This book examines the current status of women. It consists of a collection of papers that focus on the political, economic, biologic, cultural, academic and psychological challenges that confront women worldwide. The contributors, from the International Psychoanalytical Association's United Nations Committee and from a variety of disciplines, draw on their experience to consider how women are symbolized in society today. They offer perspectives on why the status of women and girls has not changed in some areas of the world while in others there has been discrete and noteworthy progress, sometimes followed by reactionary backlash. The book emphasizes how and why women's status has evolved, stalled or regressed to its present place. In the current era of globalization, new paradigms and the creation of new possibilities are necessary for women to think about their identity, their relationships, and their place in society. The Status of Women offers new perspectives on the broad scope of psychoanalytic theory and practice.