Document Type

Article

Journal/Book Title/Conference

Utah Women & Leadership Project White Paper

Volume

13

Publisher

Utah Women & Leadership Project

Publication Date

2-18-2025

First Page

1

Last Page

40

Abstract

During the fall of 2023, Utah Women & Leadership Project (UWLP) researchers conducted a statewide study to establish a baseline for public perceptions related to the awareness, understanding, and attitudes about challenges that Utah women and girls face. In early 2024, we published 20 short research summaries that shared the results of this comprehensive study. Then, in the fall of 2024, we administered the survey, with slight refinements, around the state of Utah. We now share the results of the 2024 data by releasing six white papers; this is the third in the series.

Overall, this comprehensive study was designed to support the efforts of A Bolder Way Forward (BWF), which is a statewide initiative focused on ensuring that more Utah girls, women, and their families thrive. Each area of focus (spoke) has bold goals with data-driven metrics to measure progress. This research focuses on collecting and analyzing data to help track this progress for those goals based on potential shifts in public awareness, understanding, and/or attitudes related to each spoke. The shifts are critical for Utahn to make progress in the topic areas.

The following lists the five overarching categories within BWF and the 18 spokes included in this research:

  1. Education: Finance, Higher Education Attainment, and K–12 Initiatives
  2. Community Engagement: Political Representation, Boards and Commissions, and Civic Engagement/Advocacy
  3. Safety and Security: Child Sexual Abuse, Domestic Violence, Poverty and Homelessness, Sexual Assault, and Sexual Harassment and Gender-Based Discrimination
  4. Health and Wellbeing: Health Across the Lifespan, and Home and Family
  5. Workplace: Childcare/Pre-K Programs, Entrepreneurship, Gender Pay Gap, Leadership Development, Organizational Strategies and Workplace Culture, STEM Fields, and Workforce Development

This report covers elements of four spokes in the Safety & Security category (i.e., Child Sexual Abuse, Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Poverty/Homelessness). One additional spoke from the Safety & Security spoke (i.e., Sexual Harassment & Gender-Based Discrimination) was included in the first white paper in this 2025 series titled “Women’s Workplace Challenges: Part 1 – Utahns’ Awareness, Understanding, and Attitudes.” After highlighting foundational research methods for the study as a whole, this report shares the findings of these four areas of focus and includes both the applicable quantitative and qualitative results.

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