Abstract
Gender equality has been widely explored, but there is limited research investigating its variability at regional level. This paper aims to fill this gap by developing and validating a new, regional gender gaps index, compatible with previous indices used to compare gender equality across nations but now fit for the purpose of measuring gender equality across regions, within nations. To this end, we (i) reviewed existing indicators of gender equality; (ii) assessed the contribution of the indicators most frequently used in previous research to measure gender equality; (iii) developed an extended, regional version of the gender gaps index (eRGGI), by extending it to include new indicators able to capture female empowerment in developed countries, like Italy; and, (iv) explored the variability of gender equality across Italian regions. In developing our eRGGI, some indicators traditionally used to measure gender equality were removed and others were introduced to capture new dimensions of gender equality to suit modern conditions regarding contexts where equality is considered important, in contemporary Europe. Results showed that gender equality varies dramatically across regions, also confirming the relevance of the new indicators we proposed to add. Such results call for more caution in interpreting results based on nationally aggregated data to inform policy and practice, arguing for regional comparisons to become more prominent.
Highlights
Gender equality is a timely topic in the international agenda
A new gender equality index for use in comparisons and investigations at regional level has been developed, consistent with those previously used in international comparisons, but which has been validated here at regional level using empirical data for Italy
Our results showed a granularity in the distribution of both gender attitudes and gender equality across regions that cannot be ignored to deeply understand gender differences and properly inform both policy and future research
Summary
Gender equality is a timely topic in the international agenda For years it has been a priority, but no country in the world has reached complete gender equality in the key sectors of social life, i.e. economics, politics, health, and education (European Gender Equality Institute, 2019; World Economic Forum, 2020). In particular, has narrowed over time, especially throughout the industrialized world (Legewie & DiPrete, 2012), with girls achieving better than boys in both primary and secondary education, and with a higher percentage of women enrolling and completing Higher Education (HE) courses. In contrast to the past, international comparisons show that 60% of the lowest achievers in mathematics, reading and science in grade 10 (on average, 15-years old students) are boys, and that girls outperform boys in reading in all countries participating in the OECD-PISA survey (Organisation for Economic Co-operation & Development, 2018)
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