BÅDE LIKA OCH OLIKA -En jämförande fallstudie av kvinnorepresentationens utveckling i två svenska kommuner

This essay sets out to compare and understand the development of the political representation in two Swedish municipalities during the feminist wave in the 1980’s and 1990’s. The main question of the essay concerns how the development of female representation in municipal council can be understood in regards to this feminist wave. It also seeks out to understand what similarities and diffrences that can be identified in the two municipilaties. The motivation of the essay is based upon understanding if some municipalities are more receptive by outside pressure and if some are less receptive. This outside pressure in this case is limited to the feminist wave during the 1980’s and the 1990’s. The method in use is a comparative cross-sectional study with a "most diffrent research design". The selection of the two municipalities is based upon that they are as different as possible according to the "local gender contract". Which means a traditional municipality and a more modernistic. The empirical material of the essay includes protocol that shows every councilor that has been elected in the municipalities during the feminist wave. Using the protocols a study has been conducted researching if the modernistic or the traditional municipality has been more or less receptive of the feminist wave. The result shows that both municipalities has been receptive of the feminist wave, although the traditional municipality has been receptive in the form of a late response. Furthermore the results show that both the parties in the municipalities and the municipalities as a whole has given different response to the feminist wave which can be understood through formal and informal political institutions