You are welcome to attend when Megan Rådesjö, doctoral student in social sciences with a focus on educational science, defends her thesis entitled: Troubling the Surface of (Im)possibilities: Preschool Teachers’ Relational Power in Shaping Gender Equality Work in Sweden.
Sweden is often celebrated as one of the most gender equal countries in the world. This reputation extends to Swedish preschools praised internationally for progressive gender equality work. Troubling this smooth surface, previous research and government investigations have repeatedly identified shortcomings in preschools’ gender equality work, often attributing them to preschool teachers’ insufficient knowledge or practices, arguing that gender inequalities are frequently reproduced in preschools rather than hindered.
In a feminist sociological shift to further trouble these Problems, this dissertation critically explores how preschool teachers’ relational power shapes the (im)possibilities for gender equality work in Swedish preschools. Drawing on a critical feminist ethnographic approach, the dissertation is based on critical policy analysis using diffraction, two phases of semi-structured interviews, one phase of research subject inter-viewing, and participant observations. The empirical materials include the national preschool curriculum, various policy documents, observation field notes from 112 hours with 10 preschool teachers, photos, and transcripts from 52 interviews with 21 preschool teachers across seven preschools in Sweden.
Through four empirical articles, the dissertation demonstrates how preschool teachers' relational power to shape gender equality work is constrained and enabled through the gender equality mandate, the preschool as a public sector gendered organization, opposition, and even seemingly trivial dresses. This dissertation contributes new insights to feminist sociology, emphasizing that the (im)possibilities for gender equality work depend on addressing complex power dynamics beyond pedagogy.