Browsing by Author "Dirican, Bilge Nisa"

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1

Avrupa Birliği'nde Toplumsal Cinsiyet Analizi ve Kadın Liderler: Finlandiya Örneği
(2025) Dirican, Bilge Nisa; Ataç, Cemile Akça
This study aims to examine the role of gender in foreign policy within the framework of feminist international relations theory and to assess the impact of female leaders on international political processes. The first section explores the fundamental principles of feminist international relations theory. Followed by this, the second section presents an analysis of the behavioral traits attributed to female leaders and how these traits influence foreign policy. Within the framework of an evaluation from a feminist international relations perspective, the third section examines the European Union and Scandinavian countries in the context of gender and investigates the roles of female leaders in shaping EU policies, assessing whether true gender equality has been achieved. As part of this analysis, the study presents examples illustrating the role of gender in foreign policy within the EU, focusing on Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, and Federica Mogherini, who served as the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy between 2014 and 2019. Additionally, the foreign policies of Scandinavian countries are analyzed through a general assessment from a gender perspective. The final section evaluates Finland's foreign policy through the lens of feminist perspectives on gender. It specifically examines Sanna Marin, who served as Finland's Prime Minister between 2019 and 2023, and stands out as an unconventional example among female leaders. Her leadership traits are analyzed in this context, along with an assessment of the foreign policy during her tenure. The main objective of the study is to highlight the contributions of female leaders to both international and domestic politics and to draw attention to the role of gender in foreign policy. Furthermore, the study discusses whether the gender norms commonly associated with female leadership—often claimed to be inherent to women—apply to all female leaders. The key findings reveal not only the outcomes of the prevailing perceptions of gender and female leadership but also demonstrate that biases against female leadership persist even in the European Union, which is often regarded as a model of gender equality, and in Finland, which serves as a specific example in this field. Keywords: Feminist international relations, Gender equality in foreign policy, European Union, Finland, Sanna Marin