Gender Equality and the Usual Suspects: A Cross-National Study on Female and Male Homicide Victimization

Abstract

Gender inequality is a central concept in cross-national feminist criminological literature. There is not a readily agreed-upon operationalization of gender inequality. The variation in the operationalization of gender inequality in cross-national research could be the cause for the inconsistent findings. We explored if the operationalization of gender inequality affects the association of the variables with gender-specific homicide across nations. Utilizing SUR and Wald Tests, our results indicate that measurement matters. When a measure of gender inequality includes an income competent, it has an association with gender-specific homicide. We conclude by situating our findings into the larger cross-national literature.