The Gender Gap in Water Management Preferences: Analyzing the Influence of Environmental Concern and Political Knowledge

Abstract

To date, most studies on the role of women in water management have focused on local communities in developing countries, within which women are more vulnerable to hydrological risk. This study emphasizes the need to investigate the preferences of women in industrialized nations. The results of a representative opinion survey in Andalusia (Spain) reveal that, when it comes to water management, women tend to think primarily in domestic terms whereas men prioritize the efficiency of irrigation systems. In Andalusia (a region under severe risk of hydrological stress) irrigation has a much greater impact on the efficiency of water use than any other factor. To explain these differences of opinion, this study analyses the gender gap in terms of environmental concern and political knowledge. The results suggest that women's preferences relate not only to their greater environmental proactiveness in the domestic sphere but also to political-knowledge-related variables.

Evolving environmental awareness and shifts in management priorities: a socioeconomic lens on the min river basin, China

“…Public concern regarding specific environmental issues may fluctuate, contingent on the level of governmental attention and the efficacy of corresponding management strategies (Scott and Willits, 1994). Past studies have identified the association between EC and demographic variables like age, gender, socioeconomic status, residence locations, and political ideology (Liu et al, 2014;Liu and Mu, 2016;Du et al, 2019;Gray et al, 2019;Lafuente et al, 2021). Fu et al (2020) explicated environmental behavioral intention (EBI) as the willingness to engage in pro-environmental activities or behaviors.…”