A new interpretation of women's environmental behavior: importing gender inequality

Author

Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Imam Khomeini International University, Qazvin, Iran

Abstract

Differences between men and women`s approaches toward the environment are a less addressed matter in the Sociology of Environment contents and have led to an incomplete explanation of environmental behavior. The purpose of the study is to investigate the relationship between environmental behavior of men and women in private sphere (home) and their economic status. In theoretical framework, gender inequality has been used to explain differences in environmental behavior; This concept discusses women's greater share in environmentally responsible behaviors in private sphere through gender division of labor, biographical access, and professionalism. The method is survey with the statistical population of Qazvin citizens between 18 and 75 years old. Sample size is 390. They were selected by dialing random numbers based on the telephone numbers frame. Data were also collected through telephone interviews with multiple-choice closed-ended questions. Findings show that the average environmental behavior of women in private sphere in three levels of employment, full-time employment and employment with supervisory power is higher than men; Complex cultural and structural patterns based on gender inequality have defined women's core specialties as patterns of behavior in private sphere, and have highlighted male-dominated patriarchal social forces, gender stereotypes and expectations even more about environmental behavior.

Keywords

References

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