Gendered discourse in Swedish national policy action plans 1965-2007: Invisible men and problematic women

Abstract

In a critical discourse analysis of Swedish alcohol policy action plans, we have compared five different documents between 1965-2007 to examine problems with and reasons for women's and men's drinking, and recommendations for policy actions. The results display a hierarchical logic between the genders. During the early years, men's drinking is implicitly constituted as the norm. A basic tenet is that female and male drinking are the same. Women may drink less, but their drinking is not of a different character. It is highly exceptional to make a separation between men's and women's drinking. In later documents, however, the separation of these spheres results in female drinking being depicted as more problematic because of women's more vulnerable condition and individual psychological reasons. In order to highlight female drinking problems, male drinking is being erased from the picture and constructed in a positive contrast. As a consequence, men's drinking is normalised. Finally, in the most recent documents, attention has exceedingly shifted to women as containers of the foetus and to young women's and girls' sexual behaviour and psychiatric problems.