Traditionally and historically certain jobs have been recognized as male or female professions leading to the assumption that the barrier crossing men and women working in these gender atypical jobs are being less masculine and less feminine. The aim of this study is to examine similarities and differences among male social workers and female police officers in the experience of being a gender minority in their workplace and how it effects the construction of their gender identity. Working with a qualitative approach and using semi-constructed interviews the study was conducted by interviewing a total of five social workers and four female police officers, in six different communities, about their personal experiences of being a gender minority in a gender atypical job. The result shows both differences and similarities between the genders and their occupation; on a personal level neither of the respondents seemed to have a problem working in a gender atypical job although admitting that working in a ?female? and ?male? profession  had effects on their personality but not on how they viewed themselves as men or women.

The purpose of this paper is to examine how the relationship between the socially constructed genders is manifested in American library science. To visualize gender, bibliometric analyses of peer reviewed articles published in three core journals of library science between 1980 and 2000 inclusive, are performed. The three journals are: College and Research Libraries, Journal of Academic Librarianship and Library Quarterly. Questions: 1. Does gender affect the publishing process regarding the distribution of female and male authors? 2.

Queen Kristina of Sweden (1626-1689) was in many ways an interesting, fascinating but also a very complicated woman, who has been studied widely by historians and other scholars throughout the years. However, there are few people who have considered the queens attitude towards the male norm which characterize Sweden, and most of Europe, during the seventeenth century.My purpose with this essay is therefore to apply the historian and gender expert Yvonne Hirdman´s theory about the gender system and the hierarchical order, where the male is the norm and representative of what is considered to be normal in the society, on literature regarding Queen Kristina of Sweden. The historical method of this essay will be historiography, as a result of the fact that my study is based on other historians and scholars research. Moreover, my intention is to include Kristina´s entire life in Sweden, from her birth as far as to her abdication from the Swedish throne and study this through the gender perspective introduced above. With this mentioned my essay therefore is named Against All Odds.

AbstractVäxjö University, School of Social SciencesBachelor thesisTitle: Ansvaret för skolan ? en studie om ansvarsfördelningen ur ett nyinstitutionalistiskt perspektivAuthor: Hanna JanssonSupervisor: Conny JohannessonThe aim of the study is to investigate which ideas that dominated the official political debate concerning the responsibility distribution for the Swedish school from 1974 to 1991.The study asks two questions: What ideas have dominated the official political debate concerning the responsibility distribution for the Swedish school from 1974 to 1991? and Why did the responsibility of the Swedish school change in 1991? In order to answer these questions an idea analysis were used. Three ideal types concerning democracy, effectivity and professionalism were used in analysing official governmental documents. The conclusion is that all three ideal types dominated the debate concerning the responsibility distribution, but in different degrees, and they can also explain why a new responsibility distribution came up in 1991..

Among those who graduate from the various schools of Social work in Sweden are a great majority women. At the same time men are sought after in the work field.  But not just to level up the equality between the sexes, but also to fill a gender specific niche to counter up a need for male role models. But a closer look at this need and the types of functions set to cater for it shows that male role models as a concept vary between contexts. In this study we examine the concepts and the practices of male role models in three different settings: a municipal social care center offering young boys male bonding activities; a non-profit organization warding young people from drug abuse and criminal behavior; and last, a long term residential home for young boys between the ages 13 and 19. Our research shows that the concept of the male role model vary between the organizations and less so within.

The aim of this study is to research images of the academic world that is presented, incorporated and reproduced within the frames of the mentorship in the basic level. Can these images derive to the view upon science as a traditionally male area? Is mentorship gendered? Can the mentorship on the basic level be viewed upon as a milestone of a academic career where men and women have different opportunities to succeed?By interviewing seven mentors, working in a social sciences institution in a larger Swedish university, I have come to the conclusion that knowledge is coded male and that this affect mentors mental images of what male and female students are expected to do. The male student represent the scientist, while the female student represent what the scientist is not.Depending on the work of, among others, Kerstin Norlander, Dorothy Smith and Eva Erson I have come to view upon the university as a patriarchal organisation witch produces knowledge based upon male values, experiences and concepts. This precludes the female within this organisation from relating to the knowledge she is supposed to incorporate.

Gender equality and gender equality work is relevant for today's working life, and previously Male-dominated occupations may be increasingly under pressure to become more equal. This paper aims to explore and understand how the firefighters at a station are experiencing gender and gender equality in rescue services.Using theories of how sex is done, how a power perspective and a structural approach can show men's and women's different conditions in an organization, and theories that are more specific to gender and change management the firefighters talk about gender and gender equality are analyzed. Essay results were collected through interviews with seven firefighters and then analyzed and interpreted with the help of theories.The analysis shows that there is a perception among the firefighters that men and women are biologically different and that required physical strength legitimizes the exclusion of women. Inequality is seen as something natural and by pursuing an active gender equality women are given unwarranted benefits. When physical strength becomes a legitimate reason for exclusion, the responsibility for gender inequality is put on women and that women don?t have what it takes.There is also a resistance against gender equality analyzed in the paper, and it's stated opposition seems to be directed against the management's way of recruiting women.

