The Interplay between Gender, Markets and the State of Sweden, Germany and the United States

Citation

Mano‐Negrin, R. (2002), "The Interplay between Gender, Markets and the State of Sweden, Germany and the United States", International Journal of Manpower, Vol. 23 No. 4, pp. 379-381. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijm.2002.23.4.379.2

This work is a comprehensive and yet reader‐friendly descriptive overview of theory encompassing social and political perspectives on gender/state relations. It is an informative and readable integrated study. The author goes beyond the classical studies on gender/state relations to claim that “gender integration or exclusion” is a theme that has not been thoroughly investigated in a way that links macro‐level perspectives of the market/state relationship, on the one hand, and micro‐level perspectives of normative effects on gender outcomes, on the other (p. 4; italics added).

Although the effort to introduce new concepts of “regime types” into the old classical conceptions of gender‐state relationships is not convincing, the effort to integrate the different levels of gender‐related analyses is a worthy and challenging effort that future gender‐related studies should address.

Moreover, the author does an excellent job in starting with a historical overview of the economic, political and economic theories of the link between state‐based policies and gender‐related issues and the way these were reflected in the post‐war period in the three countries examined – Germany, Sweden, and the USA. Because the author uses the gender/state models of liberal, socialist and conservative states in the first chapter, the second chapter of the book relates wisely to motherhood‐related policies of each state, where social events, both political and historical, shape such policies in each country. The description of these events is excellent material for academic and non‐academic readerships.

The third chapter introduces old findings in regard to the massive entrance of women into the labor force on the basis of a comparison of OECD data, which provides an overall picture of these three nations. The chapter shows how the changes of the post‐war period led to the “feminization” of the labor force. The author takes a further step with a powerful thesis, arguing that the feminization of the labor force did not take place in the same way in the examined countries. The involvement of collective actors and institutions in each country shapes the labor force pattern differently.

The fourth chapter logically follows by presenting a methodological review of the gendered occupational segregation in each of the countries and demonstrates the link between these differences and gendered inequalities in their outcomes. Here the author enriches this traditional aspect of gender stratification by introducing, but unfortunately not testing, the normative aspects of segregation and the gender/state relationship. While the author contends that vocational training is one important link to segregation that distinguishes among the three countries, the data related to this important aspect are condensed in one and a half pages, leaving the reader with the sense of wanting “more”. The important term “constructed choices ” used by the author is not fully developed nor appropriately tested. The use of appropriate indices could improve the empirical assessment of this concept by showing the normative side of gender/state relationships and its impact on gender differences in wages and outcomes.

Moreover, both the third and fourth chapters neglect the the centrality of public sector employment as an additional, if not the main, axis of occupational segregation. Because this sector is that which mainly introduces/establishes/eliminates gender‐related actions, it provides an important dimension of the gender‐state effects, which cross‐cuts occupational and normative effects.

The last chapter of the book wisely follows a macro‐micro framework by focusing on family‐related frameworks. The author rightly points out that an important part of gender‐state relations is set by defining the importance of family type (female‐headed, male‐breadwinner vs female‐breadwinner etc.) as both reflecting and at the same time shaping work‐related behaviors and outcomes. By doing so, the “fit” between the structured reality (of what?) and the private sphere of work and gender becomes clear.

Overall, this is a comprehensive work that correctly points to the need to test “gender” as an outcome of the structured and institutionalized reality of work. Because of the book’s comparative focus, it is an excellent choice to show how gender/state changes in Germany, Sweden and the USA led to different gender‐related statuses. While the book does not provide a new theoretical point, it does make an important contribution to the holistic nature of gender‐related outcomes, which stems from the link between state approach and policy implementation to normative gender‐related behaviors. This link, between the public and private spheres in determining women’s personal status, is provided to us in an integrative and lucid way. Some sections of the book, however, are in need of more focused professional editing.