Bio: (1944-) British sociologist. Ann Oakley received her Ph.D. from the University of London and spent most of her professional career at the Institute of Education at the same university. Oakley studies topics of gender, domestic work, family, and motherhood. In addition, she has significantly contributed to the methodological and ethical aspects of sociological research.

Oakley, probably, was the first author to introduce the concept of "gender" into the social sciences with her book Sex, Gender, and Society (1972). In her opinion, a distinction should be made between biological sex (which in itself has no clear biological distinction) and culturally defined notions of "masculinity" and "femininity", which differ between cultures and change over time. Gender differences are key to understanding material inequalities, and values attributed to the sexes.

Oakley began her study of gender differences with a doctoral dissertation on domestic work, and two books, Sociology of Domestic Work (1974a) and Housewife (1974b), emerged from this research. She concluded that housework, which is primarily performed by women, is physically and emotionally exhausting. She also quantified the time women spend working in the household. Oakley studied the relationship between medicine to women, especially in the context of childbirth and motherhood. Studying the relationship between doctors and female patients, through observations and interviews, she discovered the existence of an "innate" attitude of the medical profession towards pregnant women and young mothers.

In the article "Interviewing Women" (1981b), Oakley pointed out the differences between, what she called, the male and female way of interviewing. The male approach to interviewing emphasizes objectivity and distance between the interviewer and the interviewee. There must be a hierarchy in the relationship itself because only the interviewer is allowed to ask questions. On the other hand, in female or feminist interviewing there should be a relationship of cooperation, understanding, and friendship. In this relationship, the interviewer enters into an intimate relationship with the interviewed woman, allows her to ask questions, and shares her own experiences. Thus, not only a higher degree of cooperation and less exploitation of the interviewee is achieved, but also better data are obtained, thanks to a more open approach to the subjective and personal experiences and attitudes of these persons. Oakley openly criticized the masculinity of sociology itself, because most sociologists were men, and most topics and the way they were treated were imbued with masculinity, while topics that did not correspond to that approach were pushed aside.

In the book Experiments in Knowing: Gender and Method in the Social Sciences (2000), Oakley advocates a methodological approach that emphasizes the development of sociological knowledge that calls into question established myths. Empirical research needs to be conducted that will reveal real-life situations of women, the results of which will have emancipatory potential. She believes that the false dilemma about the advantages of a qualitative or quantitative approach should be overcome, so her position is that both approaches should be used in empirical research and that meta-research and the experimental method should also be applied.

Main works

Sex, Gender and Society (1972);

The Sociology of Housework (1974a);

Housewife (1974b);

Becoming a Mother (1979);

Women Confined: Towards a Sociology of Childbirth (1980);

Subject Women (1981a);

„Interviewing Women: A Contradiction in Terms”, in Roberts H. (ed.) Doing Feminist Research (1981b);

The Captured Womb: A History of the Medical Care of Pregnant Women (1984);

Experiments in Knowing: Gender and Method in the Social Sciences (2000);

Gender on Planet Earth (2002);

Father and Daughter: Patriarchy, Gender and Social Science (2015).