Gendering the State is a groundbreaking collection of studies that examines the efforts of women in countries all over the world to frame public policy debates on nationally critical issues in gendered terms. The overall study is grouped into three distinct patterns of state change state downsizingparticularly in social policy areas Canada Finland the Netherlands the United States and Spain expansion of state activities into previously lessregulated areas Austria France Germany and Sweden and transformationoften constitutionally basedof representative structures Australia Belgium Italy Japan and the United Kingdom. Examination of these patterns reveals the impact of the changes in state structures and national priorities on the effectiveness and ability of womens movement actors in achieving their goals.