introduction: women in european political science

Abstract

This symposium explores the ways in which women are descriptively represented in political science, by exploring the ways in which they are positioned institutionally in Spain, Finland, Germany and the United Kingdom. The symposium also explores the ways in which structures may serve to disadvantage women, by analysing HE policy and citation practices. Critical theory reminds us that in observing power structures we can seek to change them, and so our conclusion reflects on some more practical suggestions.

Women in the Profession: An Update on the Gendered Composition of the Discipline and Political Science Departments in the UK

“…Since our survey, there has been a significant growth in the literature examining the gendered nature of political science across a variety of regional contexts, including the UK (Allen and Savigny, 2016; Awesti et al, 2016; Briggs and Harrison, 2015; Savigny, 2014; Williams et al, 2015), the US (Mitchell et al, 2013; Mitchell and Hesli, 2013; Mitchell and Martin, 2018; Monroe et al, 2014), Europe (Abels and Woods, 2015; Ballen et al, 2018; Bates and Savigny, 2015b; Elizondo, 2015; Kantola, 2015), Australia and New Zealand (Johnson, 2014; Sawer and Curtin, 2016) and Latin America (Rocha Carpiuc, 2016). Despite formal equality policies and measures designed to address structural inequalities, this research highlights the continued barriers women face within political science departments as well as wider practices within academia that can serve to disadvantage women.…”

A systematic mapping review of European Political Science

“…This finding is a matter of reflection for the future of the editorial policy of EPS. The gender gap in political science, as well as the need for gender studies, has received attention (Bates et al 2012 ; Bates and Savigny 2015 ; Evans and Amery 2016 ). The EPS publication record reflects this need.…”

Looking back and looking forward: 20 years of European Political Science serving the political science community in Europe and beyond

“…For instance, our articles situate European Political Science in comparison with North American Political Science (Jenne 2009) and discuss commonalities and differences in research traditions between European countries (Camerlo and Terra 2018). Over the past two decades, we have also been a recurrent voice for more diversity and inclusion in the discipline, in particular advocating for gender equality (Bates and Savigny 2015). Moreover, we have captured worrying developments in parts of Europe and elsewhere, which compromise the academic liberty of the discipline in countries such as Hungary (Bárd 2020).…”