The browser you are using is not supported by this website. All versions of Internet Explorer are no longer supported, either by us or Microsoft (read more here: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/windows/end-of-ie-support).

Please use a modern browser to fully experience our website, such as the newest versions of Edge, Chrome, Firefox or Safari etc.

Malena Rosén Sundström

Malena Rosén Sundström

Associate Professor | Senior Lecturer | Qualified Teaching Practitioner

Malena Rosén Sundström

Feminist Foreign Policies (FFPs) as Strategic Narratives: Norm Translation in Sweden, Canada, France, and Mexico

Author

  • Ekatherina Zhukova
  • Malena Rosén Sundström
  • Ole Elgström

Summary, in English

Drawing on the IR theories of norm translation and strategic narratives, this article focuses on how states translate international norms to their own advantage by producing strategic narratives to advance their soft power ambitions abroad. Using the example of Feminist Foreign Policy (FFP), the article compares Sweden, Canada, France, and Mexico in their attempts to translate international feminist norms into their countries’ strategic narratives. This comparison is based on three strategic narrative types (issue, national, and international system narratives) and two types of feminism (liberal, intersectional). Issue narratives reveal that Sweden and Mexico give more priority to social policies, while France and Canada emphasize the role of the market in addressing gender inequality. International system narratives demonstrate that Sweden and Mexico perceive global challenges as drivers of gender inequality, while France and Canada see gender inequality as a cause of global problems. National narratives show that Sweden and Mexico refer to other FFP countries to ‘back up’ their feminist initiatives, while France and Canada do not relate to other states. Finally, while liberal feminism dominates all four FFPs, each state either prioritizes particular aspects of it (legal, market, security, rights-based) or incorporates elements from intersectional feminism.

Department/s

  • Department of Political Science

Publishing year

2022

Language

English

Pages

195-216

Publication/Series

Review of International Studies

Volume

48

Issue

1

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

Topic

  • Gender Studies
  • Social Sciences Interdisciplinary
  • Political Science

Keywords

  • feminist foreign policy
  • strategic narratives
  • norm translation
  • liberal feminism
  • intersectional feminism
  • international norms

Status

Published

Project

  • Sweden as a Norm Entrepreneur: The Case of the Feminist Foreign Policy

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 0260-2105