Ontological Security of Women : The Role of Digital Feminist Activism

Sammanfattning: Ontological Security Studies have been grounded on the ideas of Giddens (1991a,b). It describes how humans can face challenges of the modern world without being overwhelmed by anxieties. Since then many scholars such as Steele (2008) and Mitzen (2006) have developed his ideas furthermore. However, ontological security still lacks in terms of gender aspects (Kinnvall and Mitzen, 2016), individual security seeking (Croft and Vaughan-Williams, 2016) or the role of community rather than the state to secure ontological security (Berenskoetter, 2012). This thesis focusses on all three themes when analysing how women use mechanisms to strengthen their ontological security within the online community. Feminism is a strategy for women to build a common identity. Women used the #metoo to share their experience of sexual harassment and anxieties in a gender-hierarchical power system. Human development and security is not only physical security but includes living in freedom of fear, want and in dignity. Threats which challenge systems of believe, such as living in an equal world or living without fear, lead to ontological insecurity. Therefore, women look out for new routines which provide security. Drawing on existing scholarship, this thesis aims to undercover if digital feminist activism can be a source for women to gain ontological security when the state fails to provide it. A social constructivist approach is followed within the research. The aim is to acknowledge the experience and practices of the different perspectives: by female activists and women opposed to feminist movements. Therefore, the empirical basis of this study contains 198 Twitter posts which are sampled out of 6679 posts. A content analysis helped to understand the dynamics of online behaviour and furthermore, puts it into the context of their everyday experience.