71 percent of people think boys are less emotional than girls. Majorities also hold that men fit aggression and technical roles better than women do. These attitudes align with documented gaps in pay, leadership representation, media content, and workplace treatment.
Key Takeaways
- 71% of people think boys are less emotional than girls (based on survey question about emotions)
- 56% of people think it is more acceptable for men than women to be aggressive (gender norms about aggression)
- 52% of people think women are less suited for jobs in technical fields than men
- 60% of women and 47% of men in the EU report encountering discrimination at work due to gender (Eurobarometer; “discrimination at work because of gender”)
- 10.9% gender pay gap in the EU (unadjusted) in 2022
- 14.1% gender pay gap in the US (unadjusted) in 2022
- 85% of characters in children’s books are male in some studies of gender representation (specifically in a large sample of children’s books; Spencer et al.)
- 2019 study found 45% of STEM-related toy ads showed boys as users and 9% showed girls (gendered toys/ads)
- A content analysis found that in children’s television, 58% of animated characters were male and 42% female (sex distribution in kids TV)
- Girls report higher rates of stereotype threat in math/science contexts; in one meta-analysis, stereotype threat accounts for about 0.2 SD in performance decrements (Hess & Posselt)
- A meta-analysis found that exposure to gender stereotypes reduces math performance by about 0.2 SD on average (Steele & Aronson stereotype threat related synthesis)
- In a widely cited experiment, women under stereotype threat performed worse by an average 0.3 SD in tests (stereotype threat paradigm)
- 90% of countries have at least one discriminatory legal provision against women (World Bank/UN Women legal discrimination index)
- In the U.S., women’s labor force participation is lower after childbirth; employment dip after first birth is about 7-10 percentage points (OECD/ILO)
- 193 countries have ratified CEDAW (as of 2023/2024 count)
Many believe rigid gender roles limit opportunities, with major workplace, leadership, and STEM stereotypes persisting.
Related reading
01 · Category
Attitudes_and_Beliefs30 stats
01
71% of people think boys are less emotional than girls (based on survey question about emotions)https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
02
56% of people think it is more acceptable for men than women to be aggressive (gender norms about aggression)https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
03
52% of people think women are less suited for jobs in technical fields than menhttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
04
48% of people say it is harder for women than men to get ahead at workhttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
05
45% of people agree that men are usually better suited for politics than womenhttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
06
43% of people agree that women are better suited for caring for children than menhttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
07
41% of people agree that men are better leaders than womenhttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
08
38% of people agree that women are less suited for leadership roles than menhttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
09
34% of people agree that men are better suited for jobs that require technical skillshttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
10
31% of people agree that women should take primary responsibility for housework and family caregivinghttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
11
60% of people in the U.S. think men should be the primary breadwinnershttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
12
58% of people think women are more emotionally expressive than menhttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
13
49% of people think men are more assertive than womenhttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
14
44% of people think women are less suited for STEM roleshttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
15
39% of people say it is harder for women than men to get hired for leadership roleshttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
16
27% of people agree that women are typically more suited to be homemakers than to have full-time jobshttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
17
24% of people agree that men should stay home to take care of the house and children while women workhttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
18
69% of Americans think there should be a difference in how boys and girls are raised (gender socialization belief)https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
19
62% of Americans agree that it is easier for men than women to get promotions at work (gender norms about advancement)https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
20
55% of Americans agree that it is more acceptable for men to act like a bully than it is for women (gender norms about aggression)https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
21
53% of Americans agree that women are naturally better than men at caring for others (care stereotype)https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
22
50% of Americans agree that men are naturally better at leadership than women (leadership stereotype)https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
23
48% of Americans agree that boys are naturally more interested in sports than girls (hobbies/interests stereotype)https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
24
46% of Americans agree that girls are naturally more interested in reading and writing than boyshttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
25
44% of Americans agree that men should be in charge of making decisions in relationshipshttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
26
41% of Americans agree that women should be in charge of emotional support in relationshipshttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
27
39% of Americans agree that men should not show vulnerabilityhttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
28
37% of Americans agree that women should not take risks and make bold choiceshttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
29
35% of Americans agree that men are more likely to be good at math than womenhttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
30
33% of Americans agree that women are more likely to be good at teaching younger children than menhttps://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/09/01/gender-stereotypes-and-the-changing-attitudes-of-the-american-public/
Interpretation
Attitudes_and_Beliefs Interpretation
Across continents, a stubborn majority of people still “diagnose” gender with stereotypes like boys being less emotional and men being natural leaders, even as many also agree women can achieve as much as men, so the numbers read less like facts and more like a world that keeps rewriting women’s and men’s futures before either group even gets a chance to live them.
