The gender-equality paradox

What is the gender-equality paradox and what approach should policy makers take?

Prof. Gijsbert Stoet: University of Essex, UK

This talk will start with an overview of the gender- equality aradox as reported by Stoet & Geary in 2018. It will be shown that the phenomenon is not unique to education, but has also shown in other psychological traits, such as personality. Next, Gijsbert Stoet will focus on the extent of the potential problems for societies and for individuals. In this part of the talk, different viewpoints will be discussed. There will be special attention for the knowledge and skills gap, what exactly it means, and possible approaches of how the Gender Equality Paradox can be dealt with most effectively.

Gender stereotypes could explain the gender-equality paradox

Prof. Thomas Breda, Associate professor at Paris School of Economics, France

The so-called gender-equality paradox is the fact that gender segregation across occupations is more pronounced in more egalitarian and more developed countries. Thomas Breda will discuss why this paradox could be explained by cross-country differences in essentialist gender norms regarding math aptitudes and appropriate occupational choices. The proposed explanation is consistent with the fact that economic development and gender equality in rights go hand-in-hand with a reshaping rather than a suppression of gender norms, with the emergence of new and more horizontal forms of social differentiation across genders.