Wikimedia Foundation/Communications/Research/Diversity, equity, and inclusion research/Brazil - 2021
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This research is part of an ongoing series from the Wikimedia Foundation, aimed at better understanding Wikimedia audiences to achieve knowledge equity.
Why is this data important? edit
Before now, we did not have the data needed to properly understand and communicate about awareness gaps in relation to gender and race.
How this data will be used? edit
This data will help us to properly understand and communicate about awareness gaps in relation to gender and race.
- Establish an understanding of the barriers to engagement and participation among underrepresented people on Wikipedia and other projects, and in relation to Foundation work.
- Address problems that may result in limited engagement and participation from the groups studied.
- Equip the Foundation with intelligence on the type of messaging and calls to action that resonate with these groups and ensure these are woven through campaigns and public relations efforts.
- Identify content and channels that people from these groups engage with and draw lessons that we can apply to our own work.
What we did edit
- Online survey
- Two sample frames;
- 1,000 non-white Brazilians
- 500 nationally representative sample of
- Brazilians
- Field work was conducted between 16th-24st October 2021
- Target audience: Online population
Context edit
It's important to put into account the following cultural and country nuances in the Brazilian market that are reflected in the language and data in this report.
- The official ethnic groups as measured by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) in the Brazilian census are: White (branco), brown (pardo), black (preto), Asian (amarelo), and indigenous (indígena)
- According to the IBGE, the brown community encompasses mixed race Brazilians such as mulatos and cafuzos, as well as assimilated Amerindians known as caboclos.
- In this study we have used the classifications and language that the Brazilian census uses for the different ethnic groups
Key insights edit
- Black people are well represented in media, but not on Wikipedia.
- The Black community feels least represented on Wikipedia, particularly on race and class, despite feeling well represented in Brazil's wider media.
- Black women in particular feel there are not enough articles that represent their race, religion and cultural background. They also feel that they 'do not have a reason' to use Wikipedia at the moment.
- Opportunity to engage the Brazilian Asian community
- In general Wikipedia is seen as not having enough articles on Asian people and culture. The Brazilian Asian community has low awareness of Wikipedia and uses it less. Those that do use Wikipedia see it as having less of a positive impact.
- The Brazilian LGBT community lacks representation both on Wikipedia and in general media
- The LGBT community has the lowest future consideration to use Wikipedia and have very poor perceptions of Wikipedia.
- To see Wikipedia as a valuable knowledge source, it is important that they feel well represented on the site, Which is currently not the case.
Demographics edit
- White population is majority, and is higher income.
- Majority of Brazilians are Catholic or Evangelical
% ethnicity breakdown of online population
White
Black
Brown
Asian
% selecting as current religion(s)
Wikipedia / Wikimedia Foundation brand awareness and usage edit
- Wikipedia Awareness: Black/brown women most aware
- Wikipedia has relatively high awareness vs. other platforms
- Wikimedia Foundation Awareness: Women are less aware, white men and those with Asian backgrounds are more aware of Wikimedia
% aware of Wikipedia
% aware of Wikimedia Foundation
| % aware | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Black male | Black female | Brown male | Brown female | Asian | White male | White female | LGBT | Physical health condition | Mental health condition | |
| 97% | 95% | 98% | 94% | 99% | 94% | 98% | 98% | 94% | 94% | 92% | |
| YouTube | 96% | 97% | 96% | 95% | 97% | 94% | 96% | 97% | 93% | 93% | 90% |
| Wikipedia | 74% | 66% | 77% | 75% | 76% | 65% | 75% | 73% | 66% | 65% | 67% |
| 34% | 34% | 28% | 40%[1] | 28% | 35% | 42%[1] | 34% | 38% | 29% | 36% | |
| Encarta | 16% | 18% | 18% | 17% | 13% | 10% | 19% | 15% | 9% | 9% | 14% |
| Encyclopædia Britannica Online | 12% | 15% | 12% | 12% | 10% | 10% | 16% | 14% | 11% | 11% | 9% |
| Quora | 9% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 5% | 13% | 12% | 7% | 13% | 6% | 13% |
Wikipedia usage and drivers edit
- White men most likely to use Wikipedia, Black men and Brazilian Asian community less likely.
