معرفی
Tobias Axelsson is a Senior Lecturer at Örebro University's School of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences, Department of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences. He holds a PhD in Gender Studies, which he defended in 2019 with his thesis "När män möts som pappor" (When men meet as fathers). Axelsson works both as a senior lecturer in Civics/Social Science and as a postdoctoral researcher in Gender Studies.
His research interests focus on:
- Feminist perspectives on fatherhood, fathers, and fathering
- Gender and parenting support
- Gender and early childhood education and care
- Violence studies, particularly regarding men's attitudes toward female genital mutilation
Axelsson is currently working as a postdoctoral researcher in the EU Horizon 2020 funded project RESISTIRÉ (2021-2024), which focuses on "Responding to Outbreaks through Co-creative Inclusive Equality Strategies." His research examines how fathering is constructed in gender-equal Sweden, particularly through his analysis of "fathering spaces" - social services directed to fathers on parental leave. He has contributed to international projects on men's parental leave, including reports for the EU Mutual Learning Programme in Gender Equality and an Austrian project on paternity leave.
His scientific contributions include numerous publications on gender equality in preschool, feminist perspectives on fatherhood, and men's engagement in issues related to gender-based violence. Axelsson's research demonstrates a consistent focus on how gender norms shape parenting practices and institutional approaches to gender equality.
Axelsson actively collaborates with various stakeholders:
- Participation in a national reference group on parenting support under the Swedish Agency for Family Law and Parenting Support since 2019
- Lecturing at conferences on masculinity and gender equality
- Collaboration with municipalities like Askersund on gender equality work in preschool and school
- Providing expertise to County Administrative Boards on gender equality and parenting support
He is affiliated with several research environments:
- Centre for Feminist Social Studies (CFS)
- CVS - The Centre for Violence Studies
- ReCEL - Research on Children's Education and Learning
- Critical Studies on Men and Masculinities
- Feminist violence studies
