The book presents the results of a representative, Poland-wide research survey concerning the equality of women and men and their quality of life. It was conducted within the framework of a project carried out between 2013-2016 as part of the Polish-Norwegian partnership of the Jagiellonian University and Oslo University, with Professor Krystyna Slany as Principal Investigator and Professor Øystein Gullvåg Holter as a Norwegian team leader of the partnership. The Authors investigate the relationship between gender equality and quality of life, exploring the factors, conditions and contexts that determine the well-being, health and life satisfaction of women and men in Polish society. The book chapters provide in-depth analyses of gender inequalities in various spheres of life: family life, the labour market, civic engagement, the occurrence of violence or in the area of health.

“The book constitutes a rich compendium of knowledge, both theoretical and practical, on the theme of gender equality and its impact on the quality of life of both individuals (women and men) and society as a whole. The book is unique with respect to its utilization of the available theoretical knowledgebase in its analysis combined with the presentation of the results of wide-ranging empirical research, both quantitative and qualitative. (…) The book is one of the first of its kind in Poland – it is a volume that scientifically proves that equality has concrete social benefits: it positively impacts the quality of life of women and men, including their health, and it is critical for social development. The main advantage of the book is that it concentrates not only on women and their experiences of discrimination on the labour marker, family and society, but also on the relations between women and men and within the professional and private spheres. Prof. Ewa Lisowska, excerpt from the book review

Index of the book

Introduction

GENDER EQUALITY – MULTIDIMENSIONAL MODEL

Chapter 1. What is gender equality? Development of research on gender equality in Poland and Norway (Øystein Gullvåg Holter, Trine Rogg Korsvik, Ewa Krzaklewska, Kari Solbreakke)

Chapter 2. Gender equality and quality of life of women and men in Poland (Ewa Krzaklewska, Øystein Gullvåg Holter, Piotr Brzyski)

GENDER EQUALITY CONTEXTS

Chapter 3. Experiencing gender equality in childhood: determinants, impact on violence against children and attitudes in adult life (Ewelina Ciaputa, Ewa Krzaklewska)

Chapter 4. Gender equality in Polish families : practice, economy and quality of life (Krystyna Slany, Anna Ratecka)

Chapter 5. Gender equality in the labour market in the context of quality of life (Marta Warat, Beata Kowalska)

Chapter 6. Violence in intimate relationships (Krystyna Slany, Barbara Woźniak)

Chapter 7. Social conditions including gender equality practices as determinants of life style and subjective health assessment​ (Beata Tobiasz-Adamczyk, Barbara Woźniak)

ACHIEVING GENDER EQUALITY

Chapter 8. A path towards gender equality: dimensions of empowerment (Beata Kowalska, Marta Warat)

Chapter 9. Reflections on gender equality policies in Europe (Beata Kowalska, Marta Warat)