Key drivers of the (non–)emergence of anti same-sex mariage movements - A comparative analysis of Belgium, France and Switzerland, 2001-2021

Details

Supervisors

Rihoux, Benoît

Faculty

Faculté des sciences économiques, sociales, politiques et de communication

Degree label

Master [120] en sciences politiques, orientation générale, à finalité approfondie

Abstract

Some social movements gather hundreds of thousands of people in the streets, others barely manage to make themselves heard. In this respect, the case of movements opposed to same-sex marriage is quite enlightening. Thus, the differences in mobilization are significant between Belgium, which was marked by a flat calm in 2003, Switzerland, which will see the organization of a referendum following the collection of 50,000 signatures in 2021, and France, which saw hundreds of thousands of people take to the streets in 2013. Conceptually situating this phenomenon in a broader context of an anti-gender movement, itself rooted in a religious, radical right-wing and conservative framework, this dissertation aims to shed light on the key drivers of the emergence of a social movement by drawing on four explanatory theories: relative deprivation, resource mobilization, political opportunity structures and framing processes. Using a mixed-methods approach, drawing on survey, interview, press and official document data, the aim is to show that these theories are complementary rather than in competition.