Geschlechterdifferenz als (diskriminierendes) Gestaltungsprinzip materieller Sicherung Analyse der Alterssicherungssysteme in den USA, in Österreich und in Schweden. Gender difference as the (discriminatory) design principle of material security. Analysis of pension systems in the U.S., Austria and Sweden. IHS Political Science Series 57, July 1998

Leitner, Sigrid (1998) Geschlechterdifferenz als (diskriminierendes) Gestaltungsprinzip materieller Sicherung Analyse der Alterssicherungssysteme in den USA, in Österreich und in Schweden. Gender difference as the (discriminatory) design principle of material security. Analysis of pension systems in the U.S., Austria and Sweden. IHS Political Science Series 57, July 1998. [Working Paper]

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Abstract

Focusing on the differences between men and women in terms of structural selection processes, the paper provides an analysis of the old age security systems in the United States, in Austria and in Sweden. In the first section, a gendered tool for analysing welfare states is developed, which identifies two main mechanisms of discrimination: Combining social rights with traditional gender roles creates different welfare benefits for male and female roles, which in turn holds true for the gender bias of employment-related security systems. Welfare benefits referring to traditional sex roles on the other hand impose the traditional male-breadwinner/female-homemaker family model and discriminate against non-heterosexual as well as non-married couples and individuals. In the empirical section the three old age security systems are analysed according to their structural translation of specific gender and sex constructions. It is shown that discrimination on the basis of gender emerges in all of the three systems, though to different degrees, whereas only Austria and the United States additionally discriminate on the basis of sex.

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