The aim of this paper is to elucidate and analyze history teacher's didactic choices in the conflict between unequal educational materials and the requirements of equality in the curriculum of Swedish secondary school. The empirical data consists of interviews with five secondary school history teachers, observations of their lessons as well as analysis of their tests. The starting point was to investigate teachers' didactic work in the role as a bridge between the non-equal historiography presented in textbooks in history and the curriculum?s demands for equality. Three different approaches have been observed in the teachers' didactic work when considering gender perspective into their teaching: that women become extensions in a Male-dominated historiography; that another part of the story is presented when a gender perspective is considered; and that the gender perspective is included in history teaching and becomes an integral part of all the content of the subject.Several of the teachers acknowledged that gender equality is less prioritized than the courses core content and related assessment criteria.

This essay explores the novel Charlie by Margareta Suber (1932) through lesbian narrative theory. The result is a revealing on how the lesbian main character can be established as a lesbian subject against the male and heterosexual narrative; how she escapes a simple male positioning in the narrative, how she subverts categorisation, how she parttakes in female bonding, and how she disturbs heteronormativity..

This study aims to seek knowledge about what preschool teachers think about gender issues, and if it affects their work. The study has been performed in a multicultural district in Stockholm. A working party of three teachers, one male and two females, has been interviewed and observed. The empirical material from the interviews and observations has then been analyzed based on theories about gender, femaleness, maleness and cultural behaviour. The result proves that one of the three teachers considers that there are general typical female and male behaviour.

Purpose/Aim: This study is an analysis of the view on masculinity, male sexuality and creation of identity with the television series Queer as folk as a base. The analysis is partly based on a semiotic analysis of the representation of masculinity and male sexuality from an episode of the chosen television series Queer as folk, and partly based on a thematic analysis of focus group discussions with young men with different sexualities.Material/Method: This study is based on focus group interviews and a semiotic and thematic analysis. The focus groups consisted of three men in three different groups and were chosen on the criteria of gender and sexuality. All groups were presented with an episode of the television series Queer as folk to see how they perceived masculinity and male sexuality. Their discussions were analyzed with a thematic analysis and the television series Queer as folk with a semiotic analysis.Main results: The three analyzed characters in Queer as folk showed different representations of masculinity and male sexuality.

The purpose of this thesis is to explore whether male kindergarten teachers perceive additional expectations from their surroundings (such as co-workers and parents). Furthermore, we aim to understand and explain how these expectations are related to gender norms and hierarchies in society, that is social constructions concerning what men and women should do and be like. In addition, the thesis aspire to understand and explain how these constructions relate to more specific social constructions about sexual molestations in kindergarten contexts and explore how these discourses influence male kindergarten teachers in their work including which strategies they use in order to cope with them.How do male kindergarten teachers perceive additional expectations from their surroundings?How do male kindergarten teachers perceive the effects and consequences of the social constructions about sexual molestations in kindergarten contexts? Do they use coping strategies in order to attend to the expectations projected on them, and if so, what kind of strategies? The thesis is based on a phenomenological approach and conducted through interviews with six male kindergarten teachers. The interviews were directed with an interview guide in hand while allowing for spontaneous input from the interviewee.

Gender equality and gender equality work is relevant for today's working life, and previously Male-dominated occupations may be increasingly under pressure to become more equal. This paper aims to explore and understand how the firefighters at a station are experiencing gender and gender equality in rescue services.Using theories of how sex is done, how a power perspective and a structural approach can show men's and women's different conditions in an organization, and theories that are more specific to gender and change management the firefighters talk about gender and gender equality are analyzed. Essay results were collected through interviews with seven firefighters and then analyzed and interpreted with the help of theories.The analysis shows that there is a perception among the firefighters that men and women are biologically different and that required physical strength legitimizes the exclusion of women. Inequality is seen as something natural and by pursuing an active gender equality women are given unwarranted benefits. When physical strength becomes a legitimate reason for exclusion, the responsibility for gender inequality is put on women and that women don?t have what it takes.There is also a resistance against gender equality analyzed in the paper, and it's stated opposition seems to be directed against the management's way of recruiting women.

The purpose of this thesis was to look at the relationship between the experiences of work related stress among male bank employees and how they dealt with potential stress. The thesis focused on male bank employee?s experiences and management of work related stress with the control requirements and support model as a starting point. Work related stress is a phenomenon that has become a serious problem with economic impact for both the individual and organizations. Increased absence from work due to medical issues is one example of such consequences.

Purpose/Aim: The aim of this thesis was to study the construction of gender and to compare Media?s portrayal of male and female athletes.Material/Method: 140 articles covering seven famous Swedish male and female athletes were selected from two Swedish newspapers (Aftonbladet and Expressen). The articles has been analysed within the frames of Norman Faircloughs Critical Discourse Analysis.Main results: Male athletes are often described in powerful ways and are framed as being strong and successful. Skills and strengths of women athletes are often devalued in comparison to standards of hegemonic masculinity and self-control. They are often framed as women and girlfriends in advantage of the fact that they are athletes..