Gender Perception Analysis of Istanbul University Law Faculty Students within the Framework of Developing a Law Education Model Based on Gender Equality
Sevtap Metin, Ülker Yükselbaba, Sevgi Kayak, Verda Neslihan AkünOur study aims to measure the gender perception of law students and to propose tools that will eliminate gender inequality in law education. The law, as an institution that seeks to achieve justice, must also eliminate gender-based injustices, and “If law stands for justice, it must be justice for all.”2 Whether the perception of law and gender has anything to do with law education is an issue that needs to be surveyed. Is it possible for law education to try to change the patriarchal understanding of gender, or is this field entirely up to the personal preferences of the lawyers? In other words, is law education at the level that would provide lawyers with an egalitarian perception of gender? There is no original study on this subject involving students enrolled at law departments in Turkey. Therefore, determining the situation of gender perception in law departments is the first step in developing gender-sensitive education models. This study aims to measure the gender perceptions of Istanbul University Faculty of Law students. For this purpose, the Gender Perception Scale (GPS), developed and proven to be valid and reliable by Altınova and Duyan (2013), was used to determine and evaluate the gender perceptions of the respondents. In addition to the 25-question survey (quantitative), we prepared an eight-question survey (8 qualitative) specifically for law students. In this study, a survey (quantitative and qualitative) was conducted with the voluntary participation of 524 students (there was an “informed voluntary consent form” at the beginning of the survey text). As a result of the quantitative survey, it was concluded that the gender perception of law students at the Istanbul University Faculty of Law ranked quite high in a positive direction. This result was also confirmed by the answers received for the qualitative questions.
Toplumsal Cinsiyet Eşitliğine Dayalı Bir Hukuk Eğitimi Modeli Geliştirilmesi Çerçevesinde İstanbul Üniversitesi Hukuk Fakültesi Öğrencilerinde Toplumsal Cinsiyet Algısı Analizi
Sevtap Metin, Ülker Yükselbaba, Sevgi Kayak, Verda Neslihan AkünÇalışmamızın amacı hukuk öğrencilerinin toplumsal cinsiyet algısını ölçmek ve buradan yola çıkarak toplumsal cinsiyet eşitsizliğini hukuk eğitiminde ortadan kaldıracak araçlar ileri sürmektir. Hukuk, adaleti sağlamaya çalışan bir kurum olarak, toplumsal cinsiyete dayalı adaletsizlikleri de ortadan kaldırmalıdır ve “Eğer hukuk adaleti temsil ediyorsa, herkes için adil olmalıdır.”1 Hukuk ile toplumsal cinsiyet algısının, hukuk eğitimi ile bir ilgisinin olup olmadığı ise araştırılması gereken bir konudur. Hukuk eğitiminin ataerkil toplumsal cinsiyet anlayışını değiştirmek için bir uğraş vermesi söz konusu mudur yoksa bu alan tamamen hukukçuların kişisel tercihlerine mi kalmıştır? Başka deyişle hukuk eğitimi hukukçulara eşitlikçi bir toplumsal cinsiyet algısı kazandıracak düzeyde midir? Bu konuda Türkiye’de hukuk fakültelerinde hukuk öğrencileriyle yapılmış özgün bir çalışma bulunmamaktadır. Bu nedenle hukuk fakültelerinde toplumsal cinsiyet algısına dair bir durum saptaması, toplumsal cinsiyete duyarlı eğitim modellerinin geliştirilmesinin ilk basamağıdır. Bu çalışmanın amacı, İstanbul Üniversitesi Hukuk Fakültesi öğrencilerinin toplumsal cinsiyet algılarını ölçmektir. Bu amaca yönelik olarak, bireylerin toplumsal cinsiyet algılarını belirlemek ve değerlendirmek üzere Altınova ve Duyan tarafından (2013) geliştirilmiş, geçerliliği ve güvenilirliği kanıtlanmış olan Toplumsal Cinsiyet Algısı Ölçeği (TCAÖ) kullanılmıştır. Bu ölçek dâhilinde 25 soruluk (nicel) anketle birlikte tarafımızdan hukuk öğrencilerine özgülenmiş sekiz soruluk (8 nitel) anket hazırlanmıştır. Ardından toplamda 524 öğrenciden gönüllü katılımlarıyla (anket metninin başında “bilgilendirilmiş gönüllü onam formu” yer almaktadır) anket (nicel ve nitel olmak üzere) yapılmıştır. Nicel anketin sonucunda İstanbul Üniversitesi Hukuk Fakültesi öğrencilerinin toplumsal cinsiyet algısının olumlu yönde çok yüksek olduğu sonucuna ulaşılmış ve bu sonuç nitel sorulara verilen cevaplarla da teyit edilmiştir.
