Gender and Power in Contemporary Politics

1. The first goal is to provide students with the key concepts and theories for the study of politics from a gender perspective, using the analytical toolkit of feminist political analysis. Concepts such as sex, gender, equality, difference, patriarchy, feminism, public/private dichotomy, femininities and masculinities, and intersectionality will be introduced and critically discussed throughout the course.  
2. The second goal of the course is to provide students with an understanding of whether and how gender, gender identities and sexual orientation affect the distribution to political power. To achieve this, we study gender differences in political institutions - political parties, parliaments, governments - with particular attention to how gender norms and informal institutions affect opportunities and outcomes. Relatedly, the course focuses on the study of women's political representation and the policy interventions developed to address women's under-representation in politics - such as gender quotas.  
3. A third goal is to explore whether gender matters for policy making. Careful attention will be paid to theories and evidence that expect women to do politics different from men, both in style, behavior, competency, and areas of attention, and you will get an overview over both literature that support such claims and studies demonstrating more nuanced perspectives. We will also focus specifically on gender equality policies. This involves exploring the main political strategies used in gender-related policy-making (equal opportunities, affirmative action, gender mainstreaming and intersectionality); identifying the main actors in gender equality policy-making (feminist movements, equality agencies, elected politicians); and finally, considering the main sources of opposition to gender equality policies (anti-gender movements, anti-feminism, etc.) 

A student who has completed the course should have the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence.

Knowledge

The student...

• can outline the fundamental concepts in the literature on gender and politics
• can list potential factors that influence women's and sexual minorities access to political institutions
• can recognize different theories on the role of gender in policy-making
• can distinguish the main aspects of gender equality policy-making and related opportunities and obstacles
• can familiarize with the main methodological approaches in the study of gender and politics

Skills

The student...

• can synthesize, compare and critically discuss different approaches to the study of politics from a gender perspective, including feminist approaches.
• can critically reflect on the role of ascribed identities in political processes
• can analyze real-world examples of gender+ equality policy-making, identifying actors involved and their strategies to pursue their policy objectives

General competence

The student...

• can transfer the theoretical perspectives acquired in this course to new areas and topics
• can discuss and provide informed commentary and critiques on theories and concepts
• can present in professional environments
• can contribute to teamwork
• can structure a short academic essay