Ann-Dorte Christensen

Doing Intersectional Analysis: Methodological Implications for Qualitative Research

This article is about doing intersectional analysis and how to practise intersectionality in qualitative research. The overall objective is to contribute to the development of concrete intersectionality methodologies. The first part of the article discusses important aspects of intersectionality, bringing methodological implications into focus, e.g. the number of social categories to include and the status and differences between categories. The second part of the article argues that taking life-story narratives and the analysis of everyday life as a point of departure has potential for empirical analyses of intersectionality. This argument is illustrated by two empirical analyses. The first is about roots and routes in life-story narratives; the second is about the constructions of respectability in everyday life in relation to the intersection between gender, class, and ethnicity.

Combining hegemonic masculinity and intersectionality

This article discusses the most influential contribution to studies of men and masculinity, i.e. the concept of hegemonic masculinity developed by R.W. Connell. It points to some problematic elements of the theory and some suggestions for improvement. One criticism is that the use of the concept during recent years has been characterized by ambiguities. We argue that these problems are not based on Connells original conceptualization but on the ways the concept of hegemonic masculinity has been adapted and used by different researchers. We argue that this ambiguity is especially a problem when it comes to questions of power relations. In the article we first outline the reception of the concept. This is followed by a critical discussion of whether dominant masculinities are necessarily always related to legitimizing patriarchal gender relations. As an alternative we suggest that an intersectional approach may offer a theoretical tool for analyzing the complexities of differences and hierarchic power relations between men. In the concluding discussion we advance some suggestions that can improve and clarify the use of the concept of hegemonic masculinity, e.g. distinguishing between internal and external hegemony and emphasizing that both dimensions of power presume an open empirical and contextual analysis.

Belonging and Unbelonging from an Intersectional Perspective

Abstract The article is primarily theoretical and conceptual. It focuses on the notion of belonging from an intersectional perspective. The purpose is to discuss different dimensions of the concept of ‘belonging’ and its rooting at different analytical levels. The fi rst part of the article outlines the theoretical framework. The point of departure is multilayered citizenship and different notions of belonging. Second, the notion of belonging is divided into three analytical levels: (a) the macro level: imagined communities; (b) the meso level: collective organizations; and (c) the micro level: everyday lives and local communities. The three levels are explained and illustrated with empirical examples from a Nordic context, all based on the perspective of intersectionality between gender, class, race, and ethnicity. Finally, the article discusses some challenges for further research on belonging, for instance how to combine analysis of model citizenship/migration regimes with perspectives on everyday life. Another question relates to dilemmas within studies of everyday life. On the one hand, these studies are based on voices from below and a high degree of authenticity, but on the other hand, they tend to have a fl ipside, because the focus on routine and repetition can result in reproducing and stigmatizing “the others”.

Territorial stigmatization and local belonging

Loïc Wacquant has made a widely read and debated contribution to critical research on contemporary urban marginality. A central part of the theoretical framework is that residents of deprived areas internalize territorial stigmatization, which then has a range of negative effects. Based on empirical research this paper assesses Wacquants conception of territorial stigmatization and suggests some points where urban sociology might go beyond or adjust Wacquant. The empirical research focuses on Aalborg East, a deprived area in the northern part of Denmark. Through media analysis it is documented that Aalborg East is subject to territorial stigmatization, and it is suggested that cultural racism plays an important role. Qualitative interview data suggest, however, that the residents do not internalize or resign to the stigma. They become sad or angry when confronted with the stigma, but they have an either positive or ambivalent view of the area and most of them are content to live there. This finding is validated by survey data. Wacquants conception cannot be entirely rejected, though, as the construction of internal dividing lines in some interviews can be interpreted as a way of managing territorial stigmatization. Nevertheless, the data provide little support for a theory of clear-cut internalization of territorial stigmatization in the case of Aalborg East. This conclusion leads to three discussions: a confirmation of Wacquants claim that the role of the state matters; a discussion of the specific political culture of Scandinavian societies; and a problematization of Wacquants reliance on Bourdieus conception of symbolic violence.

Roots and Routes

Roots and Routes This article is about transnational migrants, how they construct belonging to ‘new’ places where they have arrived, and how the feelings of belonging to their places of origin change when they go back. The theoretical part of the article outlines the relationship between migration and belonging arguing that there is a dynamic interplay between roots and routes in peoples lives. The empirical point of departure is narratives about roots and routes by ethnic minorities settled in Aalborg East, an underprivileged neighbourhood in northern Denmark. One of the main findings is a gap between the national exclusion of transnational migrants marked as ‘strangers’ and border figures of the nation and a relatively high degree of local belonging to the neighbourhood. This is followed by an in-depth empirical analysis inspired by Alfred Schutzs distinction between the stranger and the homecomer. A somewhat paradoxical finding is that it appears to be more difficult for transnational migrants to maintain their roots in the country of origin when they go back than it was to establish new roots in the host country.

