Gender and Comparative Public Policy
| Module title | Gender and Comparative Public Policy |
|---|---|
| Module code | POL2107 |
| Academic year | 2024/5 |
| Credits | 15 |
| Module staff | Professor Isabelle Engeli (Convenor) |
| Duration: Term | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duration: Weeks | 11 |
| Number students taking module (anticipated) | 50 |
|---|
Module description
What is gender equality? When does gender matter in policy making? Are gender policies successful? What are the remaining barriers and obstacles to gender equality?
This course provides you with an introduction to gender and comparative public policy and reviews policies addressing gender and sexuality issues in Europe. You will explore why, how and when gender dynamics matter in public policy and assesses similarities and differences in gender-related policies across Europe. The course discusses a range of policy issues including political representation, equality in the workplace, reproduction, same-sex marriage and LGBTQIA+ rights.
Module aims - intentions of the module
The aims of this module are to introduce you to key concepts and analytical perspectives in in European gender policy; to enable you to gain a better understanding of contemporary issues and challenges related to gender+ equality and sexual+ equality; and to provide you with the ability to examine the challenges and barriers related to gender in the policy process. The primary context will be Europe.
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
ILO: Module-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 1. Demonstrate understanding of significant contemporary debates about gender, politics and policy in post-industrialised European society;
- 2. Critically assess the channels through which gender may be still relevant to understand policy making in the 21th century across a variety of policy issues.
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 3. Critically analyse primary and secondary source material and apply analytical argument;
- 4. Link concepts to real world examples;
- 5. Analyse debates and present coherent arguments about gender-related issues in public policy.
ILO: Personal and key skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 6. Present, evaluate and synthesise ideas and debates;
- 7. Present written material in a coherent manner;
- 8. Develop autonomous learning skills, notably self-direction and time management;
- 9. Contribute productively and co-operatively to class discussions.
Syllabus plan
Drawing on research gender and comparative public policy, the module assesses and challenges analytical perspectives through the comparative examination of a range of contemporary issues in the promotion of gender+ equality and sexual+ equality in Europe.
Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following theoretical discussions and case studies:
- What is gender equality and why does it matter?
- Gender equality paradigm in action
- The politics of gender
- Gender at work
- Gender and reproduction
- LGBT rights and same-sex marriage
- Gender and sexuality
- Opposition and backlash against gender and sexual equality
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 22 | 128 | 0 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning & Teaching activities | 11 | 11 x 1hr lectures |
| Scheduled Learning & Teaching activities | 11 | 11 x 1hr seminars and in-class group work |
| Guided Independent Study | 50 | Private study reading and preparing for the module, following module-related news events |
| Guided Independent Study | 78 | Preparation of policy brief |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Participation in class discussion and in-class group work | 11 x 1hr seminars and group work | 1-6, 9 | Oral |
| Polict brief formative x 2 | 300 words each | 1-8 | Written |
Summative assessment (% of credit)
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
Details of summative assessment
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Policy brief | 100 | 1,500 words | 1-8 | Written |
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 |
Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Policy brief | Policy brief (1,500 words) | 1-8 | August/September re-assessment period |
Indicative learning resources - Basic reading
G. Waylen, K. Celis, J. Kantola and S. L. Weldon (eds). The Oxford Handbook of Gender and Politics. New York: Oxford University Press.
Htun, M. and S. L. Weldon (2010). “When Do Governments Promote Women’s Rights? A Framework for the Comparative Analysis of Sex Equality Policy.” Perspectives on Politics 8(1): 207-216.
Bacchi, C. L. (1999). Women, Policy and Politics. London: Sage.
