A cross-national investigation into the effects of religion on gender equality

Abstract

PurposeThis study aims to analyze the effects of religion on gender equality at the national level.Design/methodology/approachThe study distinguishes between the concepts of religiosity and religious affiliation and introduces a measure of religious diversity. The study defines religiosity and gender equality as multidimensional concepts and relies on a wide range of secondary data from credible sources such as the World Value Survey, the United Nations, Gender Gap Report and the World Economic Forum to analyze the effect of religious factors on gender equality in more than 70 countries.FindingsThe analyses show that after controlling for the effects of socio-economic development, religiosity tends to impede gender equality. It is found that Muslim and Hinduism affiliations are negatively and Protestant affiliation is positively associated with gender equality. Furthermore, Catholicism and Eastern Orthodox affiliations and religious diversity do not significantly affect gender equality.Originality/valueAt the theoretical level, this study distinguishes between religious affiliations and religiosity and relies on the modernization theory to offer valuable insights into the relationship between religion and gender equality. This study's findings could serve managers and policymakers in dealing with gender disparities in different spheres of social life at the practical level.

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“…We now turn our attention to the role played by religion. Recent studies (Pew Research Center, 2017;Yeganeh, 2021) investigating the relationship between religion and gender equality find that the influence of Catholicism does not significantly affect gender equality. Contrary to Protestantism, which is positively associated with gender equality, Catholicism is more patriarchal and hierarchical.…”