Up close and personal: feminist pedagogy in the classroom

This commentary reflects on 20+ years as marketing academics committed to a feminist, critical approach to the marketing curriculum.

Feminist pedagogy focuses on critiquing the wider, macro-structural realities that impact on gender inequality. A key aim is to empower students to consider how society might be differently structured. We also advocate a multiple perspectives approach, whereby there are no absolutes but rather contexts, thus nudging students to move beyond a micro-managerial mindset, and problematising many of the assumptions embedded in marketing. This includes understanding that identity positions shape social worlds and consumption patterns. Finally we identify three tools for implementing a feminist pedagogy: subjective personal introspection (SPI), collaborative and action learning and a low-hierarchy learning environment.