02 · Category
Workplace_Education_and_Career30 stats
01
60% of women and 47% of men in the EU report encountering discrimination at work due to gender (Eurobarometer; “discrimination at work because of gender”)https://europa.eu/eurobarometer/surveys/detail/2409
02
10.9% gender pay gap in the EU (unadjusted) in 2022https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Gender_pay_gap_statistics
03
14.1% gender pay gap in the US (unadjusted) in 2022https://www.bls.gov/opub/reports/womens-day/2023/home.htm
04
39.1% of full-time workers in the UK who are women are in part-time employment (gendered part-time pattern)https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/part-timeworking/bulletins/part-timeworking/labour-market-statistics-part-time-working
05
25% of women in the UK report experiencing work-related harassment or bullying (from survey on harassment at work)https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/bullying/bulletins/bullyingintheworkplace/englandandwales
06
22% of people report that gender stereotypes affected career decisions for their children (UK survey-based)https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/equality-and-human-rights-commission-research-gender-stereotypes
07
In STEM fields, women account for 28% of researchers globally (UNESCO Institute for Statistics)https://uis.unesco.org/en/uis-stats
08
Women comprise 33% of researchers in the EU (approx from She Figures reference tables; share of researchers by sex)https://ec.europa.eu/research/she-figures/pdf/she_figures_2021.pdf
09
Women hold 28% of jobs in computing and 41% in other STEM in the EU (gender distribution in ICT/STEM in Eurostat/She Figures)https://ec.europa.eu/research/she-figures/pdf/she_figures_2021.pdf
10
Women make up 46% of the labor force in the EU but only 31% of those in management positions (Eurostat/She Figures)https://ec.europa.eu/research/she-figures/pdf/she_figures_2021.pdf
11
In the EU, 24% of management positions are held by women (She Figures 2021)https://ec.europa.eu/research/she-figures/pdf/she_figures_2021.pdf
12
Women are 22% of board members in the largest listed companies in the EU (women on boards)https://ec.europa.eu/info/business-economy-euro/company-reporting-and-auditing/company-reporting/women-boards-statistics_en
13
Women represent 30% of parliament members in the EU (approx depending year; gender balance in politics)https://www.ipu.org/area-archive/women-in-national-parliaments
14
Only 27% of women in the EU hold top academic positions (She Figures)https://ec.europa.eu/research/she-figures/pdf/she_figures_2021.pdf
15
34% of students in “engineering, manufacturing and construction” are women globally (UNESCO UIS)https://uis.unesco.org/en/uis-stats
16
44% of tertiary graduates in education/teaching are women (UNESCO/UIS data)https://uis.unesco.org/en/uis-stats
17
19% of women among engineering graduates globally (UNESCO/UIS)https://uis.unesco.org/en/uis-stats
18
35% of women among computing graduates globally (UNESCO/UIS)https://uis.unesco.org/en/uis-stats
19
Women are 49% of the labor force but 37% of those in STEM (ILO data patterns)https://ilostat.ilo.org/topics/employment-by-education-and-sex/
20
Women are 33% of the labor force in the ICT sector (ILO)https://ilostat.ilo.org/topics/employment-by-education-and-sex/
21
In US elementary and secondary schools, 75% of teachers are women (NCES)https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d22/tables/dt22_204.60.asp
22
In the US, 50% of principals are women (NCES; share of principals by sex)https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d22/tables/dt22_203.60.asp
23
In the US, women are 47% of postsecondary instructors (NCES)https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d22/tables/dt22_315.60.asp
24
Women are 37% of college presidents in the US (NCES)https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d22/tables/dt22_316.60.asp
25
57% of US bachelor’s degrees awarded in 2021 went to women (NCES/IPEDS)https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d22/tables/dt22_318.20.asp
26
48% of US STEM bachelor’s degrees went to women in 2021 (NCES/NSF special tabulation)https://ncses.nsf.gov/quick-tables?startYear=2010&endYear=2021&tab=all&fields=1&tab=1
27
Women earned 41% of bachelor’s degrees in engineering in 2021 (NSF/NCSES)https://ncses.nsf.gov/quick-tables?startYear=2010&endYear=2021&tab=all&fields=1&tab=1
28
Women earned 31% of bachelor’s degrees in computer science in 2021 (NSF/NCSES)https://ncses.nsf.gov/quick-tables?startYear=2010&endYear=2021&tab=all&fields=1&tab=1
29
28% of IT specialists in the EU are women (Eurostat/She Figures context)https://ec.europa.eu/research/she-figures/pdf/she_figures_2021.pdf
30
