Closing the gender gap in internal political efficacy?

Given women's gains in employment, education, and economic status, the persistent gender gap in internal political efficacy remains a puzzle for social scientists. We go beyond standard socioeconomic explanations and consider gender roles, which, unlike socioeconomic situation, are a slow-movin...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Fraile, Marta|||0000-0002-4123-2874, Marinova, Dani|||0000-0001-7067-6792
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2024
País:España
Institución:Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Repositorio:Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UAB
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:ddd.uab.cat:324721
Acceso en línea:https://ddd.uab.cat/record/324721
https://dx.doi.org/urn:doi:10.1007/s11109-024-09918-w
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Gender gap in political efficacy
Gender roles
Political socialization
Social role theory
Descripción
Sumario:Given women's gains in employment, education, and economic status, the persistent gender gap in internal political efficacy remains a puzzle for social scientists. We go beyond standard socioeconomic explanations and consider gender roles, which, unlike socioeconomic situation, are a slow-moving force constrained by gendered socialization. Stereotypically feminine traits jar with stereotypical notions of politics in general, as competitive, and leaders as power-seeking and assertive. Drawing on observational data from an original survey fielded in Spain, we show that this incongruence accounts for women's perception of having a low capacity to participate in politics. Results from a survey experiment suggest that this relationship is not set in stone, however. When politicians' motivation is framed in line with feminine traits-as a public service rather than a struggle for power-women consider themselves just as capable as men of participating in politics. The results have implications for women's political participation and representation in politics.