Auf zu neuen Ufern? Geschlechterleitbilder im Wandel

Social policy reforms in Germany have, among other goals, targeted the question of how to transform gendered divisions of labour into an adult worker model. According to this model, both partners contribute to the household’s income. Whether and in how far the reforms, and notably those of the social security system SGB II (‘Hartz IV’), have realized this model is a matter of dispute. The article contributes to the debate by analyzing reforms of the past decade with respect to the question of which gender role models are supported by the reforms. As the analysis shows, the reforms support different models at the same time. On the other hand the article asks whether an adult worker model should be the main goal of emancipatory reforms and argues that a gender sensitive concept for social policy should mainly focus on more autonomy.