Adam, Barry D., Jan Willem Duyvendak and André Krouwel (1999). The Global Emergence of Gay and Lesbian Politics. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Banaszak, L. A. et al. (2003). Women’s Movements Facing the Reconfigured State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Bowen, J. (2007). Why the French Don't Like Headscarves, Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Burns, G. (2005). The Moral Veto: Framing Contraception, Abortion, and Cultural Pluralism in the United States. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
C. Hakim (2004). Key Issues in Women’s Work: Female Diversity and the Polarisation of Women’s Employment. Routledge-Cavendish.
Carroll, S. J. (ed.) (2001). The Impact of Women in Public Office. Bloomington: Indiana.
Childs, S. (2008). Women and British Party Politics. Routledge.
Christoph Knill, Christian Adam, and Steffen Hurka, eds. 2015. On the Road to Permissiveness? Change and Convergence of Moral Regulation in Europe. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Dahlerup, Drude (2006). Women, Quotas, and Politics. New York: Routledge.
De Zordo, S., J. Mishtal and L. Anton (2016). A Fragmented Landscape: Abortion Governance and Protest Logics in Europe. New York: Berghahn.
Engeli, I., C. Green-Pedersen, and L. T. Larsen, eds. (2012). Morality Politics in Western Europe: Parties, Agendas and Policy Choices. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Engeli, Isabelle (2009). “The Challenges of Abortion and Assisted Reproductive Technologies Policies in Europe”, Comparative European Politics 7(1): 56-74
Evans, E. (2015). Politics of Third Wave Feminisms Neoliberalism, Intersectionality, and the State in Britain and the US. Palgrave MacMillan.
Fetner, T (2008). How the Religious Right Shaped Lesbian and Gay Activism. Minneapolis, University of Minnesota Press.
Grzymala-Busse, A. M. (2015). Nations under God: How churches use moral authority to influence policy. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Hankivsky, Olena (2013). “Gender Mainstreaming: A Five-Country Examination”, Politics & Policy 41(5): 629-55.
Htun, Mala. 2003. Sex and the State: Abortion, Divorce and the Family under Latin American Dictatorships and Democracies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Jacobs J. A. 1989. Revolving Doors: Sex Segregation and Women’s Career. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Joppke, C. (2014). Europe and Islam: Alarmists, Victimists, Integration by Law, West EuropeanPolitics 37(6).
Krook, M. L. (2016). Contesting Gender Quotas: Dynamics of Resistance », Politics, Groups, and Identities 4(2): 268-83.
Latham, M. (2002) Regulating Reproduction. A Century of Conflict in Britain and France. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
Lawless, J. (2004). “Politics of presence? Congresswomen and symbolic representation." Political Research Quarterly 57(1): 81-99.
Lépinard, Eléonore (2013), 'For Women only? Gender Quotas and Intersectionality in France', Politics & Gender, 9(3), p. 276-298.
Mazur, A. G. (2002). Theorizing Feminist Policy. New York: Oxford University Press.
Paternotte, D. (2015). Global Times, Global Debates? Same-Sex Marriage Worldwide, Social Politics 22(4).
Harvard University Press.
Scott, Joan W. (2005), Parité! Sexual Difference and the Crisis of French Universalism, Chicago, University of Chicago Press.
Sheldon, S. (1997) Beyond Control: Medical Power and Abortion Law. London/Chicago: Pluto Press
Wilson, J. C. (2016). The New States of Abortion Politics. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
Winter. B. Fundamental Misunderstandings: Issues in Feminist Approach to Islamism, Journal of
Wolbrecht, Christina. 2000. The Politics of Women Rights: Parties, Positions, and Change. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Yuval-Davis, Nira. 2011. The Politics of Belonging: Intersectional Contestations. London: Sage.
Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources
Will be provided on ELE
Indicative learning resources - Other resources
Will be provided on ELE
| Credit value | 15 |
|---|---|
| Module ECTS | 7.5 |
| Module pre-requisites | None |
| Module co-requisites | None |
| NQF level (module) | 5 |
| Available as distance learning? | No |
| Origin date | 08/01/2019 |
| Last revision date | 27/08/2020 |