Our study aims to measure the gender perception of law students and to propose tools that will eliminate gender inequality in law education. As an institution that seeks to achieve justice, the law should also eliminate gender-based injustices. The answer to this need emerged in the 1980s as a feminist legal theory. The main effort of feminist theories, which consider the law from the perspective of women, has not been to build the law in favor of women, but to try to prevent it from working against women. Of course, the main problem is the realization of gender equality. For this reason, feminist theorists working on law have subjected law to a gender filter and have revealed the masculine nature of law. Another finding of these studies was that the known legal doctrines were developed by men in a male-dominated society. Although these doctrines may seem gender-neutral, they contain underlying basic male values, behaviors, expectations, and assumptions. Another finding is that those who make the codes on which the law is built are men and that the male point of view establishes the order by determining the standards and rules of the society. Even when it occasionally appears that arrangements are made in favor of women, especially in the laws and regulations regarding rape, obscenity, and abortion, upon a deeper inspection, a male domination is maintained through these laws. Although legal rules appear formally fair and non-discriminatory, their practices reinforce, perpetuate, and justify inequalities. For this reason, one of the agenda items of women, who are largely excluded from law-making processes, is to take part in the reconstruction of the law, which has fostered the patriarchal order until now. Achieving gender equality in law is becoming possible with the increasing inclusion of women in the sphere of law, where masculine thought has prevailed until today. “If law stands for justice, it must be justice for all.
Another important point is related to the application of the law. It should not be forgotten that lawyers are also part of the society they live in. Stereotypes permeate both the investigation and trial processes, ultimately shaping court decisions, and can result in a sexist interpretation and application of laws. Although on paper, abstract and neutral rights rule on equal terms for everyone, these rule put women at a disadvantage with an underhanded gendered perspective. Whether the gender perception of lawyers in the implementation of the law has anything to do with legal education is a matter of exploration. Is it possible for law education to try to change the patriarchal understanding of gender, or is this field entirely up to the personal preferences of the lawyers? In other words, is law education at the level that would provide lawyers with an egalitarian perception of gender? The education of the “lawyer, who, due to his position, has a great share in the implementation and realization of justice” is of primary importance in the realization of gender equality across Turkey. Making the principle of equality in laws dominate all social life and, accordingly, breaking the traditionalist perception of gender through laws depends on the gender perception of those who are tasked with practicing the law. Legal education should be at a level that will provide lawyers with an egalitarian perception of gender. Identifying the situation regarding gender perception will also be an important step for the development of gender-sensitive education models. It is important for law students to have an egalitarian gender perspective in terms of reducing and eliminating the injustices and inequalities that women face, both in their professional and private lives. This study aims to measure the gender perceptions of students at the Istanbul University Faculty of Law. For this purpose, the Gender Perception Scale (GPS), developed and proven to be valid and reliable by Altınova and Duyan (2013), was used to determine and evaluate the gender perceptions of individuals. In addition to the 25-question survey (quantitative) of this scale, we prepared an eight-question survey (8 qualitative) specifically for law students.
In this study, a survey (quantitative and qualitative) was conducted with the voluntary participation of 524 students in total (there is an “informed voluntary consent form” at the beginning of the survey text). As a result of the quantitative survey, it was concluded that the gender perception of law students in Istanbul University Faculty of Law ranked quite high in a positive direction. This result was also confirmed by the answers received from the qualitative questions.
