Jessika Wide

Research

My research interests deal with politics and administration in Swedish municipalities and regions, especially marketization, elderly care, local self-government, crimes against elected representatives, and female political representation.

Local democracy: I have a great interest in research on democracy in Swedish municipalities and regions, with a particular focus on political parties, politicians, social representativity, voter turnout, gender equality, and citizen participation. I was a member of the SNS Democracy Council 2022, which dealt with Swedish local democracy at a crossroads. I conduct research in a new project that investigates crimes against elected representatives - violence, threats, and harassment - in the Swedish democracy and how this is handled legally and institutionally (financed by the Crime Victim Fund).

Marketization in elderly care: I conduct research on the public home-care provider in municipalities that have introduced a system of freedom of choice (LOV) in home-care services (financed by Forte), as well as on the opportunities of pensioners' organizations or participation and influence on issues related to a marketized elderly care in the municipalities (financed by MUCF).

Health care and local self-government: I am part of a research group investigating so-called national agreements concluded between the central government and the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions (SALAR) and their consequences for the regions' self-government in health care (financed by Forte).

Women's political representation: My dissertation dealt with women’s political representation from a comparative perspective. Later, I have mainly been interested in female representation at the municipal level in Sweden and more specifically the parties' gender quotas and candidate selection in both general elections and indirectly elected political appointments.