Critical Frame Analysis of Eu Gender Equality Policies

New Perspectives on the Substantive Representation of Women

Bibliographic Data

ID6378652
AuthorsP Meier (0000-0003-4108-5875, corresponding author)
Year2008
Volume44
Issue2
Pages155-167
Publication date2008-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueRepresentation (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0034-4893 • E-ISSN: 1749-4001
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/00344890802079656
OpenAlexW2105816226
LanguageEN
Citations received17
References cited14

This article adopts a novel approach to the question of women's substantive representation, exploring the potential of Critical Frame Analysis. It allows for an open approach whereby the form and content of what substantive representation entails are not defined at the outset. Rather the analysis reveals their construction, which permits a broadening of the perspective of the concept of substantive representation and of its approach. Studying policy frames relating to gender equality in politics found in EU policy documents, the article finds that little attention is paid to a substantive representation of women but when it is, it is mainly carried by gender experts and feminist activists. Notes 1. The FP5 funded project on ‘Policy frames and implementation problems: the case of gender mainstreaming’ (www.mageeq.net) has developed the theoretical and methodological framework as well as the research data on which this contribution draws. 2. The frame analysis also related the analysis of diagnosis and prognosis to the mechanisms considered to reproduce or overcome the problem, to the location of the problem and its solution (in the organisation of citizenship, labour or intimacy) and to the norms and balance present in policy documents. The dimensions of diagnosis and prognosis of policy documents are organised around a structure of sensitising questions in a systematic and detailed summary that has been called a supertext. For the entire set of questions see Verloo (2005 Verloo, Mieke. 2005. Mainstreaming gender equality in Europe. A critical frame analysis.. The Greek Review of Social Research, 117(B): 11–32. [Google Scholar]). 3. Also, the substantive representation of women refers to women, not necessarily to the relational category of gender. But even if the scope gets broadened, accepting any policy frame on women as a substantive representation of women, it might still be too narrow, as reveals the problem of strategic framing (Verloo 2001 Verloo, Mieke. 2001. Another Velvet Revolution? Gender mainstreaming and the politics of implementation, Vienna: IWM. IWM Working Paper No. 5/2001 [Google Scholar]). A policy issue might adapt the language, objectives and values of the dominant prevailing policy frame(s) in order to get connected to it so as to make it to the political agenda. The strategy, then, might consist in not talking about women and their interests and needs. Referring to the under‐representation of women in politics as a waste of human resources might be an example of strategic framing in order to avoid references to prevailing power relations. 4. This selection method involves that all aspects of debates are covered but not necessarily all policy documents. Therefore no conclusions can be drawn on the frequency in which actors intervened in the debates or in which frames occur. However, the way of selecting documents according to aspects of debates allows for telling to what extent frames are major or minor ones. This is due to the fact that different frames can occur in one policy document. Frames occurring in many selected documents are major ones as compared to frames that can only be found in some documents. Similarly, frames dominating a given document are major ones as compared to those occurring in the margin. A way to improve the selection method consists in picking the documents in which a new aspect of debate is introduced. This allows for detecting its moment of appearance and source. 5. This section draws on the research report by Meier and Paantjens (2004 Meier, Petra and Paantjens, Marjolein. 2004. Updated Preliminary Report on the European Union: Political Participation., Vienna: IWM. Unpublished [Google Scholar

Content analysis · Critical discourse analysis · Economics · Frame (networking · Frame analysis · Gender equality · Perspective (graphical · Political science · Politics · Positive economics · Representation (politics · Social science · Sociology · Computer Science · European Union Policy and Governance · Gender Politics and Representation · Gender Studies · Law · Social Policy and Reform Studies

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