Perceptıon of Gender-Sensitive Budgeting: A Case Study on the Aydın Adnan Menderes University
Alptekin Aktakka, Recep TekeliThe gender-responsive budgeting approach takes the changing needs of diverse population segments into account and aims to ensure equal and equitable access to public resources for both genders.
Globalization and advances in science and technology have triggered new public administration reforms. Gender-responsive budgeting is one among these transformations: it is a measure adopted to ensure a more effective and efficient public service.
This study aims to reveal general information about gender-sensitive budgeting and intends to outline the views of staff members at universities vis-à-vis this issue. To this end, a survey was conducted with Adnan Menderes University students and staff.
The results revealed statistically significant differences in the gender-sensitive budgeting attitudes of the participants. Female employees displayed a higher degree of sensitivity than their male counterparts. A statistically significant age-related difference was also noted in the gender-sensitive budgeting attitudes of the participants. Secretaries and other employees were observed different attitudes towards gender-responsive budgeting, according to the study.
Cinsiyete Duyarlı Bütçe Algısı: Aydın Adnan Menderes Üniversitesi Üzerine Bir Çalışma
Alptekin Aktakka, Recep TekeliToplumsal cinsiyete duyarlı bütçeleme, nüfusun farklı kesimlerinin değişen ihtiyaçlarını dikkate alarak kadınların ve erkekler için kamu kaynaklarına eşit ve adil erişim sağlamayı amaçlayan bir bütçeleme yaklaşımıdır. Bu yaklaşım sadece kadınlar için ayrı bir bütçe tahsis edilmesini içermemekte, bunun yerine hem erkeklerin hem de kadınların ihtiyaçlarının adil ve eşit bir şekilde karşılanmasını sağlamayı amaçlamaktadır.
Küreselleşme ile bilim ve teknolojideki ilerlemeler, kamu yönetimi alanındayeni reformların ortaya çıkmasına yol açmıştır; bunlardan biri de daha etkin ve verimli bir kamu hizmetinin sağlanmasına yönelik bir tedbir olan toplumsal cinsiyete duyarlı bütçelemedir. Bu bağlamda, gelir ve gideri dengeleyen bütçeler sosyal politikaların uygulanmasında bir araç olarak kullanılmaktadır.
Bu çalışma, toplumsal cinsiyete duyarlı bütçelemeye ilişkin genel bilgileri ortaya koymanın yanı sıra, üniversitelerde çalışan personelin konuya ilişkin görüşleri hakkında fikir vermeyi amaçlamaktadır. Bu amaçla, Adnan Menderes Üniversitesi öğrencileri ve personeli arasında bir anket çalışması yapılmıştır.
Sonuçlar; katılımcıların cinsiyete duyarlı bütçeleme tutumu cinsiyet açısından istatistiksel olarak anlamlı farklılıklar olduğu görülmektedir. Kadın çalışanların erkek çalışanlara göre daha ileri derecede duyarlılık sahibi oldukları tespit edilmiştir. Katılımcıların cinsiyete duyarlı bütçeleme tutumunda yaş bakımından istatistiksel olarak anlamlı farklılık olduğu görülmektedir. Katılımcıların cinsiyete duyarlı bütçeleme tutumunda “sekreterler” ve “diğer tüm çalışanlar” arasında anlamlı farklılıklar olduğu görülmektedir.
Like all living things, human beings are classified into two sexes, male and female. The natural biological differences between men and women generated the concept of gender.
Historically, women have been disadvantaged in comparison to men, partly because women are physically frailer than men. A traditional gender gap has ensued in many societies and states, where women are not accorded opportunities equal to men. This situation began to change in the first years of the 1980s when policymakers began to consider gender in their decision-making. Inequalities based on biological sex began to diminish since that time. It has been observed in recent years that women participate increasingly in social, cultural, and economic activities when gender inequalities decline, yielding superior welfare levels in countries. These observations form the basis of gender-responsive budgets (GRBs).
Governmental economic policies are increasingly criticized for failing to address their differential effects on women and men. It is now recognized that many governments adopt policies encouraging rapid development, urbanization and industrialization which result in the deterioration rather than improvement in the economic positions of women. Often, such policies cause women to be excluded from decision-making processes and government statistics do not reflect the invisible contributions of women to the economy, for example, through activities such as household work or elderly and child care. Consequently, national policies are often biased against women and do not achieve gender balance.
The present study aimed to address the concept of gender-responsive budgeting within the framework of conceptual, historical, and practical processes. It also purposed to reveal attitudes related to gender-sensitive budgeting in universities. The study was based on the assumption that gender perception is intimately associated with education and socio-cultural strata. Therefore, the study’s examination of the perception of gender-sensitive budgeting at universities adopted the Aydın Adnan Menderes University as an exemplar.
This study initiative focused on probing the concept, history, and implementation processes of GRBs in universities. It used the case study methodology to characterize and analyze attitudes toward GRB at Aydın Adnan Menderes University. It assumed that the factor of gender perception was intrinsically linked to education and socio-cultural levels.
The second section of the study investigated the issue of gender-sensitive budgeting in Turkey, evaluating the budget positions and gender-sensitive budgeting of higher education institutions in Turkey.
The third and final segment of the study pertains to the findings of the survey conducted specifically for Adnan Menderes University and includes the analysis of gender-sensitive budget perception in universities.
Given the limited scope of the study, a large-scale research framework on gender-sensitive budget perception could not be created to encompass all universities in Turkey. Thus, the study was only conducted with the personnel of Adnan Menderes University.
The survey results revealed statistically significant gender-based differences in the gender-sensitive budgeting attitudes of the study’s participants. Female employees evinced a higher level of sensitivity than male employees. Statistically significant age-based differences were also noted in the gender-sensitive budgeting attitudes of the respondents. Significant differences were further observed between respondents grouped as secretaries and all other employees in the evaluation of gender-sensitive budgeting attitudes based on job descriptions. The survey results also evidenced that 51.9% of the participants comprising university officials, employees, and students, opined that universities should offer equal opportunities to both women and men. In addition, most participants reported that the university should strengthen its educational curricula to increase gender sensitivity and eliminate prejudices at all education levels.
Certain recommendations for implementation are made based on this study. Activities such as seminars, radio and television programs, or public advertising campaigns should be organized to attract attention to the impact of gendersensitive budgeting on people and on gender equality. The economic losses caused by non-gender-sensitive budgeting must be eliminated. Therefore, studies must crucially be implemented to increase the awareness of national education bodies vis-à-vis gender-sensitive budgeting in universities and schools. Advance directive activities on gender-sensitive budgeting in educational institutions should be organized to inculcate cognizance of gender-sensitive budgeting in both women and men.