- White community more likely to use for fact seeking, Black community more likely to use for work/school
% used Wikipedia in past 6 months
Barriers for using Wikipedia edit
The top reasons given by majority for not using Wikipedia are:
- Not had a reason to (26%)
- Prefer sites with more videos (12%)
- Prefer sites with more images (9%)
| % stating as reason for not using Wikipedia in past 6 months | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Black male | Black female | Brown male | Brown female | Asian | White male | White female | LGBT | Physical health condition | Mental health condition | |
| Have not had a reason to | 26% | 21% | 35%[2] | 23% | 25% | 23% | 31% | 27% | 15% | 21% | 18% |
| Prefer sites with more video | 12% | 13% | 9% | 16% | 12% | 5% | 9% | 12% | 14% | 10% | 10% |
| Prefer sites with more images | 9% | 8% | 5% | 11% | 9% | 5% | 9% | 10% | 3% | 12% | 8% |
| See Wikipedia come up in search results, but ignore it | 8% | 9% | 13% | 7% | 7% | 5% | 8% | 4% | 7% | 10% | 16% |
| Find it hard to understand | 5% | 3% | 5% | 2% | 6% | 5% | 4% | 6% | 5% | 4% | 3% |
| Does not have articles relevant to me | 4% | 0% | 3% | 4% | 5% | 5% | 8% | 6% | 5% | 6% | 6% |
| It is biased | 4% | 3% | 3% | 4% | 3% | 5% | 3% | 5% | 7% | 4% | 6% |
| Find it hard to read | 3% | 2% | 3% | 4% | 2% | 0% | 3% | 5% | 3% | 1% | 3% |
| Not for people like me | 1% | 2% | 4% | 1% | 0% | 0% | 1% | 0% | 1% | 1% | 3% |
| Does not have articles that represent my gender | 1%[3] | 1% | 1% | 2% | 0% | 0% | 1% | 0% | 0% | 1% | 2% |
| Does not have articles that represent my race | 1%[3] | 1% | 0% | 1% | 0% | 5% | 3% | 0% | 1% | 2% | 3% |
| Does not have articles that represent my disability | 1%[3] | 2% | 0% | 0% | 1% | 0% | 1% | 0% | 1% | 3% | 5% |
| Does not have articles that represent my religious views | 1%[3] | 0% | 0% | 2% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 1% | 0% |
| Does not have articles that represent my sexual orientation | 0%[3] | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 5% | 1% | 0% | 1% | 1% | 2% |
Topics Wikipedia is mostly used for edit
Wikipedia is mostly used to consume content on history, technology and well-being. Technology content is more important for men.There is also an opportunity to bring in Black and Brown women through health and wellbeing content.
| Total | Black male | Black female | Brown male | Brown female | Asian | White male | White female | LGBT | Physical health condition | Mental health condition | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | History | History | History | Technology | Health & wellbeing | Cooking | Technology | History | History | History | History |
| 2 | Technology | Technology | Health & wellbeing | History | History | Health & wellbeing | History | Health & wellbeing | Science | Health & wellbeing | Science |
| 3 | Health & wellbeing | Music | Music | Sports | Documentaries | Technology | Sports | Documentaries | Movies | Technology | Technology |
Wikipedia usage vs other sources edit
Wikipedia ranks 5th (42%) in popularity behind Google (86%), YouTube (83%), WhatsApp (46%), and social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter (44%).
