Structural Gender Inequalities and Gender Differences in Highbrow Cultural Consumption

• In Event: 545 - Section on Sociology of Culture Roundtable Session.
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 06. Cultural Capital I

Abstract

Structural gender inequalities and gender differences in highbrow cultural consumption:
A macro-sociological perspective on the gender gap in the consumption of public and private cultural practices -
Cultural consumption research consistently indicates that women participate more in highbrow cultural activities than men. We extend existing individual-level explanations of this finding by exploring the impact of structural determinants, because the macro-level of social organization constitutes the opportunities and constraints for women’s cultural consumption. Gender theories on the structural gendered organization of production and reproduction are integrated with division of labor arguments as explanation for gender differences in the consumption of private and public highbrow practices. Multilevel analyses on Eurobarometer 79.2 data (2013) show large gender gaps in book reading, theatre attendance and ballet/opera attendance in all EU countries. The size of these gender differences varies across the EU countries, but only for book reading the cross-national variation in the gender gap is related to structural gender stratification. The gender gap in theatre and opera/ballet attendance is explained by the level of national wealth. Our results show that context matters when explaining gender differences and suggest that different processes are at play for private and public highbrow activities: the private can be perceived as a gendered domain where the gendered division of labor at both the individual and macro-level has its largest influence. In the public space wealth-related processes may be predominant.

Authors

• Susan Lagaert, Ghent University

• Henk Roose, Ghent University