Gender Gaps in World Christianity: Membership, Participation, and Leadership

Abstract

This article presents findings from recent research that nuances gender gaps in World Christianity utilizing quantitative data on religious membership, participation, and leadership. The article outlines the assumptions and theories undergirding this project on global gender inequalities by utilizing data from the United Nations and World Economic Forum. It then presents original research that produced gendered data on church membership, participation, and leadership around the world, drawing from the World Christian Database, Pew Research Center, and World Values Survey. These data are put into conversation with national level gender gap data in Mongolia, Israel, Estonia, and Ghana to provide country-level examples of how data can be used to shed light on women’s challenges and opportunities both in society and the church. Without comprehensive quantitative data on women's experiences around the world, it is difficult to know what problems exist and how they can be addressed. Data from this project can be applied contextually to address the gendered dynamics of church life and interrogate unequal social norms that perpetuate women’s overlooked status in churches and societies worldwide.