The Paradox of a Gender-Balanced Workforce : The Discursive Construction of Gender Among Swedish Social Workers

Through a study of the narratives and practices in a gender-balanced social worksite, this article identifies institutionalized gender normalization processes. In the tales, the social workers told of their work, they reiterated the value of a gender-balanced workforce, together with the ideal of a gender-neutral profession. This view made it hard for the workers to see the ways in which the gender order they were involved in reproduces a gendered hierarchy in which male social workers are accorded greater value and an increased space of action, while female social workers and femininity are characterized by shortcomings when compared to men.