Women's Experiences of Empowerment in Different Cultural Contexts: A Comparative Qualitative Study of Female Students in Nepal and Denmark
Translated title
Women's Experiences of Empowerment in Different Cultural Contexts
Authors
Gurung, Rimka ; Tamang, Kanchan
Term
4. term
Publication year
2026
Submitted on
2026-06-02
Pages
72
Abstract
This thesis explores what empowerment means to female students in Nepal and to international female students living in Denmark. Although progress toward gender equality has been made globally, women’s everyday experiences of empowerment differ across contexts. Rather than focusing only on structural factors like education, employment, and laws, the study examines how women themselves understand and practice empowerment in daily life. Guided by Naila Kabeer’s resource–agency–achievements framework (1999), which treats empowerment as a gradual process, and by intersectionality (Crenshaw, Davis, Yuval-Davis), the analysis considers how gender, nationality, ethnicity, and social status interact. The research uses a qualitative, interpretivist and constructivist approach, based on semi-structured interviews with six key informants (three students from Nepal and three international students in Denmark) and insights from seven additional participants. A thematic analysis identified five themes: defining empowerment, resources, agency, achievements, and culture/intersectionality. Findings show that all six core participants view empowerment as a combination of external opportunities and inner confidence; both are essential and develop over time. A central idea is negotiated agency: moving toward personal goals by working within social expectations and everyday constraints rather than directly opposing them. This pattern appears in both Nepal and Denmark, suggesting that across cultures, empowerment often involves balancing personal choices with social realities. The study clarifies that empowerment is a process, not a fixed state, and that opportunities and abilities are interdependent. It supports Kabeer’s argument that empowerment cannot be assessed only through external indicators, but must include women’s lived experience. It contributes to the limited research on foreign female students and highlights limits to systemic gender equality in Denmark when viewed through everyday life. Overall, empowerment takes different forms in Nepal and Denmark because resources, agency, and understandings of achievement vary, yet a shared human aim remains: to build a life one can own and take pride in.
Denne afhandling undersøger, hvad empowerment betyder for kvindelige studerende i Nepal og for internationale kvindelige studerende, der bor i Danmark. Selvom der globalt er gjort fremskridt mod ligestilling, oplever kvinder empowerment forskelligt i hverdagen. I stedet for kun at se på strukturelle forhold som uddannelse, job og lovgivning, fokuserer studiet på, hvordan kvinder selv forstår og udøver empowerment i deres daglige liv. Analysen er baseret på Naila Kabeers ramme ressourcer–agens–resultater (1999), hvor empowerment ses som en gradvis proces, samt på intersektionalitet (Crenshaw, Davis, Yuval-Davis), der ser på, hvordan køn, nationalitet, etnicitet og social status spiller sammen. Studiet bruger en kvalitativ, interpretivistisk og konstruktivistisk tilgang med semistrukturerede interviews af seks nøgleinformanter (tre studerende fra Nepal og tre internationale studerende i Danmark) og indsigter fra yderligere syv deltagere. En tematisk analyse identificerede fem temaer: at definere empowerment, ressourcer, agens, resultater samt kultur og intersektionalitet. Resultaterne viser, at alle seks kerne-deltagere opfatter empowerment som en kombination af ydre muligheder og indre selvtillid; begge dele er nødvendige og udvikler sig over tid. Et centralt begreb er forhandlet handlekraft: at bevæge sig mod personlige mål ved at navigere inden for sociale forventninger og hverdagens begrænsninger snarere end at gå direkte imod dem. Dette mønster ses både i Nepal og Danmark og tyder på, at empowerment på tværs af kulturer ofte handler om at balancere personlige valg med sociale realiteter. Studiet tydeliggør, at empowerment er en proces, ikke en fast tilstand, og at muligheder og evner er gensidigt afhængige. Det understøtter Kabeers argument om, at empowerment ikke kun kan vurderes gennem ydre indikatorer, men må omfatte kvinders levede erfaringer. Studiet bidrager til den begrænsede forskning om udenlandske kvindelige studerende og peger på begrænsninger i systemisk ligestilling i Danmark, når hverdagslivet inddrages. Samlet viser afhandlingen, at empowerment antager forskellige former i Nepal og Danmark, fordi ressourcer, agens og forståelser af resultater varierer, men at der bag variationerne ligger et fælles menneskeligt mål: at skabe et liv, man selv ejer og kan være stolt af.
[This apstract has been rewritten with the help of AI based on the project's original abstract]