Description
The lack of progress in fostering gender equality (GE) in Europe and particularly in Poland calls for new framing of GE in order to construct effective policies to overcome this impasse. Project main goal is to investigate GE and its benefits for quality of life and social development. We will develop the new GE framework, methodology and tools for researching GE, for the usage in academic research and intersectional policy development. Expanding on a Norwegian method of measuring GE we will conduct the first comprehensive study in Poland that is centrally focused on GE and quality of life. This backed up by secondary data analysis, policy analysis and qualitative research, will serve as a basis for creation of policy recommendations and toolkits. The project outcomes will include expert research-capacity building in Poland and Norway, inputs and guidelines for further research, strengthening young researchers careers, institutional capacity building and international collaboration. The project builds on a Norwegian approach, placing gender equality (GE) in focus of research, advancing it in terms of cultural and national sensitivity.
Summary of project results
The project is an meaningful contribution to the ongoing theoretical and policy-oriented discussion on gender equality and quality of life. Bringing together these two concept is important and needed for several reasons. First, the project aimed at examining gender equality as complex, dynamie, multidimensional and contested concept, emphasising institutional, structural and cultural conditions advancing or restraining gender equality in the following areas: childhood, family life, work, civic engagement, violence and health. To move beyond the existing studies on gender equality, the project looked at the relation between gender equality and quality of life - a perspective to which relatively little attention was given so far. By employing cross-nationally mixed-method study, it contributed to a better understanding of the relations between these two concepts on theoretical, empirical and policy level. To provide a better understanding of the impact of gender equality on quality of life, the project integrated the analysis of existing studies with cross-country qualitative and quantitative analysis. It examined the policies aimed at developing gender equality and the current media debates and provided policy recommendations. In addition to comparative analysis of the satiation in Poland and Norway, focus groups inten/iews were carried out in Poland. Hence, the project contributed to the new knowledge on how gender equality is shaped and understood on institutional level as well as from the perspective of citizens. This knowledge was further developed in the quantitative study based on the sun/ey conducted on a Poland-wide representative random sample of adult men and women (1501 respondents). Both studies provided empirical materiał enabling to look at the impact of gender equality on quality of life over time. The project went beyond the bilateral cooperation by preparing a European questionnaire which is a proposal for European-wide research sun/ey project on gender equality. The project contributed also to the cooperation between institution in Poland and Norway thru exchange of knowledge, mutual learning process and academic mobility. It also created opportunity for the advancement of young scholars careers both within the project and on a broader scalę by organizing International summer school. The outcomes ofthe project are published in academic articles and the book "Gender Equality and Ouality of Life. Perspectives from Poland and Norway"
Summary of bilateral results
The GEQ project strengthened the collaboration between the partner universities: the University of Oslo and Jagiellonian University on institutional level as well as between the researchers. The collaboration successfully contributed to the achievement of projects goals. Firstly, it enabled and sustained the knowledge transfer, access to expertise and resources enhancing the Professional development of researchers and students involved in the project. Hence, it played important role in capacity building. The aim of the partnership was also to improve the research methodology and test more thoroughly the design of Norwegian survey. The questions formerly tried out in a Norwegian context were developed in a Polish context, proving how the national contexts and local understandings of gender issues has to be taken into considerations when working out tools to research gender equality issues. The involvement of multidisciplinary research teams created the opportunity to strengthen the results by providing innovative and multidisciplinary approaches of data analysis. Among the achievement on a bilateral level are: access to and share of relevant data and practices to pursue project goals, joint publications and conference papers, strengthening the visibility of partner university as centres conducting research within the area of gender studies and quality of life, blueprint for European questionnaire on gender equality and quality of life. The successful partnership encouraged further development of research partnership and created platforms for professional collaboration e.g. joint applications for further research projects. The collaboration was based on formal partnerships between Jagiellonian University and the University of Oslo. Firstly, a partnership agreement was signed for the purpose of "Gender Equality and Ouality of Life" project. It was supplemented by agreements within the Erasmus+ Programme and Scholarship and Training Fund - action: Mobility Projects aimed at student and staff mobility.