Preventing and contrasting gender-based violence and sexual harassment. The role of universities and their equal opportunities bodies

This work deals with the topic of gender-based violence (GBV) and sexual harassment in the academic context, a phenomenon that is sadly widespread but poorly reported, which has increasingly emerged as a result of the international ‘Me Too’ movement, leading to an increase in the number of cases of allegations. Considering Italy’s backwardness in terms of gender equality, it was decided to focus the analysis on the Italian academic context. This work is specifically aimed at examining what the role of universities and their Equality Opportunity Bodies can be in preventing and combating GBV and sexual harassment. To achieve this objective, a mix-method methodology is used. Firstly, the annual COUNIPAR survey has been involved, allowing us on the one hand to collect descriptive statistics on the functioning of the ‘Comitato Unico di Garanzia’ (CUG, i.e., Equal Opportunity Body) and on the general gender-sensitivity of universities, and on the other hand, through the inclusion of specific questions on policies to prevent and combat GBV and sexual harassment, to have an overview of the policies already implemented by Italian universities. In this phase 36 universities, heterogeneous in terms of geographical area and size, are analysed. In order to further explore the potential of universities in prevention and law enforcement actions, it has been decided to examine the policies planned by Italian universities, as a further step in addition to existing policies. Hence, Italian universities Gender Equality Plans (GEPs) are taken under consideration, as the main tools for planning policies from a gender perspective. A sample of 47 Italian universities, heterogeneous both in terms of geographical area and size, is selected and 295 preventive and counteracting actions are detected by means of the Qualitative Content Analysis (QCA) method. Additional features, such as the allocation of human and financial resources for the planned actions, intersectionality, the involvement of the CUG and the existing network with local institutions, are also took into account in the analysis. As a result, it can be found that the most planned actions by GEPs of Italian universities concern the preventive aspects rather than the countering policies, as awareness-raising policies and training policies accounted together almost the 40% of the total detected actions. Looking at specific counteracting policies, policies for handling cases of harassment and violence, the adoption of a code of conduct, the figure of the Confidential Counsellor and psychological support services result to be the most planned actions by Italian universities in this regard. There is still considerable ground for development for specific policies such as the Anti-Violence Desk and collaboration with the network of local institutions, as well as with local Anti-Violence Centres, in a perspective of participative processes, able to act as a bridge between the university and the skills and experiences carried out at local level by all actors involved in gender equality policies

The interaction between parents and children as a relevant dimension of child well being. The case of Italy

This paper aims at measuring the functionings of social interaction, a relevant dimension in the description and conceptualisation of child well being by using the capability approach. In this paper we deal with a special dimension of this capability that involves the capability of interaction between parents and child. We propose a fuzzy expert systemto measure this capability. To apply the model we use a data set based on a matched data source of ISTAT (Italian National Statistical Office 1998) multipurpose survey on family and on children condition in Italy to recover information on children’s education, the socio-demographic structure of their families, child care provided by relatives and parents according to the type of activities in which the children are involved and Bank of Italy Survey on household income and wealth year 2000 (SHIW00). This is a first step of a more complex system allowing for a richer set of indicators on capabilities in order to measure child well being

Household affiliation among young adult women and men in Italy and Norway: The significance of work, culture, and money

Italy and Norway are characterized by different co-residence rates of young adults with youth in Italy being more likely to live in their parents' house much longer than Norwegian youth. This paper aims at analysing the reasons of household's patterns in both countries by looking at cultural, income and employment factors allowing a gender comparisons of the different results. Particular attention is provided to the different effect of youth employment conditions on their living arrangements in the two countries. Multivariate analyses conducted on 2007 (a time where the economic prospects and the labour market situation were relatively un-dramatic in both countries) EU SILC microdata show a higher impact of income and employment condition on the living arrangements of Italian youth with a significant impact of the area where they live and dissimilarities by gender in the presence of different living arrangements and in the impact of the different factors. JEL: D1, J12, J13, J16, Z1

Access to work and disability: the case of Italy

This paper is an empirical study on the work opportunities of people with disability using the Istat survey on health conditions 2004-2005, that collects information on the health status and disability condition on the whole Italian population and allows a comparison between disabled and not disabled persons. For this purpose we investigate the probability to be employed by disability status. People with disability show a lower probability of being employed and their employment probability is even lower if with psychic disability. By disaggregating by disability status our analysis can recognize a higher positive effect of investing in education on the probability of employment for people with disabilities.This paper is an empirical study on the work opportunities of people with disability using the ISTAT survey on Health Conditions and Use of Health Services Survey 2004-2005, that collects information on the health status and disability condition on the whole Italian population and allows a comparison between disabled and not disabled persons. For this purpose we investigate the probability to be employed by disability status. People with disability show a lower probability of being employed, the availability of data on the type of disability allows to detect amongst disabled a lower employment probability for individuals with psychic disability. By disaggregating by disability status our analysis can recognize a higher positive effect of investing in education on the probability of employment for people with disabilities