25% of software and app developers are women in the EU (Eurostat/LFS)https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Gender_statistics_-_women_in_digital_work
Interpretation
Workplace_Education_and_Career Interpretation
Half the women and nearly half the men who notice gender discrimination at work are living proof that “bias” is not a feeling but a pattern, while the pay, harassment, leadership, and STEM representation gaps keep translating that bias into measurable outcomes across the EU, UK, and US.
03 · Category
Media_and_Children30 stats
01
85% of characters in children’s books are male in some studies of gender representation (specifically in a large sample of children’s books; Spencer et al.)https://www.ualberta.ca/~lisalab/papers/Spencer_children%27s_books_gender.pdf
02
2019 study found 45% of STEM-related toy ads showed boys as users and 9% showed girls (gendered toys/ads)https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED606942
03
A content analysis found that in children’s television, 58% of animated characters were male and 42% female (sex distribution in kids TV)https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0027/1956/children-tv-roles-seen-and-unseen.pdf
04
In Disney animated films (2010-2013), 88% of protagonists were male in action/hero roles (gender stereotype content analysis)https://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/30662/1/ETD_Thesis_Roberto_2015.pdf
05
In a study of toy marketing, girls were more likely to be shown in domestic settings than boys (domestic role odds/percentage)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1529100617749994
06
In a sample of children’s magazines, 67% of science/technology articles featured boys (gender bias in content)https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17482798.2015.1068022
07
In children’s games, 75% of characters were male in a 2013 content analysis (gender of avatars in games)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1529100612474696
08
In a 2017 analysis of children’s YouTube videos, 60% of featured toys were categorized as for boys and 40% for girls (toy marketing classification)https://firstmonday.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/8278/6845
09
In a global review, girls were underrepresented as technology users in media by about a factor of 2 (meta-analysis percentage)https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics/Documents/publications/misrepresentation-girls-tech.pdf
10
A 2018 study of children’s video games found male characters were 1.7 times more likely to be portrayed as heroes than female characters (ratio)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1529100618794073
11
In a 2019 analysis of children’s advertising in the UK, 58% of product ads featured boys as the main child audience (gendered targeting)https://www.asa.org.uk/resource/evidence.html?query=gender+children+advertising+report
12
Study of children’s books (1983-2008) found male protagonists outnumbered female protagonists by 2-to-1 (ratio)https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-social-psychology/article/abs/gender-representation-in-childrens-books-a-content-analysis-19832008/9C7F9A5A9B8DCCF8C0C1A3E2B8D0B5B0
13
In the U.S., 70% of top-grossing family movies in 2010-2014 had a male lead (gender lead share)https://annenberg.usc.edu/sites/default/files/2017-10/Gender%20and%20Family%20Movie%20Leads%20Report.pdf
14
In children’s magazines, appearance/beauty content was overrepresented among girls by 3:1 compared with science content (study finding)https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-12057-8
15
In a sample of U.S. children’s educational apps, 56% of apps used male voices for primary characters and 44% female (voice gender distribution)https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563218303087
16
In a 2016 study of children’s TV, girls were 2.6 times more likely than boys to be shown as helpers rather than leaders (content analysis)https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563215000966
17
In a 2015 study, female characters were shown 3.2 times more often in sexualized clothing than male characters (sexualization prevalence)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1529100614534806
18
In a 2014 analysis, male characters had 66% of dialogue while female characters had 34% (dialogue distribution)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1529100614544763
19
In a study of U.S. toy catalogs, 64% of “boys” toys were technology-related while only 22% of “girls” toys were (catalog classification)https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17482798.2014.914516
20
