Men's and Women's Consciousness of Gender Inequality: Austria, West Germany, Great Britain, and the United States

A model explaining consciousness of gender inequality is tested using data for the United States, Great Britain, West Germany, and Austria. Well-educated people tend to be less favorable toward efforts to reduce gender inequality than less well-educated people. Women with employed husbands are less supportive of efforts to reduce gender inequality than women without a male wage earner. Women are more likely to perceive gender inequality than men and are more supportive of efforts to combat gender inequality. These findings differ from findings in prior U.S. research. Moreover, U.S. women are unique in several respects, including a positive influence of labor force participation on support for efforts to reduce gender inequality. Our findings call into question the generalizability of U.S. studies.