On Top of the World. Women's Political Leadership in Scandinavia and Beyond

145 Pages·2004·5.867 MB·English

by  Bruce O. Solheim

ON TOP OF
THE WORLD
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ON TOP OF
THE WORLD
Women's Political Leadership
in Scandinavia and Beyond
Bruce O. Solheim
Contributions in Women's Studies, Number 177
GREENWOOD PRESS
Westport, Connecticut • London
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Solheim, Bruce Olav.
On top of the world : women's political leadership in Scandinavia
and beyond / Bruce O. Solheim.
p. cm.—(Contributions in women's studies, ISSN 0147-104X ;
no. 177)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-313-31000-9 (alk. paper)
1. Women in politics—Scandinavia. 2. Women politicians—
Scandinavia. 3. Leadership in women. 4. Political leadership—Sex
differences. I. Title. II. Series.
HQ1236.5.S34S65 2000
320'.082'0948—dc21 99-15393
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available.
Copyright © 2000 by Bruce O. Solheim
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be
reproduced, by any process or technique, without the
express written consent of the publisher.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 99-15393
ISBN: 0-313-31000-9
ISSN: 0147-104X
First published in 2000
Greenwood Press, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881
An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc.
www.greenwood.com
Printed in the United States of America
@T
The paper used in this book complies with the
Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National
Information Standards Organization (Z39.48-1984).
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 21
Contents
Tables and Figures vii
Preface ix
1. Equality or Difference?: Women Leaders in World
Politics 1
2. Women's Rise to Power in Scandinavia 29
3. Profiles of Three Women Political Leaders 65
4. Conclusion and Direction for Further Research 101
Appendix: Comparison of Women National Leaders 111
Selected Bibliography 115
Index 127
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Tables and Figures
TABLES
2.1 Women's and Men's Political Interests in the
Norwegian Parliament, 1991 33
2.2 Milestones for Equal Opportunity in Scandinavia 37
2.3 Women's Representation in Norwegian Political
Assemblies 40
2.4 Percentage of Women in Nordic Government
Assemblies, 1994 41
FIGURES
2.1 Percentage of Women in Nordic Parliaments,
1907-91 42
4.1 The Making of a Leader 104
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Preface
The Glory of Creation is in its infinite diversity and
in the ways our differences combine to create mean
ing and beauty.
—Spock, from the Star Trek episode, "Is There in
Truth, No Beauty?"
My interest in the topic of women in power was generated, in
part, by my experiences in the military. As a military officer I
was expected to exhibit certain leadership qualities. The prob
lem was that my less strident style of leadership, using coopera
tion and persuasion rather than intimidation, did not please my
superior officers. I was criticized for my apparent lack of ag
gressiveness. Eventually, I left the military only to end up in the
paramilitary world of corporate America. As an administrator
with a major corporation, I was one of several young men being
groomed for future management. One day my boss took me
aside and said: "Your work is excellent, but you need to be more
aggressive." He went on to compare me to another young ad-