| % used in past 6 months for information or learning | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Black male | Black female | Brown male | Brown female | Asian | White male | White female | LGBT | Physical health condition | Mental health condition | |
| 86% | 79% | 89% | 84% | 92% | 74% | 86% | 84% | 84% | 84% | 81% | |
| YouTube | 83% | 77% | 82% | 84% | 85% | 87% | 88% | 79% | 85% | 81% | 75% |
| 49% | 53% | 50% | 46% | 50% | 42%[4] | 53% | 55% | 48% | 54% | 46% | |
| Social media sites | 44% | 37% | 42% | 41% | 50% | 35%[4] | 47% | 45% | 42% | 43% | 39% |
| Wikipedia | 42% | 32% | 45% | 44% | 40% | 29%[4] | 47% | 42% | 39% | 42% | 39% |
| Online news sites / magazines | 40% | 34% | 42% | 40% | 40% | 45% | 42% | 38% | 40% | 35% | 35% |
| Book | 36% | 34% | 42% | 35% | 38% | 26%[4] | 29% | 35% | 47% | 33% | 45% |
| Podcasts | 28% | 27% | 27% | 30% | 26% | 26% | 27% | 28% | 38% | 29% | 31% |
| Friends or coworkers | 21% | 20% | 23% | 21% | 22% | 16%[4] | 24% | 18% | 30% | 21% | 26% |
| Paper newspapers / magazines | 21% | 19% | 30% | 23% | 18% | 19% | 20% | 20% | 24% | 18% | 17% |
| Teacher / educator | 17% | 12% | 22% | 17% | 17% | 10%[4] | 14% | 13% | 24% | 19% | 24% |
| School / university | 15% | 16% | 17% | 15% | 15% | 6%[4] | 14% | 15% | 21% | 14% | 15% |
| Library | 15% | 18% | 16% | 15% | 13% | 6%[4] | 14% | 12% | 20% | 14% | 22% |
| Your parents | 13% | 15% | 17% | 11% | 13% | 19% | 12% | 19% | 15% | 15% | 17% |
| Other family member | 12% | 8% | 11% | 13% | 12% | 13% | 14% | 12% | 15% | 14% | 18% |
| 8% | 11% | 4% | 11% | 4% | 10% | 13% | 6% | 9% | 7% | 10% | |
| Spiritual leader | 8% | 6% | 12% | 8% | 8% | 13% | 4% | 5% | 7% | 9% | 12% |
| Encyclopædia Britannica Online | 4% | 4% | 4% | 4% | 3% | 3% | 6% | 4% | 9% | 6% | 3% |
| Encarta | 3% | 4% | 4% | 5% | 2% | 3% | 5% | 1% | 3% | 3% | 2% |
| Quora | 3% | 5% | 4% | 3% | 1% | 10% | 5% | 3% | 4% | 3% | 4% |
% would consider using Wikipedia in future
% prefer learning about new things through...
| % consider using in the future for information or learning | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Black male | Black female | Coloured male | Coloured female | Asian | White male | White female | LGBT | Physical health condition | Mental health condition | |
| 82% | 76% | 85% | 81% | 84% | 77% | 82% | 79% | 78% | 77% | 72% | |
| YouTube | 76% | 69% | 77% | 79% | 76% | 68%[4] | 83% | 70% | 74% | 71% | 66% |
| Wikipedia | 48% | 44% | 56% | 48% | 45% | 45% | 50% | 49% | 36% | 40% | 34% |
| Book | 43% | 40% | 52% | 42% | 46% | 29%[4] | 37% | 39% | 52% | 41% | 47% |
| Online news sites / magazines | 39% | 37% | 48% | 36% | 38% | 48% | 42% | 37% | 36% | 35% | 28% |
| Social media sites | 38% | 29% | 39% | 37% | 40% | 42% | 40% | 38% | 36% | 38% | 32% |
| Podcasts | 32% | 24% | 33% | 33% | 33% | 16%[4] | 31% | 33% | 40% | 32% | 32% |
| Library | 30% | 26% | 43% | 30% | 31% | 6%[4] | 29% | 28% | 34% | 31% | 29% |
| School / university | 27% | 26% | 35% | 26% | 26% | 13%[4] | 31% | 28% | 32% | 24% | 29% |
| Paper newspapers / magazines | 24% | 21% | 35% | 24% | 23% | 23% | 24% | 21% | 26% | 21% | 21% |
| Teacher / educator | 18% | 14% | 20% | 18% | 19% | 13% | 19% | 20% | 22% | 14% | 20% |
| Friends or coworkers | 16% | 11% | 23% | 16% | 15% | 19% | 18% | 13% | 20% | 17% | 17% |
| Your parents | 15% | 14% | 19% | 18% | 13% | 19% | 14% | 15% | 15% | 15% | 16% |
| Encyclopædia Britannica Online | 13% | 16% | 19% | 12% | 10% | 6%[4] | 17% | 15% | 13% | 10% | 12% |
| Other family member | 12% | 11% | 15% | 12% | 11% | 23% | 14% | 13% | 11% | 14% | 16% |
| 10% | 11% | 11% | 13% | 6% | 16%[5] | 17%[5] | 10% | 9% | 8% | 10% | |
| Spiritual leader | 9% | 5% | 15% | 11% | 8% | 10% | 7% | 8% | 9% | 13% | 13% |
| Encarta | 7% | 7% | 11% | 7% | 4% | 3% | 10% | 8% | 6% | 6% | 4% |
| Quora | 6% | 5% | 9% | 6% | 4% | 6% | 9% | 3% | 5% | 4% | 8% |
Representation on Wikipedia vs Brazilian Media edit
- White community sees Wikipedia as far more representative than Brazilian media
- Black community feels Wikipedia under/misrepresents their race, black women especially
- It is most important to Black/Brown women & LGBT to be represented on Wikipedia
% stating they feel represented in...
