Two thirds feel misogyny is problem in UK, Women’s Institute polling suggests

Almost two thirds of adults feel misogyny is a problem in the UK according to polling described by the Women’s Institute (WI) as “depressing reading”.

Misogyny is defined by the Cambridge dictionary as feelings of hating women, or the belief that men are much better than women.

The polling, carried out by Opinium last month, was commissioned by the WI ahead of International Women’s Day this weekend.

Just over a quarter of men surveyed said they had challenged misogyny – a lower proportion than women (28% of men compared with 31% of women).

This included actions such as refusing to take part in misogynistic conversations (16% of all adults surveyed), having conversations about gender equality with men (15%) calling out sexist or misogynistic language in conversations (13%), and calling out or intervening when a woman is being harassed (8%).

Of the 64% of UK adults who think misogyny is a problem, some three in ten consider it a serious one (32%).

The polling highlighted dangers felt by young women in society, with 41% of women aged 18 to 34 saying they avoided eye contact or limited their interactions with strangers in the past year while 37% shared their live locations with friends or family members when travelling alone (37%).

Four in 10 (42%) pretended to be on a call when walking on their own, while just over a quarter (27%) said they held a key between their fingers for safety.

The proportions were lower for men, with just one in 10 (14%) in the same age group using a phone as a prop when walking on their own, less than a fifth (18%) sharing their location for safety, and 10% saying they would carry their key in their hand.

The Labour Government has pledge to halve violence against women and girls in the next decade.

Melissa Green, WI chief executive, said. “Our polling makes for depressing reading, at a time when women and girls’ rights are being challenged on every front.

“More than half of all women (56%) are more likely to have taken an action in the past 12 months to make themselves feel safer, and clearly women are experiencing misogyny more personally and profoundly.

“For women to feel that UK is a far less safe place for them is unacceptable and deeply concerning – and needs to be tackled through social prevention, as well as political deterrence, and in allyship with men.”

::  Opinium surveyed 2,050 UK adults online between February 19 and 21.