Swiss study: How are tolerance and school education related?
In the past, it has been emphasized time and again how important it is to focus primarily on information and education in the fight against homophobia. A recent study from Switzerland underscores this demand. It showed that people with a higher level of education are often much more tolerant of issues such as homosexuality.
Of course, there are always exceptions. However, the fact that a corresponding tendency could be demonstrated within the scope of the study is certain.
A total of 4,400 people between the ages of 13 and 19 were surveyed between May 2021 and June 2021. The survey was led by the Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development.
Among other things, the study also showed, shockingly, that violence against queers has increased in Zurich. In addition, many non-heterosexual men are bullied - both at school and on the Internet. The risk of becoming a victim of sexual or non-sexual violence as a non-binary young person is particularly high.
Acceptance of homosexuality depends, among other things, on education
As part of the survey, young people also provided information on whether or not they accept homosexuality themselves. This showed that more than 45 percent of the male and 75 percent of the female respondents fully accept homosexuality for themselves.
In addition to gender, however, the respondents' school education also plays an important role when it comes to "evaluating" homosexuality. It was found that the lower the school-leaving qualification, the less likely homosexuality is to be accepted. Among male respondents who attended a high school in Switzerland, the acceptance rate was more than 70 percent. Among female high school students, the figure here was even more than 91 percent.
A closer evaluation of the results revealed that not only education, but perhaps also ethnic or cultural background could play a role.
More and more people identify as non-heterosexual
The study, in which 4,400 young people participated, also showed, among other things, that there are more and more people who identify themselves as non-heterosexual ... And have also decided for themselves to wear exactly that outwardly.
In this context, those responsible for the study in question even speak of a "very marked increase" in the number of people who have recognized for themselves that they are not heterosexual.
To be more precise, many participants in the study stated that they had a bisexual orientation, even though this would give more weight to the heterosexual part. Again, there is a difference between the sexes. The increase in people defining themselves as non-heterosexual is based primarily on the responses of female respondents. Here, it appears that a particularly large number of people have discovered their bisexual inclinations in themselves over time.
However, due to the fact that many homosexual men in particular still face prejudice and discrimination today, it could well be that many of the male respondents did not dare to come out as queer.
What role does age play?
Many queer advocates repeatedly emphasize the importance of exposing people to issues like "acceptance" and "tolerance" as early as possible.
And that's exactly what the latest Swiss study also showed once again. Because: Whether a person accepts homosexuality or not rarely changes over time.
This means that if you were open to queers as a young person, you will probably display exactly the same tolerance in later years.
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