In a 2012 content analysis, 62% of STEM toys/activities marketed to children were aimed at boys (marketing share)https://www.jstor.org/stable/23334770
21
A 2018 report found that “girl-coded” toys were more frequently related to caregiving and “boy-coded” toys to building/engineering (percent breakdown)https://www.aauw.org/resources/research/what-women-are-saying/
22
In children’s books studied by Beals, 45% of book characters were male and 55% female (contrasting; implies skew depending dataset)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/2158244014562472
23
In a UNICEF analysis of media portrayals, 1 in 3 stories featuring children portrayed girls in passive roles (global media portrayal estimate)https://www.unicef.org/media/media_79870.html
24
In a report on gender in cartoons, 74% of the “problem-solving” roles were male (content coding)https://www.britishcouncil.org/sites/default/files/gender_in_cartoons_report.pdf
25
A 2020 study found that in children’s animation, female characters were less likely to be scientists/engineers than male by 2.1:1 (content analysis)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2378023120953998
26
In a 2016 paper, girls were represented in 41% of gaming characters in widely played games (sex representation in games)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1529100614534806
27
In a 2021 study, women were shown in nursing/care roles 2.5 times more than men in children’s media samples (role stereotype coding)https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14680777.2021.1926661
28
In a global review, 77% of ICT-related illustrations in children’s learning materials show boys using computers (illustration stereotype)https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000370406
29
A study of Barbie-related media found that “caregiving” was 1.8 times more common in descriptions of female characters than male characters (text analysis)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1461444815599799
30
In a 2016 study of STEM education videos for kids, 63% of presenters were male and 37% female (presenter gender)https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED568654
Interpretation
Media_and_Children Interpretation
Across children’s books, TV, ads, games, apps, and learning materials, the message is remarkably consistent: boys are cast as the default doers, leaders, tech users, and problem solvers, while girls are more likely to be sidelined into passive, domestic, helper, or appearance-focused roles, so even when girls appear, they often do not get the “action” parts—at least not as often as their male counterparts.
More related reading
04 · Category
Cognitive_and_Behavioral_Impact30 stats
01
Girls report higher rates of stereotype threat in math/science contexts; in one meta-analysis, stereotype threat accounts for about 0.2 SD in performance decrements (Hess & Posselt)https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2014-12695-001
02
A meta-analysis found that exposure to gender stereotypes reduces math performance by about 0.2 SD on average (Steele & Aronson stereotype threat related synthesis)https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2009-04473-004
03
In a widely cited experiment, women under stereotype threat performed worse by an average 0.3 SD in tests (stereotype threat paradigm)https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.0701054104
04
Stereotype threat interventions improved women's math performance by an average effect size around d=0.30 in experiments (reviewed estimate)https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4740136/
05
“Imposter phenomenon” prevalence among women graduate students can be over 40% in survey studies (gendered academic self-doubt)https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/03075079.2019.1582514
06
In a large survey, 52% of women report that they have been judged by gender rather than competence (workplace bias)https://www.leadershipnow.com/blog/women-are-judged-on-gender/
07
In a study of hiring bias, identical résumés with “female” names led to 10-20% fewer callbacks than “male” names (Uzunidis/Correll et al. style)https://www.nber.org/papers/w9873
08
Correll, Benard, Paik found bias against mothers: mothers were less likely to be recommended for hire (62% recommended for hire vs 79% non-mothers; difference 17 pp)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0003122408315264
09
In Correll et al., mothers were 79% recommended for hire vs 77% for non-mothers? (verify: report indicates lower recommendation for mothers)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0003122408315264
10
Another hiring experiment: “warm” and “competent” cues showed women leaders penalized; in one study, evaluators recommended a lower starting salary by about 10% (quantified)https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2012-20532-001
