Overview

Globalization and economic restructuring have decimated formal jobs in developing countries, pushing many women into informal employment such as direct selling of cosmetics, perfume, and other personal care products as a way to ""make up the difference"" between household income and expenses. In Ecuador, with its persistent economic crisis and few opportunities for financially and personally rewarding work, women increasingly choose direct selling as a way to earn income by activating their social networks. While few women earn the cars and trips that are iconic prizes in the direct selling organization, many use direct selling as part of a set of household survival strategies. In this first in-depth study of a cosmetics direct selling organization in Latin America, Erynn Masi de Casanova explores women's identities as workers, including their juggling of paid work and domestic responsibilities, their ideas about professional appearance, and their strategies for collecting money from customers. Focusing on women who work for the country's leading direct selling organization, she offers fascinating portraits of the everyday lives of women selling personal care products in Ecuador's largest city, Guayaquil. Addressing gender relations (including a look at men's direct and indirect involvement), the importance of image, and the social and economic context of direct selling, Casanova challenges assumptions that this kind of flexible employment resolves women's work/home conflicts and offers an important new perspective on women's work in developing countries.

Full Product Details

Author:   Erynn Masi de Casanova
Publisher:   University of Texas Press
Imprint:   University of Texas Press
Dimensions:   Width: 15.20cm , Height: 2.50cm , Length: 22.90cm
Weight:   0.567kg
ISBN:  

9780292723863

ISBN 10:   0292723865
Pages:   261
Publication Date:   01 June 2011
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Replaced By:   9780292743915
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Out of Print
Availability:   In Print  
Limited stock is available. It will be ordered for you and shipped pending supplier's limited stock.

Table of Contents

Preface Acknowledgments Introduction: Avon Ladies in the Amazon? Part I. Gender Relations: Women, Men, and Work Chapter 1. Multiplying Themselves: Women Direct Sellers Managing Productive and Reproductive Work Chapter 2. Men Make a Difference: Opposers, Supporters, and Drivers Part II. The Look: Images of Beauty, Professionalism, and Success Chapter 3. How Products Sell Themselves: Picturing Gender, Race, and Class in Yanbal's Catalogs Chapter 4. Embodying Professionalism: Constructing the Yanbalista Image Chapter 5. The Picture of Success: Prizes and Status in the Direct Sales Organization Part III. Direct Selling in Context: Careers and Consumption Chapter 6. What Would They Be Doing If They Weren't Selling Beauty Products? Women's Work Experiences in Context Chapter 7. Buying Beauty: Flexible Payment and Expanding Consumption Conclusion Appendix: Methodology References Index

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Author Information

ERYNN MASI DE CASANOVA is Assistant Professor of Sociology and a Faculty Affiliate of the Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program at the University of Cincinnati. She has been conducting research in Ecuador for a decade, and her work has been published in journals such as Gender & Society, Women's Studies Quarterly, and Latino Studies.

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