Preferences for and perceptions about politicians’ goals and how they impact women’s and men’s political ambition

Hilde Coffé, Robin Devroe, Audrey Vandeleene, Bram Wauters

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Citations (SciVal)

Abstract

Women consistently report lower levels of nascent political ambition than men, which causes problems for the recruitment of women in politics. The aim of this study is to better understand the mechanisms behind this gender gap by simultaneously studying the extent to which gender differences in preferences for and perceptions about the typical goals attained through a political career (power, independence and communal goals) can explain gender differences in political ambition. Using data collected among Belgian political and social sciences students (N = 322), our results provide a strong confirmation of the gender gap in political ambition. We also find substantial gender differences in preferences for and perceptions about goals pursued through political careers. However, these individual-level differences in preferences and perceptions only marginally reduce the gender gap in political ambition, emphasising the need for active political recruitment.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)191-210
Number of pages20
JournalEuropean Journal of Politics and Gender
Volume5
Issue number2
Early online date16 Feb 2022
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jun 2022

Funding

This work was supported by a research grant from the Flemish Research Foundation (Project number 12ZZ821N) and by the Bijzonder Onderzoeksfonds of Ghent University (Grant BOF.PDO.2018.0032.01).

Keywords

  • gender
  • goal congruity
  • political ambition
  • political representation

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Gender Studies
  • Sociology and Political Science
  • Political Science and International Relations

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