Changing Attitudes Towards Gender Equality in Switzerland (2000–2017): Period, Cohort and Life-Course Effects

Abstract

This paper investigates trends in Swiss women’s and men’s gender attitudes in the period 2000–2017 using the Swiss Household Panel data. Based on pooled OLS and fixed-effects models, we establish the following for women and men: (1) over this time period, attitudes towards gender roles become more egalitarian, while attitudes towards gender equality achievement remain stable; (2) the youngest cohort unexpectedly holds more traditional attitudes; and (3) individual attitudes change over the life course based on life events and the attitudes of one’s partner.