Gender equality, attitudes to gender equality, and conflict

Abstract

Purpose

This study will look at the relationship between norms on gender equality on the one hand and the level of gender equality in the political and socioeconomic sphere, the presence or absence of armed conflict, and general peacefulness on the other.

Design/methodology/approach

Data on gender equality norms from the World Values Surveys, political and socioeconomic gender equality from the Global Gender Gap Index, armed conflict from the Uppsala Conflict Data Base, and general peacefulness from the Global Peace Index are analyzed in a bivariate correlation.

Findings

The results show a significant association between norms on and attitudes toward gender equality and levels of political and socioeconomic gender equality, absence or presence of armed conflict, and level of general peacefulness.

Research limitations

There is no data base on norms on and attitudes toward the use of violence which is why only levels of violence are included in the study.

Social implications

The study shows that governments, aid agencies, NGOs and others working on conflict prevention and peace building need to focus on improving gender equality in order to achieve a sustainable decrease in conflict levels and an improvement in general levels of peacefulness.

Originality/value

This study is original in that it looks at norms on gender equality on the individual level on the one hand and actual levels of both gender equality and violence in the society, including armed conflict on the other.

Citation

Ekvall, Å. (2014), "Gender equality, attitudes to gender equality, and conflict", Gendered Perspectives on Conflict and Violence: Part A (Advances in Gender Research, Vol. 18A), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 273-295. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1529-2126(2013)000018A015