CHILDCIPH · The child as cipher for a politics of ‘traditional values’ in the anti-gender movement: A comparative study of Russia and Germany
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2021-09-01 → 2023-08-31
- EU contribution
- €191,852
- Participants
- 1
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
The child as cipher for a politics of ‘traditional values’ in the anti-gender movement: A comparative study of Russia and Germany
CHILDCIPH posited that the recent rise of illiberal, conservative and right-wing populist movements poses an acute threat to democracy and equality in Europe. One pervasive but underresearched strand of these movements advocates ‘traditional family values’, in particular conservative sexual and gender politics, in the name of protecting children. The project aimed to fill this research gap through interdisciplinary research examining the discursive construction of the child as the ultimate site of vulnerability and risk, and hence in need of protection and policy intervention. My research developed an approach to account for the irrational or affective component of such rhetoric, combining insights and methodology from political discourse theory, media studies and psychosocial studies. The research was characterised by a significant comparative dimension, analysing discourses by conservative, ‘pro-traditional family values’ actors, from politicians to activists, in Germany and Russia, as well as transnational linkages and discourses. In order to study the media discourses and knowledge production of anti-gender actors and initiatives in Germany and Russia, a number of case studies were developed to track their rhetoric and media strategies across multiple platforms, with specific attention paid to initiatives targeting children, education, and the topic of childhood generally. The approach I developed, focusing on the discursive and affective workings of media texts, brings political discourse theory into debates on the continued relevance of disinformation and hyperpartisan media to disentangle the intricate ways in which ideological and hegemonic struggles over geopolitics and shifting world power are being waged in relation to notions of gender today.
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
CHILDCIPH proposes a two-year fellowship at the School of Arts and Communication (K3) at Malmö University, Sweden. The recent rise of illiberal, conservative and right-wing populist movements poses an acute threat to democracy and equality in Europe. One pervasive but underresearched strand of these movements advocates ‘traditional family values’, in particular conservative sexual and gender politics, in the name of protecting children. The project will fill this research gap through interdisciplinary research examining the discursive construction of the child as the ultimate site of vulnerability and risk, and hence in need of protection and policy intervention. The irrational, or affective component of such discourses calls for an approach capable of accounting for their emotive force or ‘grip’. This proposal aims to develop such an approach, combining insights and methodology from political discourse theory, media studies and psychosocial studies. The research is characterised by a significant comparative dimension, analysing discourses by conservative, ‘pro-traditional family values’ actors, from politicians to activists, in Germany and Russia. The project will generate 3 articles and will be presented at international conferences, through blog posts, public events, as well as policy recommendations. The host institution will benefit from an interdisciplinary project that operationalizes the role of emotions and affect in media research – an aim central to the work of the Rethinking Democracy research platform, while it will benefit my career trajectory by establishing me as an independent researcher with a unique and thorough expertise on the role of emotions and affect in analyzing processes of negative political mobilization, in particular in issues threatening gender equality and LGBT rights.
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- MALMO UNIVERSITET · MALMOECoordinatorSweden
Links
- View on CORDIS
- DOI: 10.3030/101025755
- https://mau.se/en/research/projects/the-child-as-cipher-for-a-politics-of-traditional-values-in-the-anti-gender-movement/
Data: CORDIS, © European Union