Pete Owens wrote:I think it is that the NL is a more egalitarian society, in which societal norms put less pressure on people to conform to gender stereotypes. I would also expect to see less gender disparity in the Nordic countries. Simarly, in more conservative countries (eg Turkey), you will see a greater gender disparity.
My sport is orienteering - and I am setting the courses for an event in the Lake District this summer - with courses for all ages - so I need to plan for the anticipated entry level for different ages and genders. While we do perform well on the 8-80 participation (there are classes for U10s of over 85s) there is a similar gender disparity you see with cycling. Look at a set of Dutch orienteering results and the gender imbalance is much less pronounced.
I guess you will see this in other areas - though I don't have any hard facts. I suspect you are far more likely to encounter female students on an engineering course - or male nurses than you are in the UK.
There is some truth to this. There are more women in engineering in the Netherlands, and Nordic coutnries. And more women cycling in both countries. The gender gap is much smaller in most activities.
I'm certain that the gender gap makes up a part of it in the UK (and other English speaking, car-centric countries like the USA and Australia), where women;
-generally have the responsibility to see that children get to school and other activities
-have less time due to the combination of work and responsibility for many household tasks
-may also experience a gender safety gap, in that women are more likely to be harrassed or fear harrassment, especially if they are overweight
On the other hand, I don't think that cycling is a significantly gendered activity in either the Nordic countries, or the Netherlands. Some things are, though. Football for example. In the Netherlands, approximately 10% of registered players are female. In Iceland, Denmark, Sweden, and the Faroe Islands participation is more than 20% female. Norway, however, only slightly outperforms England (which does better than the rest of the UK). If the difference were merely a matter of gender equality, why the gender disparity in football?
Could it possibly be because cycling is thought of in the UK as a sport, and treated that way by most sectors of government? While in the Netherlands and Denmark, it is thought of as a means of transport? If you ask a Danish or Dutch woman why she cycles, the answer will almost certainly be that it is convenient. Or the fatest way to get around the city. Or the fastest way to get the kids to nursery / school. Not because she is sporty. Or lives in an egalitarian country.
As long as the UK thinks of cycling as a sport, it will be limited to people who are 'sporty' and have time for exercise. Not women taking children to school. Not children going to school. Not commuters dressed for the office. That is why it is a minority activity.
All of the exceptions are places where either transport cycling is enabled, or motor traffic is so horrendous that cycling is a better option.
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom