The hegemonic gender order in politics

Bibliographic Data

ID6058664
AuthorsSara De Simone (0000-0001-7539-1665, University of Cagliari), Silvia De Simone (0000-0002-3647-7869), Daniela Putzu (University of Cagliari), Diego Lasio (0000-0002-8851-4617, University of Cagliari), Francesco Serri (0000-0002-9412-3989, University of Cagliari)
Year2018
Volume37
Issue8
Pages832-846
Publication date2018-11-20
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEqual Opportunities International (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1758-7093 • E-ISSN: 2040-7149
PublisherEmerald (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1108/edi-12-2017-0272
OpenAlexW2896320703
LanguageEN
Citations received8
References cited41

Purpose Despite the ongoing increase of women in the top positions, they are still underrepresented in politics. The studies that primarily focus on women’s underrepresentation in politics neglect the role of gender as a category that structures and makes sense of social practices. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the mechanisms that regulate the contemporary gender order in politics through discourse analysis and the contribution of the critical feminist perspective. Design/methodology/approach The study is based on 30 biographical interviews with Italian politicians and focuses on the account of their political experiences and on the meanings attributed to these. Findings The results of this paper underline the tendency to either absolve or blame women for gender inequality in politics through different interpretative repertoires: “Women’s disinterest toward politics,” “Politics as masculine context” and “Politics–family unbalance.” The analysis allowed to unravel the way in which the discursive practices create and reproduce the hegemonic gender order in politics. Research limitations/implications The research is limited to 30 qualitative interviews, and so results cannot be generalized. Practical implications The findings of this paper highlight the importance of exploring issues relating to the gender gap in politics and stress the need to implement actions to promote gender equality in politics. Originality/value The paper contributes to an understanding of women’s underrepresentation in politics and offers causes for reflection on a phenomenon that has profound implications for our society

Blame · Epistemology · Hegemony · Neglect · Originality · Phenomenon · Political science · Politics · Qualitative research · Social science · Sociology · Gender Diversity and Inequality · Gender Politics and Representation · Gender Studies · Historical Gender and Feminism Studies · Law · Psychology · Social Psychology