Project description
Intimacy, love, and sexuality in South African older women
Intimacy, sexuality, and relationships among Black older women (50+) in contemporary South Africa are often overlooked in feminist and decolonial agendas. Supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the PILOW project will investigate how older women in South Africa perceive and experience intimacy, love, and sexuality as they age. It will examine the influence of family dynamics, particularly relationships with adult children, and the role of social institutions, such as religious organisations, in their sexuality, especially outside marriage. The project challenges stereotypes that portray older women as asexual and marginalised. Grounded in a feminist decolonial framework, the research actively involves older women in the design of its research tools.
Objective
The PILOW project critically investigates the intimacy, sexuality, and relationships of Black older women (50+) in contemporary South Africa, a demographic often overlooked in both feminist and decolonial agendas. The primary research objectives are to explore how these women construct and experience intimacy, love, and sexuality as they age, how family dynamics, particularly relationships with adult children, influence their intimate lives, and how social institutions like religious institutions shape their sexuality, especially outside of marriage. By addressing these research gaps, the project challenges prevailing stereotypes of older women as asexual and marginalised.
This transdisciplinary research is grounded in a feminist decolonial framework and actively involves older women as knowledgeable experts in the co-design of research tools. By including their voices, the project ensures that the concerns and perspectives of older women are central to the research process. In addition to older women, conversations with their adult children, spiritual leaders from religious institutions (referred to as ‘spiritual parents’), and healthcare providers from local clinics, creating a holistic understanding of how personal and institutional factors shape the intimate lives of older Black women. Through narrative interviews, focus group discussions, and ethnographic fieldwork, the project seeks to capture the complex interplay between family, faith, and sexuality in this demographic.
The project’s approach addresses broader objectives of issues of social justice, gender equality, and the decolonisation of knowledge. Its focus on marginalised voices contributes to the transformation of critical sexuality studies, while its transdisciplinary nature fosters collaboration between academia, religious institutions, and healthcare providers.The findings are expected to contribute to both academic knowledge and policy discussion on the intersectionality of race, gender and sexual
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
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CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- social sciences other social sciences development studies development theories post-colonial theories
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-GF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
G12 8QQ Glasgow
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.