Young Australians’ attitudes to violence against women and gender equality
Most young Australians (those aged 16-24 years) have a good knowledge of key aspects of violence against women, support gender equality, reject attitudes supportive of violence against women, and say they would act or like to act if they witnessed abuse or disrespect of women. However, responses to some of the questions suggest that areas of concern remain
A disturbing number of young men don’t understand that controlling behaviours in relationships are a problem, and too many believe that having control is a normal part of a relationship.
Our research shows young people’s lack of understanding about sexual consent is concerning and can result in victim-blaming. This is particularly worrying given the rise of digital image sharing and dating apps.
While young people are concerned about sexism and abuse, they are less likely to say they would, or would like to act, than those ages 25-64.
Although attitudes are generally shifting towards improvement over time, responses among young people to some questions indicate some areas of poor knowledge, relatively high endorsement of violence-supportive views and a low level of support for gender equality.
Young Australians have a high level of understanding that domestic violence involves physical and non-physical forms of violence.
Nearly a third of young men (32%) believe that ‘a lot of times, women who say they were raped had led the man on and then had regrets’.
Between 2013 and 2017, there has been an improvement among young people on the three overall measures of understanding, attitudes to gender equality and attitudes to violence against women.
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Young Australians’ attitudes to violence against women and gender equality
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Key findings from the 2017 NCAS youth report
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Standing up: Key findings from the 2017 NCAS youth report
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Standing up: Findings from the 2017 NCAS youth report
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Understanding consent: Key findings from the 2017 NCAS youth report
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Understanding consent: Findings from the 2017 NCAS youth report
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Recognising controlling behaviour: Key findings from the 2017 NCAS youth report
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Recognising controlling behaviour: Findings from the 2017 NCAS youth report
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Suggested citation:
Young Australians’ attitudes to violence against women and gender equality: Findings from the 2017 National Community Attitudes towards Violence against Women Survey (NCAS)
Politoff, V., Crabbe, M., Honey, N., Mannix, S., Mickle, J., Morgan, J., Parkes, A., Powell, A., Stubbs, J., Ward, A., & Webster, K., (2019). Young Australians’ attitudes to violence against women and gender equality: Findings from the 2017 National Community Attitudes towards Violence against Women Survey (NCAS) (ANROWS Insights, Issue 01/2019). Sydney: ANROWS.