Gender Equality in Europe. Comparative Approach

Gender Equality in the European Union develops to a polemically debated subject in Europe. Accordingly, the impact of the European Union on current but also possible member states is still not clear. The theory of the New Institutionalism offers a framework founded on three items: Institutions, Interests and Ideas exposing instruments but also channels of the European Union for exercising its influence. Case studies developed on Romania, Lithuania and Poland prove the tendencies of gender (in-) equality indices refined by two major institutions: the United Nations together with the World Economic Forum. Gender Equality was in a positive manner influenced by the EU, generally via Regulatory Frameworks but also via Positive Conditionality. Meanwhile Gender Equality is introduced by Institutions and Interests, the third indicator: Ideas, settles it in society via rules and values. Better outcomes as far as Gender Equality in Europe is concerned could be attained in case that the European Union reaches a higher level of supranationality.