The Pew Research Center today released its Global Attitudes Project report, “Gender Equality Universally Embraced, But Inequalities Acknowledged.” The report, done in association with the International Herald Tribune, is based on a survey of 22 nations conducted earlier this year. Overall takeaways from the survey:
- There is global support for equal rights, but more changes are needed to erase inequities.
The survey asked, “Do you think women should have equal rights with men, or shouldn’t they?” The majority of respondents said yes in every country except Nigeria, where only 45 percent thought so. France and Spain showed the most support for equality with 99 percent of respondents answering yes. Ninety-seven percent of American respondents said yes.
Respondents who answered yes were then asked, whether or not their country had made most of the changes needed to give women equal rights or if they needed to make more changes. Most countries believe more changes are needed but a small majority in China, Indonesia, India and Jordan felt most changes had been made.
- There is support for women working outside the home, but many feel men deserve priority when jobs are scarce.
A majority of respondents in every country surveyed felt women should be able to work outside the home. However, when jobs are scarce, a small minority in most countries felt men should have more rights to jobs (14 percent in the U.S.) and a majority agreed in Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, South Korea and Nigeria. Also, there is a common view that men get higher paying opportunities at work. In the U.S. 68 percent of respondents felt this way.
- Egalitarian marriages are seen as more satisfying than relationships where the man provides and the women cares for the family.
The majority of respondents in nineteen out of 22 countries felt this way. In Pakistan 79 percent of respondents felt a marriage where only the man provides is better.
- Men’s lives are frequently viewed as better than women’s.
When asked who had the better life – men or women, there is a double digit difference in the responses. More female respondents said men did except in South Korea and Japan where more respondents said women did.
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