Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine and discuss conditions for workplace learning in gender-segregated workplaces in the public sector, how social constructions of gender contribute to (or constrain) the workplace learning conditions within two workplace contexts.

Design/methodology/approach

The research was carried out through an interactive approach with data from 12 semi-structured interviews with workers and first-line managers from technical maintenance and home care in a Swedish municipality, validated at an analysis seminar with 27 participations, from both workplace contexts the Swedish Work Environment Authority and us researchers.

Findings

The results indicate that gender affects conditions for workplace learning and contributes to an enabling learning environment in the male-dominated workplace context and to a constraining learning environment in the female-dominated workplace context. The identified differences are created in both organisational structures and the organisations’ cultures.

Research limitations/implications

When analysing conditions for workplace learning from a gender perspective, the approach of comparative, cross-case analyses is useful. An interactive approach with women and men describing and analysing their work experiences together with researchers is a fruitful way of making gender visible.

Practical implications

The theoretical approach in this study illuminates how social constructions of gender operate and affect conditions for workplace learning and contributes to a deeper understanding of underlying causes to unequal conditions in different workplace contexts.

Social implications

The findings imply a gender divide which, from the theoretical strands, can be seen as an expression of asymmetrical power relations and where these gendered learning conditions probably also affect the quality of the services.

Originality/value

The findings contribute to existing gender theoretical literature by demonstrating that gender is essential to take into consideration when understanding working conditions in different workplace contexts. This study contributes to workplace learning literature by exploring the different ways in which social constructions of gender contribute to enabling and constraining learning environments.

中文翻译：

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工作场所学习的条件：性别鸿沟？

目的

本文的目的是研究和讨论公共部门中按性别隔离的工作场所中的工作场所学习条件，性别的社会建构如何在两个工作场所环境中促进（或限制）工作场所学习条件。

设计/方法/方法

这项研究是通过互动的方式进行的，该数据来自瑞典市政当局对来自技术维护和家庭护理的工人和一线经理进行的12次半结构化访谈的数据，并在来自27个参与者的分析研讨会上得到了验证，来自瑞典两个工作场所工作环境管理局和我们的研究人员。

发现

结果表明，性别会影响工作场所学习的条件，并在以男性为主的工作场所中促进有利的学习环境，并在以女性为主的工作场所中促进限制性学习环境。识别出的差异是在组织结构和组织文化中造成的。

研究局限/意义

从性别角度分析工作场所学习的条件时，比较性，跨案例分析方法很有用。妇女和男子与研究人员一起描述和分析其工作经验的互动方法是使性别可见的一种富有成果的方式。

实际影响

本研究中的理论方法阐明了性别的社会结构如何运作并影响工作场所学习的条件，并有助于加深对不同工作场所环境下不平等条件的根本原因的理解。

社会影响

这些发现暗示着性别鸿沟，从理论层面来看，可以看作是不对称权力关系的一种表达，而这些性别学习条件也可能会影响服务质量。

创意/价值

这些发现表明，在理解不同工作场所环境下的工作条件时，必须考虑到性别问题，从而为现有的性别理论文献做出了贡献。这项研究通过探索性别社会建构对创造和限制学习环境做出贡献的不同方式，为工作场所学习文学做出了贡献。