanarayan, Pavithra (2012). Party Organization and Party Proliferation in India, Party Politics. ISSN 1354-0688. doi: 10.1177/1354068811436059.
• Jensenius, Francesca (2012). Quotas and perceptions of political representation – A look at India. Asian Survey. ISSN 0004-4687. 52(2), p. 373–394. doi: 10.1525/as.2012.52.2.373. Full text in Research Archive
• Jensenius, Francesca Refsum (2011). Book Essay: Power and Influence in India. Forum for Development Studies. ISSN 0803-9410. 38(3), p. 391–398. doi: 10.1080/08039410.2011.619683.
• Fish, Steven; Jensenius, Francesca & Michel, Katherine (2010). Islam and Large-Scale Political Violence: Is There a Connection? Comparative Political Studies. ISSN 0010-4140. 43(11), p. 1327–1362. doi: 10.1177/0010414010376912.

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• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Social Justice through Inclusion: The Consequences of Electoral Quotas in India. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780190646615. 228 p. Show summary

  Across the world, governments design and implement policies with the explicit goal of promoting social justice. But can such institutions change entrenched social norms? And what effects should we expect from differently designed policies? Francesca R. Jensenius' Social Justice through Inclusion is an empirically rich study of one of the most extensive electoral quota systems in the world: the reserved seats for the Scheduled Castes (SCs, the former "untouchables") in India's legislative assemblies. Combining evidence from quantitative datasets from the period 1969-2012, archival work, and in-depth interviews with politicians, civil servants, and voters across India, the book explores the long-term effects of electoral quotas for the political elite and the general population. It shows that the quota system has played an important role in reducing caste-based discrimination, particularly at the elite level. Interestingly, this is not because the system has led to more group representation - SC politicians working specifically for SC interests - but because it has made possible the creation and empowerment of a new SC elite who have gradually become integrated into mainstream politics. This is a study of India, but the findings and discussions have broader implications. Policies such as quotas are usually supported with arguments about various assumed positive long-term consequences. The nuanced discussions in this book shed light on how electoral quotas for SCs have shaped the incentives for politicians, parties, and voters, and indicate the trade-offs inherent in how such policies of group inclusion are designed.

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• Jensenius, Francesca Refsum (2022). Gender and corruption in South Asia.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2022). Privileging One's Own? Voting Patterns and Politicized Spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2022). Privileging One's Own? Voting Patterns and Politicized Spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2021). Caste, Occupation and Electoral Stability In India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2021). Time in Office and the Changing Gender Gap in Dishonesty: Evidence from Local Politics in India .
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2021). Time in Office and the Changing Gender Gap in Dishonesty: Evidence from Local Politics in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2021). Effects of quotas in Indian politics. Show summary

  One doesn't get far in Indian politics before one hears the term "reservations," which refers to the reserved positions in politics, educational institutions, and jobs. India is interesting because it is the country with the largest and longest-standing political quota system in the world. What have been the effects after decades of political inclusion?

• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2021). Comparative Analysis for Theory Development. Show summary

  What does it mean to advance women's status and well-being? And how should we think about the role of the state in bringing about that advancement? Our work analyzes the approach and role of the state in promoting women's empowerment, drawing on large-N country-level data and in-depth case studies of state action in United States, Norway, and Japan. Our three country cases vary greatly in terms of the state's approach to women's rights; we picked them because we believe them to be extreme examples of how state action is driven by different visions of what women's empowerment is about. Conducting fieldwork in these different contexts allowsus to study some of the variation in people's views of both state action and empowerment. It sharpens our awareness of important assumptions that underlie studies of empowerment. It also helps us determine the right questions to ask. To the extent that we study causal relationships, we do so based on large-N data within cases, not across them. And rather than assume that the same causal patterns apply across cases, we draw on our fieldwork to better understand why the same policies produce vastly different effects in different contexts. This paper is a reflection on some of the goals of comparative studies that are unrelated to drawing causal inferences, and how to think about research design and case selection to achieve these goals.

• Chhibber, Pradeep; Jensenius, Francesca R. & Ostermann, Susan (2021). India’s ‘missing girls’: Women’s education and declining child sex-ratios. Ideas for India. Show summary

  Although women’s education has been proposed as a solution to the persistent issue of ‘missing girls’ in India, studies have reached contradictory conclusions on the impact of female education on child sex ratios. Drawing on sub-district-level Census data from 2001 and 2011, this article shows that mothers with more education have fewer daughters – but these girls are also more likely to survive.

• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2021). Violence Against Women Legislation and Changes in Social Norms in Mexico. Show summary

  While a significant amount of research has examined the conditions giving rise to legal and policy reform on violence against women (VAW), there is less understanding of how much and in what ways VAW laws have affected society. Many observers lament the weak enforcement of VAW legislation, while others are skeptical that new laws on violence---and other rights enacted by consolidating democracies---are changing social relations in intended ways. In this paper, we argue that even weakly enforced laws can contribute to positive social change. We theorize the expressive power of VAW legislation, and present evidence for a cautiously optimistic assessment of current trends on violence against women and the ways that VAW laws affect social norms. Focusing on a major legal change in Mexico in 2007, we explore over-time changes in behavior and attitudes related to violence by analyzing four waves of the national survey on the Dynamics of Household Relations (ENDIREH, 2003, 2006, 2011, 2016), which includes detailed interviews with hundreds of thousands of Mexican women. We find that over this period, the share of women experiencing intimate partner abuse declined, attitudes condoning violence shifted, reporting rates rose, and more women know about legislation to protect their rights. These changes indicate the emergence of new social norms and are consistent with our expectations about the expressive power of anti-violence legislation.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2021). Time in Office and the Changing Gender Gap in Dishonesty: Evidence from Local Politics in India. Show summary

  Increasing the share of women in politics is often touted as a means of reducing corruption. In this study, we focus on dishonesty among elected male and female representatives, and how this changes with time in office. We combine survey data on attitudes towards corruption with data from incentivized experiments. Our sample consists of 400 inexperienced and experienced local politicians in West Bengal, India. While we find little evidence of a gender gap in the attitudes of inexperienced politicians, experienced female politicians exhibit a stronger distaste for corruption. However, this apparent hardening in attitudes among female politicians also coincides with more dishonest behavior in our experiments. Exploring mechanisms that can explain this difference, we find it to be strongly associated with higher risk aversion and weaker political networks at the start of their career. Our study indicates that gender gaps in politics should be theorized as dynamic and changing, rather than static.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2021). Time in Office and the Changing Gender Gap in Dishonesty: Evidence from Local Politics in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2021). The role of reservations in Indian politics. Show summary

  One doesn't get far in Indian politics before one hears the term "reservations," which refers to the reserved positions in politics, educational institutions, and jobs. In this seminar we will discuss the historical background, institutional structure, and effect of the different types of reservation policies in India.

• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2021). Expressive Power of Anti-Violence Legislation: Changes in Social Norms on Violence Against Women in Mexico. Show summary

  While a significant amount of research has examined the conditions giving rise to legal and policy reform on violence against women (VAW), there is less understanding of whether or not new VAW laws have been accompanied by changes in behavior and attitudes. Has the adoption of VAW legislation—a huge priority of feminist movements since the 1970s—produced social change? This seminar will present evidence for a cautiously optimistic assessment of the power of VAW laws to alter social norms, based on analysis of four waves of survey data from Mexico.

• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2020). Comparative Perspectives on the Caregiving Crisis, Welfare States, and Men’s Roles . Comparative Politics Newsletter. 30(2).
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2020). Family Law and Women’s Economic Empowerment.
• Jensenius, Francesca Refsum (2020). Party System Institutionalization and Economic Voting: Evidence from India.
• Jensenius, Francesca Refsum (2020). Can the State Stop Sex Discrimination?
• Jensenius, Francesca Refsum & Suryanarayan, Pavithra (2020). Ethnic Inequality, Strong Parties, and Electoral Stability.
• Sollund, Sigrid & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2020). Dagsnytt 18. [Radio]. NRK.
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2020). Can the State Stop Sex Discrimination?
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2020). Violence Against Women Legislation and Changes in Social Norms in Mexico.
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2020). Competing trends in women’s rights in Myanmar. PK Forum. Show summary

  In the 2010s, the Myanmar government made moves to comply with international obligations on women’s rights. The government launched a strategic plan for women’s advancement, reformed some laws, and collaborated with civil society organizations to draft legislation to combat gender and sexual violence. What are the prospects for gender equality in Myanmar? Our research explores public attitudes toward women’s roles in order to shed light on this question. Our analysis shows that Burmese people tend to hold conservative views about women’s roles.

• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2020). The news media’s reporting on a pandemic spike in violence against women. It might actually be declining. Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Show summary

  Violence against women grows from a larger cultural context, not just temporary circumstances like the covid-19 pandemic. In most places, feminist activists have succeeded in changing laws and social norms to reduce violence.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Htun, Mala (2020). Can the State Stop Violence against Women?
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Suryanarayan, Pavithra (2020). Party System Institutionalization and Economic Voting: Evidence from India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). Violence Against Women as a Violation of Human Rights: Legal Change and Social Norms in Mexico.
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). Implementing the Rights Revolution: Sexual Assault and Harassment Training on College Campuses.
• Htun, Mala; Jensenius, Francesca Refsum & Tønnessen, Liv (2019). Introduction to Special Issue of Social Politics: Legal Regimes, Women’s Work, and Women’s Empowerment. Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State and Society. ISSN 1072-4745. 26(2), p. 189–192. doi: 10.1093/sp/jxz026. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The second-wave feminist movement called attention to the endurance of discriminatory laws that deny women equal rights and opportunities. Since the 1970s, most countries around the world responded to feminist demands and reformed family law, labor law, reproductive rights, national constitutions, and the welfare state. Yet almost nowhere do women enjoy the same status, power, and opportunities as men, and differences among women along the lines of class, racial identity, and region are pronounced. Why does the gap between women’s de jure and de facto status persist? Is there any connection between egalitarian laws and women’s agency on the ground? Which groups of women have benefited the most from the expansion of formal rights? What cultural practices and norms are most resistant to change? Are there unexpected, subtle, or contradictory ways in which legal change has shaped women’s work and women’s empowerment? The five papers in this Special Issue look at these questions in contexts from Sudan to Norway.

• Flåten, Lars Tore; Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Jensenius, Francesca R.; Frøystad, Hanne Kathinka & Ruud, Arild Engelsen (2019). Valgvake - valget i India.
• Flåten, Lars Tore; Ruud, Arild Engelsen; Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Samuelsen, Guro Warhuus & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). Indisk spenning. Dagsavisen. ISSN 1503-2892.
• Flåten, Lars Tore; Ruud, Arild Engelsen; Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Samuelsen, Guro Warhuus & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). Er valget i India slutten på dynastiet? Avisa Vårt land.
• Flåten, Lars Tore; Ruud, Arild Engelsen; Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Jensenius, Francesca R. & Samuelsen, Guro Warhuus (2019). Modi er kommet for å bli. Klassekampen. ISSN 0805-3839.
• Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Samuelsen, Guro Warhuus; Jensenius, Francesca & Flåten, Lars Tore (2019). Demokrati eller autokrati i India? Morgenbladet. ISSN 0805-3847.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Shah, Harsh (2019). Valg i India: Få bastioner og mange svingninger. Asiapunkt.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Shah, Harsh (2019). Valg i India: Legitimitet og ansvarlighet i kompetitive valg. Asiapunkt.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Shah, Harsh (2019). Hvem dominerer Indias nasjonale valg? . Asiapunkt.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Shah, Harsh (2019). Valg i India: Utdanning, urbanisering og valgdeltakelse. Asiapunkt.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Shah, Harsh (2019). Valg i India: Lokale valg topper statistikken. Asiapunkt.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Shah, Harsh (2019). Valg i India: en representasjonskrise? . Asiapunkt.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). Fem ukers kø ved valgurnene. [Newspaper]. Klassekampen.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Suryanarayan, Pavithra (2019). Study shows Indian politicians are spending less and less time in legislative assemblies. ThePrint.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). Women and minorities in the Lok Sabha: Intersectionality in the Indian elections. Asia Dialogue.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). Urix. [TV]. NRK.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). NRK, nyhetsmorgen. [Radio]. NRK.
• Flåten, Lars Tore; Samuelsen, Guro Warhuus; Ruud, Arild Engelsen; Nielsen, Kenneth Bo & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). Hindunasjonalistisk parti går mot valgseier. Avisa Vårt land.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Shah, Harsh (2019). There are very few BJP strongholds or Congress bastions in India. Data shows why. ThePrint.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Shah, Harsh (2019). It’s a myth that 2014 election was exceptional in the vote share of winning candidates. ThePrint.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Shah, Harsh (2019). Political parties dominate India’s national elections, not candidates. ThePrint.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Shah, Harsh (2019). 3 charts challenge lazy thinking on voter turnout and its link to literacy & urbanisation. ThePrint.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Shah, Harsh (2019). Why voters don’t turn up in larger numbers in Lok Sabha elections – all politics is local. ThePrint.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Shah, Harsh (2019). This data shows why Indian MPs don’t truly represent their people. ThePrint.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). India: Verdens største demokratiske valg. [Internet]. Universitetet i Oslo.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Htun, Mala (2019). Legal Regimes, Social Norms, and Gender Equality, in Myanmar. Show summary