War, violence and masculinities: introduction and perspectives

The evolution and social constitution of masculinities are intimately linked to violence and to warfare as an organised field of violent practices. The present issues of NORMA explore the mutual influences between violence, war and masculinities, the forms these have taken in different social and cultural contexts and the implications for masculinity research. The issues cover a range of historical and current topics, cases and analytical approaches. The contributions fall into the following four themes: violent masculine rituals and how contemporary societies cope with extreme violence against women; popular written and visual fiction about war and masculine rationalities; gender relations in social movements of rebellions and national transformation and finally masculinity in civil society under conditions of war. In this introductory article we present the four themes and contextualise and summarise the contributions. In conclusion we discuss perspectives and challenges for the study of violence, war and masculinities.

The Danish Gender Model: Between Movement Politics and Representative Politics

In Denmark, as in the other Nordic countries, we have witnessed a number of changes over the past couple of decades or so in feminist analysis, from focusing on women’s exclusion to highlighting women’s inclusion in modern democracy (Bergqvist et al., 1999; Siim, 2000; Christensen and Siim, 2001). The inclusionist perspective will be one of the focal points of this chapter. In particular, I shall focus on the discussion surrounding various types of political strategies evolved by women as elements in their collective mobilisation in Denmark over the past 30 years.

Masculinity Ideals in a Contemporary Danish Context

What are the prevailing masculinity ideals among contemporary Danish men? As one of the Nordic welfare states, Denmark has for decades focused on gender equality and changes in the gendered division of labour. Research has suggested a shift in masculinity ideals, but processes of change comprise not only changes but also continuities, as well as ambivalences and contradictions. This article investigates how normative masculinity ideals—the most accepted ways of being a man in a certain context—are expressed and negotiated by contemporary Danish men, and how these ideals are related to overall discourses of gender. The article is based on a mixed methods design, consisting of: (1) a quantitative survey among lower-educated men in two male-dominated occupations, and (2) a qualitative, explorative analysis of data from five focus group interviews with both lower- and higher-educated men. The two occupations in the survey constitute a critical case, based on the argument that if traditional masculinity ideals are rejected here—among lower-educated men, who are likely to be more supportive of traditional gender ideals than the more highly educated—then Danish men in general are likely to reject traditional masculinity ideals. Both the quantitative and qualitative analyses indicate that traditional patriarchal masculinity ideals are not the most legitimate among the men. They seem to subscribe to more gender equality friendly masculinities, although this picture is not clear-cut as we also see negotiations and variations between the men. Thus, the article concludes that in a Danish context we can identify authoritative masculinity ideals that do not reproduce patriarchy or support traditional masculinity ideals in an unambiguous way.

Book Review Karla B Hackstaff, Feiwel Kupferberg and Catherine Négroni (eds), Biography and Turning Points in Europe and America, Policy Press: Bristol, 2012

So, what can be said about negotiating gender and diversity within the European public sphere? The overall argument is that ethno-national diversity and gender equality are of primary concern within the European public spheres. However, despite some shared common values among member states, these concepts are not all in common currency, and one important message of the book is that they must be brought together in order to respond effectively to the rights of an ever-growing and heterogeneous EU population. For example, the identity of the EU, constructed around the concept of gender equality, leads to similar policy implementation across member states. However, while gender equality is perceived as a ‘European value’ (p. 229), ethno-cultural diversity is contested. As a result, the European public spheres appear as a ‘disjointed entity’ with forms of inclusion and exclusion that vary for different groups of citizens, and for individuals within those groups (e.g. Muslim citizens). In this regard, the book will be of value to a range of readers interested in contemporary EU development, citizenship debates, gender studies and intersectionality.

Book review: Biography and Turning Points in Europe and America

So, what can be said about negotiating gender and diversity within the European public sphere? The overall argument is that ethno-national diversity and gender equality are of primary concern within the European public spheres. However, despite some shared common values among member states, these concepts are not all in common currency, and one important message of the book is that they must be brought together in order to respond effectively to the rights of an ever-growing and heterogeneous EU population. For example, the identity of the EU, constructed around the concept of gender equality, leads to similar policy implementation across member states. However, while gender equality is perceived as a ‘European value’ (p. 229), ethno-cultural diversity is contested. As a result, the European public spheres appear as a ‘disjointed entity’ with forms of inclusion and exclusion that vary for different groups of citizens, and for individuals within those groups (e.g. Muslim citizens). In this regard, the book will be of value to a range of readers interested in contemporary EU development, citizenship debates, gender studies and intersectionality.