In 2008, on the eve of the financial crisis, the World Bank checked the percentage of women involved in public offices around the world, and specifically how many of them were placed in leadership positions. The data was dire, only 18% of all parliament members worldwide were women, and only 13 countries had a woman at the head of the Executive Branch. In traditional India, which already suffers from class differences between different castes, the numbers were even lower, only 10% of local and federal government members were women.
In 1993, India took a first significant step in properly integrating women when it passed an amendment reserving places for women in a third of the hundreds of thousands of local council chair positions. This dramatic step proved itself over time, and developmental economists observed, on several occasions, that exposure to female leadership slowly changed perceptions of the woman’s place, both openly and declaratively, as well as subliminally.
A decade after the amendment was passed, and after local elections had been held twice, in which a third of the quotas were reserved for women, researchers Lori Beaman, Esther Duflo, Rohini Pande and Petia Topalova began exploring the question of whether the entrance of women into local politics had an effect on the ambitions of young girls; as well as evaluating the perceptions of parents of women regarding the roles of girls in society.
In 1993, India took a first significant step in properly integrating women when it passed an amendment reserving places for women in a third of the hundreds of thousands of local council chair positions. This dramatic step proved itself over time, and developmental economists observed, on several occasions, that exposure to female leadership slowly changed perceptions of the woman’s place, both openly and declaratively, as well as subliminally.
A decade after the amendment was passed, and after local elections had been held twice, in which a third of the quotas were reserved for women, researchers Lori Beaman, Esther Duflo, Rohini Pande and Petia Topalova began exploring the question of whether the entrance of women into local politics had an effect on the ambitions of young girls; as well as evaluating the perceptions of parents of women regarding the roles of girls in society.
Developmental economists observed on several occasions that exposure to female leadership slowly changed perceptions regarding the woman’s place both openly and declaratively, as well as subliminally.
Between the years of 2006 and 2007 the researchers surveyed 495 randomly chosen villages in the district of Birbhum, in the state of West Bengal, India. The survey addressed one adult male and one adult female in every household, as well as all the teenagers in the district. The survey sought to learn about the daily routines of girls and their parents’ positions on education, the desired marital age, professional ambitions (if such exist) and whether the girl and her parents aspired for her to someday lead the village.
The results showed an enormous influence in the family’s exposure to female influence. Thus, for example, there was a 14 percentage point decrease in the chance that parents in villages that were never led by a woman would express a desire for the girl to continue to higher education after high school. Likewise, the percentage of parents who believed the girls’ profession – but not the boys’ – should be determined by her relatives was at 76% in villages where no woman had ever been elected, versus 65% in villages where a woman was elected to a leadership position at least once.
The results showed an enormous influence in the family’s exposure to female influence. Thus, for example, there was a 14 percentage point decrease in the chance that parents in villages that were never led by a woman would express a desire for the girl to continue to higher education after high school. Likewise, the percentage of parents who believed the girls’ profession – but not the boys’ – should be determined by her relatives was at 76% in villages where no woman had ever been elected, versus 65% in villages where a woman was elected to a leadership position at least once.
The gap between girls and boys according to several parameters
The perceptions of the girls themselves were also heavily influenced, especially in villages where a woman was consecutively appointed twice. They tended to be more resistant to the future role of a housewife (8.3 percentage points), preferred to marry after the age of 18 (8.8 percentage points) and aspired more for careers requiring formal education (8.6 percentage points).
When the researchers examined the girls’ scholarly accomplishments and daily routine, it became clear that the change had seeped in from perceptions of the world to reality in the field. In villages where no woman had ever been elected, the chances of boys to attend school was 6% higher than the chances of girls, with a 4% higher chance of literacy. At the same time, as with most third-world countries, the girls spent significantly longer amounts of time doing housework, approximately 79 minutes a day on average. On the other hand, in villages where a woman was elected to head of the council, the gap between the genders was erased altogether with the completion of the second consecutive term. In these villages, the amount of time girls spent doing housework was reduced to merely 18 minutes a day.
When the researchers examined the girls’ scholarly accomplishments and daily routine, it became clear that the change had seeped in from perceptions of the world to reality in the field. In villages where no woman had ever been elected, the chances of boys to attend school was 6% higher than the chances of girls, with a 4% higher chance of literacy. At the same time, as with most third-world countries, the girls spent significantly longer amounts of time doing housework, approximately 79 minutes a day on average. On the other hand, in villages where a woman was elected to head of the council, the gap between the genders was erased altogether with the completion of the second consecutive term. In these villages, the amount of time girls spent doing housework was reduced to merely 18 minutes a day.
The elegant and simple research by Duflo and her associates indicated an important fact – changing social processes must first and foremost provide practical opportunities to create role models, because as legendary NBA coach, John Wooden, said: “Being a role model is the most powerful way to educate.”
The research had tremendous impact, and the researchers even chose to publish it beyond the narrow confines of economic and public policy magazines.
Tremendous efforts are invested worldwide to promote employment diversity, and despite the major progress over the past few decades, every year data is published which indicates the sizable gap still left to be closed. The elegant and simple research by Duflo and her associates indicated an important fact – changing social processes must first and foremost provide practical opportunities to create role models, because as legendary NBA coach, John Wooden, said: “Being a role model is the most powerful way to educate.”
Tremendous efforts are invested worldwide to promote employment diversity, and despite the major progress over the past few decades, every year data is published which indicates the sizable gap still left to be closed. The elegant and simple research by Duflo and her associates indicated an important fact – changing social processes must first and foremost provide practical opportunities to create role models, because as legendary NBA coach, John Wooden, said: “Being a role model is the most powerful way to educate.”