  Myanmar’s return to competitive elections after decades of military rule raised expectations for progress in economic and social development, including in the area of women’s rights. But in fact, the most significant legislation passed has restricted, rather than expanded, women’s liberal rights. Meanwhile, public opinion surveys reveal that most Burmese continue to hold men in higher esteem than women, to prefer boy children, and to believe that men are more capable leaders. This paper analyzes women’s uneven legal rights and the endurance of traditional social norms in Myanmar, drawing on observations from fieldwork and two representative national surveys. We show that traditional and anti-democratic values are widespread, and that views on gender are closely connected to adherens to such values. People who believe in hierarchical author- ity are also more likely to value boys over girls and to believe men are better leaders than women. Myanmar’s experiences show that the emergence of electoral democracy does not necessarily generate gender equality. Since political freedom expands the space for civic mobilization, including for traditional and conservative groups, it can produce greater contestation about the meaning and significance of gender and of women’s roles in society.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2019). Privileging One’s Own: Voting Patterns and Politicized Spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). Social Justice through Inclusion: Consequences of Electoral Quotas in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). EKKO. [Radio]. NRK radio.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). Her bryter to kvinner en eldgammel hindu-tradisjon. Det har kastet India ut i politisk kaos. [Newspaper]. Aftenposten.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). Krig og fred. [Radio]. NRK radio.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2019). NRK nyhetsmorgen. [Radio]. NRK radio.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Alam, Sanjeer (2018). Constructing a majority: A micro-level study of voting patterns in Indian elections.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2018). Privileging One's Own? Voting Patterns and Politicized Spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2018). Privileging One's Own? Voting Patterns and Politicized Spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Alam, Sanjeer (2018). The Nils Klim symposium Constructing a majority: A micro-level study of voting patterns in Indian elections. Show summary

  Indian elections are known to be highly fractionalized and volatile, but also for having semi-authoritarian pockets where the same person or family controls the vote election after election. In their forthcoming book, Francesca R. Jensenius, Pradeep Chhibber, and Sanjeer Alam draw on polling-booth level data from across India to explore when and why we see such different voting patterns at the local level in India. They argue that the provision of public goods and the presence of the state tempers political fragmentation and semi-authoritarian local politics.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2018). Nils Klim samtalen. [TV]. NRK Kunnskapskanalen (vist på NRK 2).
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Alam, Sanjeer (2018). Privileging one's own? Voting patterns and politicized spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Contreras, Carlos; Htun, Mala; Dominguez, Melanie Sayuri & Tinkler, Justine (2018). Effects of Sexual Misconduct Training on University Campuses.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Alam, Sanjeer (2018). Constructing a majority: A micro-level study of voting patterns in Indian elections.
• Htun, Mala; Contreras, Carlos; Dominguez, Melanie Sayuri; Jensenius, Francesca R. & Tinkler, Justine (2018). Effects of Sexual Assault Training on University Campuses.
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2018). Comparison and Theory Development: Lessons from a Study of Women’s Empowerment.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2018). Electoral quotas in India: what the data show. [Newspaper]. The Indian Express. Show summary

  The Consequences of Electoral Quotas in India, by Francesca R Jensenius, a political scientist at the University of Oslo, looks at how electoral representation for Dalits through reservation has played out since 1952.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2018). The Politics of Inclusion: Electoral Quotas in India. Show summary

  Electoral quotas have played an important role in Indian politics for the past century. Many groups have demanded and still demand quotas, often on the basis of arguments that quotas are needed to bring “their” perspectives into politics – that a guaranteed political presence will result in better representation of their group’s interests. In the book Social Justice through Inclusion: The Consequences of Electoral Quotas in India (OUP 2017), Francesca R. Jensenius provided evidence of the long-term effects of electoral quotas for one of India’s most marginalized communities, the Scheduled Castes (the former “untouchables”). Drawing on extensive qualitative and quantitative data she showed that the quotas to a limited extent have contributed to the mobilization around, and representation of, group interests for SCs, but that they have played in important role in breaking social boundaries by integrating SCs into the mainstream political elite. What are the implications of these findings for the discussion of other groups’ demands for quotas in India? In this seminar, Jensenius will present key findings in the book and discuss some of the implications these findings have for the debates about quotas for other communities in India – including the so-called Other Backward Classes, women and religious communities. Jensenius’ keynote will be followed by presentations by Pradeep Chhibber Pratap Bhanu Mehta and Anne Waldrop, as well as a panel discussion.

• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2018). Privileging one’s own? Voting patterns and politicized spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2018). Ekko: kvoteringsforskeren. [Radio]. NRK.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2018). Social Justice through Inclusion: The Consequences of Electoral Quotas in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Chhibber, Pradeep & Alam, Sanjeer (2018). Constructing a majority: A micro-level study of voting patterns in Indian elections.
• Jensenius, Alexander Refsum; Bjerkestrand, Kari Anne Vadstensvik; Johnson, Victoria; Gonzalez Sanchez, Victor Evaristo; Zelechowska, Agata & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2018). Sverm-Pluck.
• Contreras Vidal, Carlos Alberto; Htun, Mala; Jensenius, Francesca R.; Sonntag, Melanie sayuri & Tinkler, Justine (2018). Effects of Grey Area Training on Rape Myths and Gender Stereotypes at UNM.
• Contreras Vidal, Carlos Alberto; Htun, Mala; Jensenius, Francesca R.; Sonntag, Melanie & Tinkler, Justine (2018). Effects of Mandatory Universal Sexual Misconduct Training at UNM.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Verniers, Gilles (2017). The Indian National Election and Candidates Database 1962 - today. Show summary

  Database covering all national election in India

• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Verniers, Gilles (2017). The Indian State Assembly Election and Candidates Database 1961- today. Show summary

