Reassessing women friendliness and the gender system: feminist theorizing about the Nordic model

Comparative Nordic studies of welfare and gender policies have concluded that there is one model in the Nordic countries with five exceptions (Bergqvist et al. 1999; Christiansen et al. 2006) and the process towards divergence is even more pronounced when it comes to integration policies. Comparisons of some of the countries indicate that Sweden and Denmark are at the opposite ends of the spectrum, with the Swedish immigration regime being the most liberal and the Danish being the most restrictive (Hedetoft, 2006; Skjeie and Siim, 2008; Brochmann and Hagelund, 2010). Differences appear most evident at the discursive level and at the level of output -- that is, benefits (MIPEX, 2011). The differences of level outcome or the actual situation of immigrants is smaller (OECD, 2010). However, the output is only measured in terms of employment, and the relatively better figures in Denmark may reflect the fact that the access of non-Western immigrants has become more restricted.
In terms of institutional structures, it is interesting that Sweden, as the country with the strongest gender equality machinery and the most activist gender equality policies, also has the most advanced institutions and policies aimed at groups of immigrants. Denmark, on the other hand, which has the weakest gender equality institutions and the weakest policies of gender equality, also has the weakest institutional structures to tackle ethnic discrimination (Borchorst et al., forthcoming)...Read more