Muslim women are more open to modern role models than men © kenchiro168 (shutterstock)
The Austrian sociologist of religion and theologian Paul M. Zulehner’s long-term study concludes that young Muslim women are more open to modern role models than men are.
Integration of Islamic women is progressing much faster than among Muslim men, according to an Austrian study. However, this has a high potential for conflict, writes the Viennese theologian Paul Zulehner in his blog. "Older Muslim men with strong authoritarianism face younger women who are not authoritarian."Zulehner refers to the latest results of his long-term study on "Religion in the Life of Austrians 1970-2020"; for this there is also a representative Islam module.
Muslim women win through "Western values
According to the study, young Muslim women are much more willing to learn than men about gender roles and "Western values"; "no wonder, because they gain a lot for their womanhood," the theologian said, referring to the study published Tuesday under the title "Transformation". Overall, authoritarianism continues to decline among young Muslims in Austria; among women up to 30 years of age more than among men and also somewhat more than among Catholics of the same age.
Catholic women turn away from men’s church
Especially young Muslim women, who are not ready for authoritarian submission, would thus be "in a structural conflict with a community more made up of authoritarian-minded men," Zulehner explained. Young women in the Catholic Church would be in a comparable position. "The only reason this is less visible in terms of conflict is that young Catholic women are turning their backs on the male church, while Muslim women, on the other hand, are much more firmly bound religiously," the sociologist of religion said.
Women more modern than men of the same age
According to the study, Muslim women under 30, like Catholics, represent 43 percent "modern" gender role concepts. In both religious communities – as in the population as a whole – women are considerably more modern in their gender role models than men of the same age, Zulehner said. "The gap is widening between young women and older men."Muslims who become native in Austria would be under an enormous stress of modernization. "A tacit cultural learning is taking place, not so much in value courses or by banning headscarves, but in encounters in school classes and circles of friends."