  Database covering Indian state elections

• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Affirmative Action Policies in Government.
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Discovering the Right Questions by Comparing Extremes: Women’s Empowerment in the United States, Norway, and Japan.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). The Impact of Affirmative Action in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Social Justice through Inclusion: Consequences of Electoral Quotas in India.
• Chhibber, Pradeep & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Privileging One's Own? Voting Patterns and Politicized Spending in India.
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). State Policy and Women’s Economic Agency in Japan, the U.S., and Norway.
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Aspirational Laws as Weak Institutions: Legislation to Combat Violence Against Women in Mexico.
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Three Worlds of Women’s Rights.
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Three Worlds of Women’s Rights.
• Htun, Mala & Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Women's Rights in Theory and Practice: Status Politics and Violence against Women in Mexico.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Likestillingsparadokset. [Internet]. http://www.nupi.no/.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Social Justice through Inclusion: Consequences of Electoral Quotas in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Can quotas lead to social justice?
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Social Justice through Inclusion: The Consequences of Electoral Quotas in India.
• Htun, Mala; Jensenius, Francesca R. & Sonntag, Melanie (2017). Social Policy, Norms of Work and Family, and Masculinity in Japan.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Suryanarayan, Pavithra (2017). Party-candidate Linkages and Anti-Incumbency Voting: Evidence from Indian States.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2017). Political Quotas for Disadvantaged Groups: Lessons from India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Suryanarayan, Pavithra (2017). Party-candidate linkages and Anti-Incumbency Voting: Evidence from the Indian States.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Suryanarayan, Pavithra (2016). Voting Behavior in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Htun, Mala (2016). Institutionalizing Gender Equality: Anti-discrimination Laws and Social Norms in Mexico.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2016). Privileging one's own? Voting patterns and politicized spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Htun, Mala (2016). Violence Against Women as a Violation of Human Rights? Legal Power and the Resilience of Social Norms in Mexico.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2016). Privileging one's own? Voting patterns and politicized spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2016). Social Justice through Inclusion: The Consequences of Electoral Quotas in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2016). Can Electoral Quotas Advance Social Justice – and How Do We Know?
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2016). When Women Run: New Perspectives on Gender and Political Recruitment.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Htun, Mala (2016). Violence Against Women as an Aspirational Right: Legal Power and the Resilience of Social Norms in Mexico.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2016). Privileging one's own? Voting patterns and politicized spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2016). The inclusive effects of electoral quotas. The Hindu Business Line. ISSN 0971-7528.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2016). Electoral Quotas as a Tool for Fighting Exclusion and Discrimination. India in Transition.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2016). Caste quotas in politics and development outcomes. Ideas for India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2015). Privileging One's Own? Voting Patterns and Politicized Spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Bajoghli, Sæba (2015). To menn pågrepet etter voldtekt av jente (4) i India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2015). Kinship in Indian Politics: Dynasties, nepotism and fictive families.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Suryanarayan, Pavithra (2015). Party-Candidate Linkages and Electoral Instability.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2015). Privileging one's own? Voting patterns and politicized spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2015). Privileging one's own? Voting patterns and politicized spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R.; Heierstad, Geir & Nielsen, Kenneth Bo (2015). Luften som dreper. Bergens Tidende. ISSN 0804-8983.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2015). Party-candidate linkages and Party Institutionalization in the Indian States.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Chhibber, Pradeep (2015). Privileging One's Own: Voting Patterns and Politicized Spending in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2015). Party-candidate linkages and Party Institutionalization in the Indian States.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2015). Party Organizations and Party-Candidate Linkages: Theory and Evidence from India.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Framstad, Anders Park (2014). Regjeringsskifte i India: - Klart positivt på sikt. [Internet]. e24.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Aarstad Aase, Kari (2014). Fattiggutten som blir Indias nye statsminister. [Newspaper]. VG.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. & Samuelsen, Reidun J. (2014). Et eksplosivt kjærlighetskyss. [Newspaper]. Aftenposten.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2014). Consequences of Representation: Electoral Quotas for India's Ex-untouchables.
• Jensenius, Francesca R. (2014). Hvor går verdens største demokrati nå? Den norske Atlanterhavskomité - internett-tekster. ISSN 1502-5373.
• Jensenius, Francesca (2014). Women, Power and Politics: Barriers to Female Candidates in Indian Elections.
• Jensenius, Francesca (2014). Women, Power and Politics: Barriers to Female Candidates in Indian Elections.
• Jensenius, Francesca (2014). Development from Representation? A Study of Quotas for Scheduled Castes in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca (2014). India: Growth and redistribution in the world's largest democracy.
• Jensenius, Francesca (2014). Delimited out of sight? Electoral incentives and public goods in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca; Chhibber, Pradeep & Verma, Anil Kumar (2014). Representing the underdogs: A survey experiment about representation in India.
• Jensenius, Francesca (2014). Valg 2014: et nytt India? Hvor hender det?. ISSN 0801-9509.
• Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Heierstad, Geir; Flåten, Lars Tore & Jensenius, Francesca (2014). Kraftig omveltning. Ny Tid. ISSN 0809-9049. 62(19).
• Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Flåten, Lars Tore; Heierstad, Geir & Jensenius, Francesca (2014). India-Norges framtid. Ytring : NRK.
• Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Flåten, Lars Tore; Heierstad, Geir & Jensenius, Francesca (2014). En splittende valgkandidat. Klassekampen. ISSN 0805-3839.
• Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Flåten, Lars Tore; Heierstad, Geir; Jensenius, Francesca & Jakobsen, Jostein (2014). Truende Maoister. Ny Tid. ISSN 0809-9049. 62(17).
• Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Flåten, Lars Tore; Heierstad, Geir & Jensenius, Francesca (2014). Hvem kan danne regjering i India? Aftenposten (morgenutg. : trykt utg.). ISSN 0804-3116.
• Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Flåten, Lars Tore; Heierstad, Geir & Jensenius, Francesca (2014). India's tredje front. Ny Tid. ISSN 0809-9049. 62(15).
• Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Flåten, Lars Tore; Heierstad, Geir & Jensenius, Francesca (2014). Masken av. Ny Tid. ISSN 0809-9049. 62(13).
• Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Flåten, Lars Tore; Heierstad, Geir & Jensenius, Francesca (2014). Partiet uten leder. Ny Tid. ISSN 0809-9049. 62(11).
• Nielsen, Kenneth Bo; Flåten, Lars Tore; Heierstad, Geir & Jensenius, Francesca Refsum (2014). Nye valgvinder i India. Ny tid. ISSN 0803-3498.
• Jensenius, Francesca (2013). Virker politisk kvotering? Aftenposten Viten. ISSN 2464-3033.
• Jensenius, Francesca (2011). Intricacies of Empowerment. The Book Review. 35(3), p. 59–60.
• Mitra, Anirban; Jensenius, Francesca R. & Kotsadam, Andreas (2015). Do Parties Matter at the Sub-district Level of Politics? Evidence from Tehsils in Andhra Pradesh. Økonomisk institutt, Universitetet i Oslo.
• Jensenius, Francesca Refsum (2013). Power, Performance and Bias: Evaluating the Electoral Quotas for Scheduled Castes in India. ProQuest.

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