Source: MIL-OSI Submissions
Source: Family Planning
Gender Equality Survey – Gender Equal NZ (NCW)
Comments below can be attributed to Jackie Edmond, chief executive, Family Planning.
– Congratulations to the National Council of Women for publishing the third gender equality survey.
– The information gathered through this survey is important for measuring how we are progressing on the path to becoming a more gender equal society in Aotearoa.
– As with other years, there are some positive results. For example, it is encouraging that in 2021, 79% of New Zealanders still believe that gender equality is a fundamental right.
– Views around responsibility for contraception have not changed since 2017, with 84% of respondents in 2021 believing that it is the responsibility of both men and women. While this is positive, there is also no evidence of progress.
– One standout result of this survey is the change in attitudes toward abortion. In 2017, the survey found that 66% of respondents believed a woman has a right to choose whether or not she has an abortion. In 2021, this percentage climbed to 74%, a significant shift in support for the right to have an abortion, and evidence of abortion being destigmatised.
– This result is meaningful and shows we can shift attitudes about issues related to gender equality. Changing attitudes and values about an issue often go hand in hand with legislative change. Whether attitudes shifted before or after abortion law reform in 2020, it is very likely that a successful public campaign and political leadership on these issues has impacted attitudes among the general public.
See the media release from National Council of Women below.
Media Release: Embargoed until Tuesday March 1st 2022, 4.30pm
Latest NCWNZ Gender Survey Reveals Attitudes are Hardening In Some Areas
A third nationwide survey of gender attitudes, conducted by NCWNZ and Research New Zealand, confirms that while most New Zealanders hold progressive attitudes towards gender equality (with 80% recognising it’s a fundamental right), a minority still hold outdated views on gender roles and stereotypes, and there is a creep towards more conservative attitudes.
“It’s extremely encouraging that most New Zealanders have progressive attitudes towards gender equality and believe Aotearoa New Zealand is making good progress towards gender equality,” Dr Suzanne Manning, President of The National Council of Women of NZ – Te Kaunihera Wāhine o Aotearoa, said today.
“But it is concerning that when it comes to violence towards women and toxic masculinity, the attitudes of a small minority have hardened since the previous survey in 2019.”
Dr Manning said the survey showed that there was still a lot of work to do in changing attitudes towards gender equality. “It’s frankly depressing that in 2022, 17% of respondents still believe that hitting out is an understandable response for a man when his wife or girlfriend tries to end a relationship (up from 9% in 2019), while 18% of respondents believe that showing physical or emotional weakness makes a man less of a man (up from 12% in 2019).
“And while it’s encouraging that most New Zealanders agree that household chores and childcare should be shared between men and women, it’s concerning that 16% of respondents still believe that fathers should have more say than mothers in making family decisions (up from 10% in 2019).”
Dr Manning said the survey found that there were significant differences in attitudes between men and women on some issues. For example, 89% of women believe contraception should be a shared responsibility between men and women, while only 79% of men share this view and fewer women think good progress is being made towards gender equality than men.
The survey also found that women have greater tolerance around gender and sexual diversity, but attitudes towards trans men and trans women are still lagging behind, with more than a third of respondents saying they are not comfortable with trans men and trans women in most situations.
“The survey shows we’re not making enough progress towards gender equality,” Dr Manning says, “The National Council of Women is committed to achieving gender equality in one generation – and this will need a concerted effort by everyone so that we can change social attitudes towards women and girls.”
Emanuel Kalafatelis from Research New Zealand, who conducted the survey, says, “Taken as a whole, last year’s survey shows a creep upwards towards more conservative attitudes. The reasons for this can only be guessed at, but the current national and global situation of extreme uncertainty and anxiety may well have played its part.”
