Contesting Gender Norms: Backlash, Belonging, and Bodily Autonomy in Contemporary Societies

Abstract

This panel discusses contesting gender norms and the backlash, belonging, and bodily autonomy in contemporary societies.The first pair examines, through synthesising evidence from 85 studies, how gender role attitudes have evolved across time and contexts, what explains variation by gender and age, and if and why are we observing recent polarisation and reversals. The second paper investigates how FEMEN transnational activists use confrontational and aggressive tactics in their 2025 protest actions, interrogating the meaning of violence and how gender influences dominant norms about civility and incivility. The third paper investigates how devout Catholic parents in Italy navigate the tensions between Church teachings and their love for LGBTQ+ children. Continuing with the theme of LGBTQ+ families, the fourth paper analyses how adults living in LGBTQIA+ families in Finland define family, negotiate familial boundaries, and create everyday places of intimacy and care against the backdrop of recent LGBTQIA+ inclusive reforms. The fifth paper examines how constitutional authority over the body is articulated across the UK’s four nations through documentary analysis of recent flashpoints in gender recognition, abortion, and assisted dying.

Title	Details
Constitutions as Gendered Power Maps: A Documentary Analysis of Bodily Autonomy in the UK	View Paper Details
Mapping Belonging: LGBTQIA+ Family Practices and the Politics of Everyday Life in Finland	View Paper Details
Gender Role Attitudes in Europe and Beyond: Trends, Polarisation, and Possible Backlash	View Paper Details
“My Body is My Weapon”. Confrontation, Feminist Rage, and Bodily Performance in FEMEN’s Radical Activism	View Paper Details
Torn Between Religious Doctrine and Parental Love: The Transformative Journeys of Devout Catholic Parents of LGBTQ+ Children	View Paper Details