Towards which models do people (m/f/d) orient themselves, which gender requirements do they perceive, or with which contradictory expectations are they confronted? What recommendations for action can be derived from this for gender-reflective education and politics? SINUS-Institut's social research has been addressing these questions for many years – also in international studies.
The special feature of many of our studies is the combination of gender analysis with the Milieu approach. In this way, we have been able to show that gender differences are interlaced with the differences and commonalities of different lifeworlds. Focusing only on gender quickly leads to over-simplified findings that don’t do justice to the very different realities of life. Furthermore, such an approach makes the commonalities between the genders in individual life worlds seem smaller than they really are. This being so, the integration of lifeworld differentiations enables a view that also takes milieu-specific factors into account rather than presupposing the significance of gender.
Among its many gender studies, SINUS-Institut has also conducted research with young people with a migration background, including refugees. This requires not only special expertise in recruiting these groups but also an international and interculturally sensitive team of interviewers. This is because these groups are particularly difficult to reach for gender-related topics – while at the same time requiring a great amount of information. Target group-sensitive (and gender-sensitive) research is so important because it is the only way to generate valid recommendations for action and communication.