Very / fairly important to feel represented on Wikipedia (%)
Reasons given for feeling under/misrepresented by black women edit
- I do not see images on Wikipedia that represent me or my community (31%)
- Articles under misrepresnt my race (19%)
Wikipedia perception and association edit
- Asian Brazilian community perceives Wikipedia more negatively while Black men believe it provides a less diverse range of viewpoints.
- Brazilian Asian community see as less representative - 55%
- Brazilian Asian community see as less helpful - 50%
- Black men see a less diverse range of viewpoints - 55%
- Black men and LGBT community are disengaged and less likely to see Wikipedia as inclusive or credible
- Black women have a generally positive outlook
% stating as true about Wikipedia
Editing on Wikipedia edit
- Men and those with health conditions most likely to claim having edited a Wiki article.
- Brazilians mainly edit and read Wikipedia in Portuguese followed by English and Spanish.
% claiming to have ever edited a Wikipedia article
Language(s) Wikipedia used for...
Editing drivers edit
- The need to feel part of something that helps the society; this is most prevalent within the Brown community.
- I like to share my knowledge
- I like to write
- To gain useful editing experience
- To feel part of a community
- Want to make Wikpedia more relevant for people like me
- Want people to hear my voice
- I have an are of specialist knowledge to share
Editing barriers edit
- White community feel they lack skills and resources to edit Wikipedia while the Brown community feels they will not be valued
- Do not know how
- Wikipedia isnt a place for people like me
- I do not have the time
Conclusion edit
Summary: There are three opportunities to improve inclusivity in Brazil:
- Better engage Black women who have some enthusiasm for Wikipedia, but who feel misrepresented
- The Black community feels least represented on Wikipedia, particularly on race and class, despite feeling well represented in Brazil's wider media
- Black women in particular feel there are not enough articles that represent their race, religion and cultural background. They also feel they 'do not have a reason' to use Wikipedia at the moment
- However, Black women also see the importance of representation on Wikipedia and are likely to consider using Wikipedia in the future. They generally have positive views of the platform.
- Engage the Brazilian Asian community who have low awareness and usage of Wikipedia, and a more negative view of the platform
- The Brazilian Asian community has low awareness of Wikipedia and uses it less. Those that do use Wikipedia see it as having less of a positive impact.
- Brazilians in general see Wikipedia as having too few articles on Asian people/culture.
- Increasing content and educating this community on Wikipedia's impact could increase engagement.
- Better engage the Brazilian LGBT community, who want to be more represented on Wikipedia (and in Brazilian media overall)
- The LGBT community has the lowest future consideration to use Wikipedia and very poor perceptions of Wikipedia
- To increase their usage, it is important that they feel well represented on the site
- This is not just a Wikipedia issue: The LGBT community see their gender and sexuality as being under-represented in Brazilian media in general - creating an opportunity for Wikipedia to become a space of inclusion.
Questions? edit
Please connect with us on our department talk page.