Exploring the masculinization of innovation practice within a municipality

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to generate an empirically informed theoretical framework which can be used to analyze the relationship between gender and innovation in the context of a municipality. The authors present and analyze three illustrative tales from a feminist perspective. The authors thus offer a more balanced approach to the conceptualization of gendered ascriptions with respect to the possible outcomes of innovation work in a public context.Design/methodology/approachAn ethnographic account which employed “shadowing” as a method of observation.FindingsThe article presents a debate on how the social construction of gender and innovation can be placed in the context of a municipal reality. Our analysis reveals how the complexities of a gendered work life within a municipality can create paradoxes. A constructionism approach was used in the identification of hidden and unspoken paradoxes that exist in public spheres.Research limitations/implicationsThe authors used empirical tales from a very specific context, namely a Swedish municipality. The central implication of this study is the recognition of innovation as being masculine-gendered within the feminine context. This implication thereby deepens our understanding of gender paradoxes in the public sector.Practical implicationsThis study provides insights to practitioners who intend to work with innovation in a public organization.Social implicationsThe social implications of this study is that when a male-gendered concept like innovation is implemented in a female-gendered context, like a municipality, it is of importance to contextualize the concept.Originality/valueThe empirical value of examples of a gendered work landscape at a Swedish municipality.