Public Administration and Gender Inequality - Einzelansicht

The seminar is taught based on a blended learning format. It consists of in-class sessions (the six "Einzeltermine") and self-study phases that are accompanied by take-home tests and out-of-class assignments.

As a powerful social construct, gender shapes our behaviour, attitudes, and preferences and thereby substantially impacts the choices we make and the chances we have in life, accounting for inequalities between men and women far beyond biological differences. While state acting is both influenced by and reinforces gender differences existing in society, the implementation of public policies through public administration plays an important role in producing and sustaining these dynamics. The linkage between gender and public administration is hence of critical relevance for understanding persisting gender inequalities and how they hamper an equitable and effective provision of public services, with negative consequences for both men and women.

Against this background, the seminar is dedicated to comprehensively engaging with the complex and multifaceted (and definitely exciting) relationship between gender inequalities, public administration and gender-dependent disparities in public policy. To this end, it covers the following themes and subfields of public administration, thereby also including perspectives from other fields, such as social psychology and sociology:

• The gendered history and development of public administration and public administration research
• Gender representation in the administrative workforce and its relevance
• Gender differences in bureaucrats' motivation and attitudes 
• Gender stereotyping in administrative acting and public service provision
• Gender and intersectionality in public administration

The final grade is based on in-class presentations, the take-home assignments as well as a term paper. In-class presentations have to be in English, the term paper may be written in English or German.