M.A., Ph.D., University of Missouri-Columbia
B.A., Michigan State University

Shelly Grabe’s research examines the processes by which cultural norms existing at the societal level provide a context whereby men and women come to view women’s bodies as objects that exist for the benefit of others – thereby leading to objectification of and control over the female body. Her research focuses on how the cultural objectification of women’s bodies serves to keep women in a position of marginalized status via threats to their psychological well-being. She argues that the cultural objectification of women and women’s bodies is a global phenomenon – that is– a phenomenon that is pervasive but played out in different ways across different cultures (e.g., exposed midriff, the veil/hijab, physical violence) and how this results in “embodied oppression” ranging from the internalization of the sexual objectification of women’s bodies to the experience of violence in a context where women’s bodies are viewed as objects or property. She identifies as a scholar-activist and is committed to exploring how the study of gendered social structures can be practically relevant and foster social change.

In her current program of research Professor Grabe argues that women’s human rights warrant increased focus in the context of globalization and she demonstrates how Psychology can provide the currently missing, but necessary, links between Transnational Feminism, the discourse on women’s human rights and globalization, and the international attention given to women’s empowerment, to effectively fill in gaps in understanding, and to contribute to systematic change in women’s well-being worldwide. She is currently engaged in two transnational feminist projects investigating gender-based violence in the context of development involving land resources – one in Nicaragua and another with Maasai women in Tanzania. In particular, by focusing on women’s property ownership, status or power within the marital relationship, and markers of women’s empowerment and psychological well-being she is testing processes that receive a great deal of attention in the international development community but, to date, have not been empirically supported. By shedding light on the mechanisms of women’s empowerment, this line of research has implications for gender and development theory and initiatives that can improve women’s psychological well-being. Professor Grabe is using the conceptualization and methodological approach to empowerment from within the discipline of Psychology to bridge theoretical arguments surrounding human rights with the practical implementation of development interventions, and providing empirical support that has yet to be demonstrated elsewhere.

The application of scholarly knowledge to policy change and solidarity work; Gender; Social Justice; Sexual objectification; Transnational Feminism

Grabe, S. (In press). Invited chapter: Women’s human rights and empowerment in a transnational, globalized context: What’s Psychology got to do with it? In M. A. Paludi (Ed.), Feminism and Women's Rights Worldwide. Westport, CT. Praeger Publishers/Greenwood Publishing Group.

Grabe, S. & Arenas, C. (2009). Promoting gender equality through development: Land ownership and domestic violence in Nicaragua. Gendered Perspectives on International Development. Working Paper #295. East Lansing, MI: Gender, Development, and Globalization Program, Michigan State University.

Grabe, S. & Jackson, B. (2009). Self-objectification and depressive symptoms: Does their association vary among Asian American and White American men and women? Body Image: An International Journal, 6, 141-144.

Grabe, S., Ward, L.M., & Hyde, J. S. (2008). The Role of the Media in Body Image Concerns among Women: A Meta-Analysis of Experimental and Correlational Studies. Psychological Bulletin, 134, 460-476.

2007 - Grabe, S., Hyde, J.S., & Lindberg, S. Body objectification and depression in adolescents: The role of gender, shame, and rumination. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 31, 164-175.

2006 - Grabe, S., Hyde, J.S. Ethnicity and body dissatisfaction among women in the United States: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 132, 622-640.