Gender equality models in the European Union

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to analyze the current situation of the European Union in terms of gender equality, researching the possible existence of models differentiated by groups of countries or conglomerates. For this, the indicator offered by the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) has been used, which includes six dimensions: work, money, knowledge, time, power and health.Design/methodology/approachThe Gender Equality Index is compared with an alternative indicator that has been developed using the same dimensions but with a different methodology. Specifically, the DP2 distance measure has been applied, the use of which is common in studies focusing on well-being and quality of life. In addition, a cluster analysis has been carried out that allows classifying the EU member states and obtaining groupings of countries according to the proximity between them in terms of equality between men and women.FindingsThe results show that the most egalitarian countries are those of northern Europe, but without finding the typical north–south classification. Thus, in the group of the least equal are many eastern countries that have recently joined the EU, along with other southern countries that have been part of the EU since its creation, such as Italy. The classification of the countries resulting from applying one or the other methodology is not identical although there are hardly any significant changes. The groups obtained in the years for which information is available are also not altered, which reflects the structural nature of gender equality.Originality/valueThis paper shows a division into four groups of countries according to gender equality, using different indicators and methodologies. The typology of countries has hardly altered during the last decade.

Female empowerment and masculinity – a cultural trait? Evidence from the CEE countries

“…Instead of nurturing the idea of a working socialist mother, a new wave of traditionalism forced them to leave the labour market (Dawn Metcalfe and Afanassieva, 2005; Alas and Rees, 2005), marginalized them in the public policymaking process and masculinized the public sphere and labour market – all of which happened without independent feminist movements (Stoilova, 2010) and within anti-feminist cultural environment (Dawn Metcalfe and Afanassieva, 2005). In consequence, according to several analyses of gender equality in European countries for the years 2007–2015 (Castellano and Rocca, 2014; López-Martínez et al , 2022), the CEE countries were generally marked by the lower level of female position in society than the EU average.…”

“…During the post-socialist transformation, female empowerment lost its bearing to a new wave of traditionalism (Dawn Metcalfe and Afanassieva, 2005; Alas and Rees, 2005; Rugina, 2019). Women’s empowerment, as a shared value of the European Union, should finally be revived, however, there is both a rise in populism (Graff and Korolczuk, 2021, p. 16 and next) and more active women’s movements (Vojvodić, 2021), resulting in the CEE countries being the least gender equal in the EU (López-Martínez et al , 2022).…”