[Public Opinion Briefing Vol. 21] Gender is Becoming More Important, but Progress is Slow

[Public Opinion Briefing Vol. 21] "International Comparison of Perceptions on Women's Rights"

[Topic 1] Comparison of Perceptions on Gender Equality in 16 Countries

[Topic 2] Reasons for the Weak Gender Agenda in Korea

Topic 1. Comparison of Perceptions on Gender Equality in 16 Countries:

The Gender Agenda is Rapidly Gaining Importance, but Progress is Slow

□ Growing International Consensus on the Importance of Gender Equality

□ Significant Differences Between Countries in the Intensity of Perceived Importance:

ㆍKorea's Intensity of Perceived Seriousness is Low Compared to the Consensus

A broad consensus is spreading globally that gender equality, which guarantees equal rights between women and men, must be ensured. This finding emerged from an international survey on human rights perceptions in 16 countries, conducted by World Public Opinion (WPO) and participated in by the East Asia Institute (Director: Lee Sook-jong, Professor at Sungkyunkwan University). When asked about the importance of gender equality, the combined response of "very important" and "somewhat important" averaged 86% across the 16 countries, while "not very important," "not at all important," and "other" accounted for only 14%.

Despite the broad consensus, the intensity of perceived importance of gender equality varies significantly by country. Among those who responded that it is a "very important issue," the rates were very high in developed Western countries such as the UK (89%), the US (77%), and France (75%). In Korea, while the combined response of "very important" and "somewhat important" reached 86%, the proportion of respondents who answered "very important" was only about half, at 43%. Korea, along with Egypt (31%) and Russia (35%), is classified as a country with a relatively low intensity of perceived importance of gender equality. These figures are significantly lower than those of Asian countries like China (76%) and Indonesia (71%). In other words, while Koreans have a broad consensus on the issue of gender equality, they do not perceive the problem as serious. [Figure 1]

□ Correcting Gender Discrimination is the Government's Responsibility: 80% Globally, 87% in Korea, 5th Among Surveyed Countries

Meanwhile, global citizens have high expectations for the government's role in resolving gender discrimination. An average of 80% across the 16 countries responded that the government should intervene to prevent gender discrimination. In Korea, 87% of respondents agreed with government intervention. This placed Korea fifth among the 16 surveyed countries in terms of the proportion of people who believe the government should intervene to correct gender inequality, following Mexico, Indonesia, the UK, and France. The tendency to strongly demand government intervention in resolving major social issues in Korea is no exception for gender equality issues. This implies that if gender equality issues become more serious in Korea, the government is likely to be held responsible, and it suggests that the government needs to take a more active role in resolving women's issues. [Figure 2]

□ While Perceptions of Gender Equality Have Improved, Progress Remains Insufficient

ㆍ76% of all respondents evaluated that improvement has occurred (very fair + somewhat fair)

ㆍ54% believe the government should do more to resolve gender inequality, 26% believe it is doing enough, 13% believe it should not be involved,

How do global citizens perceive the improvement of gender equality issues in their respective countries? There is a shared perception that women's rights have "improved" (become much fairer + somewhat fairer) compared to the past. On average, 71% of respondents across all countries answered that women's rights have improved compared to the past. However, the proportion of respondents who feel that significant improvement has occurred drops to an average of 29%. This indicates that expectations have not been met. This dissatisfaction leads to the argument that the government should play a greater role in resolving gender inequality issues. In particular, countries with a low proportion of respondents who believe women's rights have become much fairer, such as Mexico (29%), France (19%), Indonesia (25%), and Korea (23%), showed a high proportion of respondents calling for greater government involvement. In Mexico, 83% responded that the government should do more to resolve gender inequality, followed by Korea (73%), Indonesia (69%), and France (68%), all significantly exceeding the average of 54% across 17 countries. [Figure 3] [Figure 4]

[Figure 1] Consensus and Intensity of Perceived Importance of Gender Equality in Rights Across 17 Countries

Note 1. Consensus on gender equality in rights is the proportion of positive responses ("very important" + "somewhat important"), and the intensity of perceived importance refers to the proportion of "very important" responses within this group.

Note 2. Negative perceptions include responses such as "not very important" and "not at all important." While there were options for "don't know/no response" and "depends on the situation," their actual response rates were negligible.

[Figure 2] Government Responsibility for Improving Gender Discrimination

Note 1. This is the proportion of responses indicating that the government should intervene, out of the options "the government should intervene" and "it is not an issue for government intervention."

[Figure 3] Degree of Improvement in Women's Inequality in Each Country (%)

Note 1. This represents responses 1 (much fairer) and 2 (somewhat fairer) out of the options: 1. Much fairer 2. Somewhat fairer 3. No significant difference 4. Somewhat unfair 5. Much unfair.

[Figure 4] Evaluation of Government's Role in Improving Gender Discrimination

Note 1. This represents response 2 (The government should make more effort) out of the options: 1. The government is doing enough. 2. The government should make more effort. 3. The government should no longer be involved. 4. The government has been overly involved.

□ Analysis of Social Pressure Types Regarding the Gender Agenda in Each Country: Leading, Conflict, Preventive, Latent

ㆍUS and UK show high levels of perceived importance and high rates of perceived significant improvement.

ㆍKorea: Low perceived importance, below-average improvement: Latent social conflict factor.

ㆍCountries with low improvement relative to perception levels (e.g., France, Mexico, Indonesia) have a high potential for social conflict.

Based on the degree to which gender equality issues are perceived as important in each country and the attitudes towards the actual improvement of gender equality in those countries, the perceptions of gender equality issues can be broadly categorized into four types.

First is the leading type. Countries like the UK and the US have a high proportion of people who practically feel the realization of gender equality and a relatively high perception that women's rights have significantly improved in their countries.



Second is the preventive type, where, as in Iran or Egypt, gender inequality is perceived to be improving in reality before the public perceives the issue of gender equality as serious, thus preventing conflict.



Third is the conflict type, where gender equality is considered very important, but no change is perceived in reality. Countries in this category, such as France, Mexico, and Indonesia, have a high potential for gender inequality issues to escalate into direct social problems.



Finally, there is the latent type, where the actual experience of gender equality is low, and the perception of actual improvement is also weak. In these countries, depending on future development, women's issues could escalate into social conflict or be largely prevented or lead to pioneering progress. However, while there is dissatisfaction with the degree of improvement in gender equality issues, the proportion of respondents who consider it an important issue is high, leading to a latent type where dissatisfaction is not directly expressed.

In Korea's case, only 23% of respondents felt that the issue of inequality between men and women had "greatly improved" compared to the past, falling short of the average of 29% among all responding countries. The proportion of those who perceive gender inequality as an urgent issue is also relatively low, indicating a latent perception type where the gender agenda does not surface.

[Figure 5] Classification of Perception Types Based on Perceptions of Gender Equality and Evaluation of Gender Equality Improvement in Each Country

Note 1. The baseline is the average response rate for each country across 17 countries: Very important 59%, Significantly improved 29%

Note 2. Here, "high" and "low" are relative terms, meaning higher or lower than the "average."