Thesis title: Invisible Leaders, Visible Gaps: Social Representations and Gender Disparities in Italy’s Third Sector
Gender inequality remains one of the most persistent and complex societal challenges, shaping not only institutional structures and public policies but also cultural norms and symbolic systems of value. The Italian Third Sector—a constellation of organizations committed to inclusion, solidarity and social justice—offers a unique terrain for study. Despite their explicit mission to promote equity, these organizations often reproduce significant internal gender asymmetries, especially regarding leadership access to women.
This thesis investigates how gender is represented and negotiated within the Italian Third Sector, employing Social Representations Theory (Moscovici, 1984) as the primary analytical framework. This theoretical lens elucidates how collective beliefs and deeply embedded norms define categories, stabilize hierarchies and shape organizational cultures, thus both constraining and enabling change.
The empirical base comprises a multi-phase research project (2023–2025) conducted within the FQTS (Training for Third Sector Executives) project, integrating participatory forums and in-depth interviews. The findings reveal a dualistic landscape: on one hand, entrenched challenges such as persistent stereotypes, symbolic asymmetries and the influence of traditional family structures persist; on the other hand, transformative perspectives emerge, particularly among women and younger participants, emphasizing intersectionality, innovative training approaches and alternative organizational imaginaries. A notable gender asymmetry is observed: women tend to envision and advocate for alternative futures, whereas men more often frame inequality as a continuing problem rather than a site for intervention.
In addition, one of this thesis’s original contribution is the development of Gender Equality Plans (GEPs) specifically tailored for Italian Third Sector organizations. By bridging both normative and practical gaps, these plans aim to align organizational structures with stated missions of justice and inclusion, offering concrete tools for cultural and structural transformation. By integrating theory, empirical insights from the research and practical innovation, the research positions gender equality not merely as a matter of fairness within organizations, but as a foundational condition for the vitality, legitimacy and credibility of democratic and organizational life.