GenderBased

Gender-based is an adjective describing phenomena that are connected to gender, or that occur differently across genders. It is used to indicate that gender is a relevant factor in the causes, experiences, or outcomes of a policy, practice, or social condition. The term is often used in discussions of social inequalities, health, education, and security to draw attention to how gender shapes access to resources, power, and risks.

Common usages include gender-based violence, which refers to violence directed at or influenced by a person’s gender, and gender-based discrimination, which involves unequal treatment in areas such as employment, housing, or education because of gender. In public policy, gender-based budgeting and gender-based analysis aim to assess and address how budgetary choices and laws affect women, men, and gender-diverse people, with the goal of promoting equality.

Scholars and practitioners emphasize the importance of intersectionality, recognizing that gender interacts with race, class, age, sexual orientation, and other identities to produce different experiences. Data collection and research in this area seek to disaggregate outcomes by gender to reveal disparities and track progress.

Some critiques argue that an exclusive focus on gender can obscure nonbinary identities or erase other axes of inequality. Others contend that gender mainstreaming should go beyond rhetoric to implement concrete, measurable change.