Beyond the Policy Rhetoric: The Limitations of Gender Mainstreaming in South Korea Relating to Women and Childcare

Journal article


Lee, S. 2019. Beyond the Policy Rhetoric: The Limitations of Gender Mainstreaming in South Korea Relating to Women and Childcare. Social Policy and Society. https://doi.org/10.1017/s1474746419000484
AuthorsLee, S.
Abstract

This article examines the limitations of the gender mainstreaming discourse regarding the issue of childcare by women in South Korea, an area of responsibility that was transferred from the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MHW) to the Ministry of Gender Equality (MGE)<jats:sup>1</jats:sup> in 2003. Through employing a discursive institutionalism approach, this article articulates that whilst the gender mainstreaming discourse has been interpreted at the surface level of politics, it has been formulated differently behind the scenes due to various policy interests. I argue that the discourse has remained at the level of superficial political rhetoric with underdeveloped understanding about the relationship between childcare and gender, thus retaining a stereotypical view of women as caregivers.</jats:p>

Keywordsgender mainstreaming; South Korea; discursive institutionalism; gender politics; Ministry of Gender Equality
Year2019
JournalSocial Policy and Society
PublisherCambridge University Press
ISSN1474-7464
1475-3073
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1017/s1474746419000484
Web address (URL)http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1474746419000484
Publication dates26 Dec 2019
Publication process dates
Deposited06 Jan 2020, 15:43
Accepted10 Sep 2019
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CC0 1.0 Universal

ContributorsUniversity of Derby
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