A significant number of women experience physical or sexual violence throughout their lives, with a considerable portion of such incidents occurring in public spaces. It has been argued that harmful social norms emphasising men's power over women play a pivotal role in perpetuating such violence.
- Speaker
- Date
- Thursday 7 Nov 2024, 12:00 - 13:00
- Type
- Seminar
- Room
- Kitchen/Lounge E1
- Building
- E Building
We study the role of norms on violence against women (VAW) by analysing Holi, a festivity in India, where the phrase “Bura na mano Holi Hai” (Don’t feel offended, it’s Holi) is misused to justify inappropriate behaviour.
Leveraging different dates of the event based on the lunar calendar, we document a dramatic increase of over 170% assaults against women during Holi. We analyse how perpetrators' and victims' attitudes towards violence against women impact VAW.
Analysis reveals (1) an intensification effect where there is higher violence in districts where men justify violence, and (2) a male backlash effect where there is higher violence in districts where women oppose VAW. While we find that patriarchal norms impact reporting behaviour and women's mobility, underreporting nor lower women's mobility during Holi seem to account for the results.
Finally, using up-to-date judicial information we find that most incidents are committed by multiple perpetrators (five on average) and that up to date, none have been convicted. The paper underscores the critical role of social norms and gender imbalances in shaping VAW, emphasizing the urgent need for intervention.
Registration
To participate, please send an email to: ae-secr@ese.eur.nl
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