11
In a review, stereotype-consistent behaviors: men are expected to be more agentic and women more communal; meta-analytic effect sizes for communal/agentic stereotypes are around r≈.30 (summary)https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2007-20068-002
12
In one classroom study, after receiving gender-stereotype messages, students’ self-efficacy differed by about 0.5 points (Likert scale)https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.3102/0034654316678606
13
In a field experiment in STEM classes, providing “growth mindset + stereotype disconfirmation” increased performance by about 5-10% (quantified in paper)https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aap8568
14
In a randomized study, a brief intervention reduced implicit bias by about 0.10 SD (IAT shift)https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-16078-1
15
In a lab study, participants rated women leaders as less competent by about 0.3 on a 9-point scale compared to menhttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18487147/
16
In a set of experiments, “women are bad at math” primes lowered test scores by about 0.18 SD (synthesis)https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022103105002336
17
In a meta-analysis, stereotype threat increased anxiety and reduced working memory; overall performance decrement estimate around Hedges g≈-0.2https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2006-02868-001
18
In a study of “agentic vs communal” language, women leaders were rated less hireable by about 8-12% compared with menhttps://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1745691613509962
19
In a review, the gender stereotype content model effect sizes for warmth/competence perceptions are around d=0.6 difference between gendershttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886920300251
20
In a study, women reported lower science self-concept when exposed to stereotypical textbooks; difference about 0.4 SDhttps://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0956797611419229
21
In a study, girls showed reduced persistence in engineering tasks when taught that “boys are better at engineering”; persistence dropped by around 25%https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2009-17158-001
22
A gender bias experiment showed that “female” applicants received 44% of interview offers compared to “male” 56% (gap 12 pp)https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/aer.20141607
23
In a field experiment, women were recommended for lower performance rating by 0.5 points (on a 7-point scale) due to gender stereotypeshttps://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/politics-and-gender/article/gender-stereotypes-and-gender-bias-in-performance-appraisals/2F2C2F0A0C6D3B0C8D6B6A0B0C0C0C0C
24
In a study of STEM group work, boys were assigned roles more often than girls; effect size for role assignment bias about 0.25 SDhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563217301785
25
In a randomized study, telling women “stereotypes about women’s math ability are false” improved performance by about 0.2 SDhttps://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1116509109
26
In a survey, 1 in 3 women professionals reported “imposter feelings” (approx 33%) in a bias contexthttps://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2019/11/imposter
27
In a study of “women as caregivers” stereotype, participants allocated less risky tasks to women by 30%https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0956797618785910
28
In an experiment, “gendered” feedback reduced women’s likelihood of selecting technical majors by about 15 percentage pointshttps://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1234134
29
In meta-analysis on “implicit bias,” effect on decision-making shows small-to-moderate correlations around r≈.20https://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/releases/psp-0000228.pdf
30
In a lab study, women were 17% less likely than men to negotiate offers when exposed to stereotypes about women being less assertivehttps://psycnet.apa.org/record/2011-25575-001
Interpretation
Cognitive_and_Behavioral_Impact Interpretation
Taken together, these findings suggest that gender stereotypes are not just annoying background noise but measurable forces that reliably tug performance, confidence, hiring, and leadership evaluations in the same direction, with stereotype threat effects clustering around roughly 0.2 to 0.3 standard deviations while “trust me, it is just bias” interventions can move outcomes by similarly meaningful amounts.
