When Gender Training Backlashes: Participants’ Resistance and the Fragility of Commonsensical Feminism

Abstract

Feminist educators often encounter different forms of resistance from both male and female participants. This article uses a neo-Gramscian theoretical perspective to discuss the importance of considering this resistance when analyzing the relationship between pedagogical design and outcomes. The study draws on survey data and participant observation from a case study of a workshop designed to raise awareness of gender issues. The results from a before-and-after survey show that the workshop had the opposite effect to the one intended in terms of changes in the participants’ perceptions of gender. Having a “failed case” as the center of attention, the article sheds light on the fragility of mainstream discourse on gender equality and the dilemmas of engaging in a struggle over common sense.