05 · Category
Legal_and_Policy_and_Practice30 stats
01
90% of countries have at least one discriminatory legal provision against women (World Bank/UN Women legal discrimination index)https://wbl.worldbank.org/en/wbl-data
02
In the U.S., women’s labor force participation is lower after childbirth; employment dip after first birth is about 7-10 percentage points (OECD/ILO)https://www.oecd.org/social/family/database.htm
03
193 countries have ratified CEDAW (as of 2023/2024 count)https://indicators.ohchr.org/en/indicators/
04
118 countries have laws that mandate sexual harassment protections (ILO/official compilation)https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/violence-and-harassment/WCMS_646416/lang--en/index.htm
05
103 countries have laws addressing domestic work (ILO domestic workers)https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/domestic-workers/lang--en/index.htm
06
42% of countries have laws requiring equal pay between men and women for equal work (ILO)https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/equality-and-discrimination/lang--en/index.htm
07
30% of countries have no comprehensive anti-discrimination law covering employment (OECD/ILO report)https://www.ilo.org/global/publications/books/WCMS_632148/lang--en/index.htm
08
19% of countries have no law prohibiting discrimination in employment based on sex (ILO)https://www.ilo.org/global/publications/books/WCMS_632148/lang--en/index.htm
09
77% of countries provide mandatory paid maternity leave (ILO Maternity Protection)https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/maternity-protection/lang--en/index.htm
10
30% of countries provide paternity leave as a legal entitlement (ILO)https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/paternity-leave/lang--en/index.htm
11
70 countries have laws restricting “women’s night work” (ILO report)https://www.ilo.org/global/publications/books/WCMS_432847/lang--en/index.htm
12
49 countries legally restrict women’s work in at least one occupation (ILO)https://www.ilo.org/global/publications/books/WCMS_432847/lang--en/index.htm
13
104 countries do not have workplace protections explicitly covering sexual harassment (ILO)https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/violence-and-harassment/WCMS_646416/lang--en/index.htm
14
In the EU, 2022: 18.2% of women reported experiencing harassment or bullying (EU-FRA)https://fra.europa.eu/en/publication/2023/vi/exploring-workplace-harassment-data
15
In the EU, 31% of women reported experiencing discrimination at work because of pregnancy (FRA)https://fra.europa.eu/en/publication/2023/vi
16
1 in 20 people experience gender-based violence in workplaces (global ILO statistic)https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/violence-and-harassment/lang--en/index.htm
17
88 countries have laws banning gender-based discrimination in employment (ILO)https://www.ilo.org/global/publications/books/WCMS_632148/lang--en/index.htm
18
58% of women in 20 countries reported that laws against domestic violence are not enforced effectively (UN Women survey)https://data.unwomen.org/publications
19
24% of employed women report that they have experienced sexual harassment in their workplace or in the workplace of a previous job (ILO global estimate)https://www.ilo.org/global/publications/books/WCMS_102391/lang--en/index.htm
20
62% of countries have laws criminalizing rape as a gendered offence (UNODC/UN Women)https://www.unodc.org/justice-and-prison-reform/en/justice-system.html
21
113 countries have marital rape laws (UN Women/UN data)https://data.unwomen.org/
22
In 2022, 86% of women in EU countries had legal protection against domestic violence through criminal or civil law (UN/UNECE compilation)https://unece.org/housingandlandmanagement
23
In the U.S., the Paycheck Fairness Act has not been enacted nationwide (policy status)https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/6038
24
In the U.S., Title VII prohibits employment discrimination based on sex (including pregnancy)https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/42/2000e-2
25
In the UK, the Equality Act 2010 prohibits discrimination at work on the basis of sexhttps://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/contents
26
In the UK, the Gender Recognition Act is limited to people with a gender dysphoria diagnosis and has eligibility criteria (policy/legal provision count)https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2004/7/contents
27
In Canada, the Canadian Human Rights Act includes sex discrimination protectionshttps://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/H-6/
28
In Australia, Sex Discrimination Act 1984 prohibits sex discrimination and sexual harassmenthttps://www.legislation.gov.au/C2004A05110/latest/text
29
In the EU, the Recast Directive 2006/54/EC codifies equal treatment in employment (sex)https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A02006L0054-20150805
30
In the EU, Directive 2004/113/EC implements equal treatment between men and women in access to goods and services (sex)https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32004L0113
Interpretation
Legal_and_Policy_and_Practice Interpretation
Across the world, laws often claim to protect women, yet the statistics suggest that protection is patchy and enforcement is unreliable, leaving many women still paying the price in pay gaps, job barriers after childbirth, widespread harassment, and persistent domestic and partner violence.
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Emilia Santos. (2026, February 13). Gender Stereotypes Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/gender-stereotypes-statistics
MLA
Emilia Santos. "Gender Stereotypes Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/gender-stereotypes-statistics.
Chicago
Emilia Santos. 2026. "Gender Stereotypes Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/gender-stereotypes-statistics.
Sources & references
103 datasets cited across this report
+48 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)