Application #3: Identity Community - Group 17
Name: Aidan Armand, Nusrat Alam, Pavneet Kaur, Diana Lopez, Holly Goodrum
Option C: You recommend that the report focus on improving egalitarian attitudes towards
women throughout society, and specific strategies that improve women’s ambition to run for
political office. Explain how culture can increase women’s election and their ambition to run for
office.
Thesis: One key barrier within women’s elections, specifically looking at the recent elections in
Mexico of President Claudia Sheinbaum and in Honduras of President Xiomara Castro, would be
the culture of egalitarian attitudes towards women throughout society. By improving these
cultural attitudes and societal differences, women’s ambition to run can be increased, causing a
more gendered represented society.
Claim 1: States in the international community with stronger egalitarian ideals, or value systems
based on the understanding of social equality and fair treatment for all, tend to foster greater
female participation in the political system.
- Nations with more egalitarian cultural attitudes tend to foster higher levels of female
political representation. Norris and Inglehart highlight that societies with progressive
gender attitudes support women’s political leadership, as these attitudes reduce barriers
and create a supportive environment for women in politics. Norris and Inglehart provide
data indicating that countries with strong traditional attitudes toward gender roles tend to
have fewer women in office. For example, they show that nations with predominantly
conservative cultural norms, such as those in the Middle East and certain post-communist
countries, consistently exhibit lower levels of female parliamentary representation. The
author references the World Values Survey, which asks respondents whether they agree
with the statement “On the whole, men make better political leaders than women do.”
The results reveal that in countries like Egypt, Iran, and Nigeria, where agreement with
this statement is high, women’s representation in government remains minimal. In
Scandinavia where cultural attitudes are more egalitarian, women’s participation in
politics is notably higher. Sweden, for instance, has over 40% female representation in its
parliament.( Norris & Inglehart)
- Factors like economic development and political systems contribute to the eligibility pool
for women in politics, but they do not fully explain the disparities. Even in societies with
similar socioeconomic conditions, cultural attitudes can create significant differences in
outcomes. For example, the U.S.(13%) and Canada(20%) share similar economic and
educational profiles, yet Canada had historically higher female representation in
government. This discrepancy is attributed to more progressive cultural norms in Canada,
demonstrating that deep-seated beliefs about gender roles shape the extent to which
women can access and thrive in political leadership. (Norris and Inglehart)
Claim 2: Greater communal and parental encouragement amongst young girls can lead to greater
self confidence and a more competitive attitude, ultimately better preparing women to participate
in politics.
- Political ambition in young women is often limited by early socialization patterns that
discourage them from pursuing political careers. In a survey presented in Fox and
Lawless, 34% of male students and 26% students believed that they received a strong
amount of encouragement from parents to pursue leadership roles. This survey explains
how young men are more likely to receive family encouragement and participate in
activities that build confidence for political roles, leading to a persistent gender gap
ambition.
- In their article, Fox and Lawless assess the pivotal diversion point between young boys
and girls that is the gap between high school and college. During this period, young
adults often have the gender gap between them become amplified, as young men tend to
pursue majors, such as criminal justice, political science, and other politics related fields
than their female counterparts. Throughout their time at college, men are more likely to
be a part of associations, clubs, and student groups that emphasize development in the
political and leadership fields, inadvertently sidelining women. In this period, women
often feel less confident in these types of competitive spaces. According to a study by the
Pew Center, 23% of male students feel confident that they would be qualified to run for
office, while only 11% of the female students surveyed felt confident they could carry out
this same process with success. Through this article, the impact of a failure to foster
self-confidence amongst young women can have upon their futures in the political
sphere. (Fox and Lawless)
-
Claim 3: The double standard within media depictions of female candidates can create a
stereotyped character and impact the media coverage of female candidates, lowering the
ambition of women to run.
- The media often perpetuates double standards by scrutinizing female politicians more
harshly than male counterparts, focusing on their appearance or personal lives. This
creates additional challenges for women and impacts them to run for office. Enole also
argues the daily routine of an everyday setting such as kitchens and bedrooms influences
and sustains larger structures of power, including patriarchy and international politics.
For example, power dynamics are ingrained in mundane routines, impacting broader
societal structures. Enloe shows how women's roles and identities such as “ dutiful
daughter” or “ good wife” are shaped by and reinforce global economic and military
structures. ( Enloe, The Mundane Matters)
- Hayes and Lawless suggest that press coverage of female candidates moreover focus on
the “horse race and lack of viability”.This results in women receiving a possible less
coverage and appearance in media, producing an inadequate and disproportionate
position to run. In fact, the news responds to the aspect of competitiveness, meaning the
more contested the race, the more coverage it will receive. This can create a lack of
ambition to run for women as it possibly undermines the amount of coverage for a female
candidate that is based within gendered social conscience.
Claim 4: In an effort to bolster a more egalitarian approach to the political sphere, degendering
of traditional values as either masculine or feminine is essential to creating an environment in
which women are able and willing to carry out campaigns and win elections.
- Hillary Clinton, in her 2008 presidential campaign, struggled to balance the ideals of
being qualified for the role based upon her gender. To combat these assertions by the
media and her opponent that she may not be as qualified to fill the position, she fell back
upon her past, stressing her previous work as a seasoned public servant and politician.
While one could argue that this was a strategic move for her campaign, it did not go over
with the public as planned. Both in the media and in the public, Clinton was criticized for
not being open to change based upon her adherence to her prior political career. (Carroll,
2009)
- Similarly, Clinton also faced difficulties managing a public image with the public
viewing her as a conflict between traditionally masculine and traditionally feminine
values. Through her campaign, Clinton focused on creating a strong, assertive image with
the goal that the public, the media, and political analysts would take her seriously, even
though she was the only woman in a room full of men. Despite these efforts, Clinton was
still unable to escape a gendered bias, as her attempts to come off assertive made her
seem to lack warmth and femininity, making many voters question a vote for her. This
example represents how a division of certain values into gendered categories negatively
impacts the ability of a woman to carry out a successful campaign without encountering
more struggles than their male counterparts. (Carroll, 2009)
- According to the Pew Center research cited by Lawless, 51% of respondents believe that
the United States of America is not ready for a female president. Through this type of
result, it can be assumed that the reasoning for this is a gendered understanding of the
role of the president. Along with a blanket understanding by many that just because they
are a woman, a candidate may be unqualified, Lawless additionally considers comments
that commentators and the media have made about Clinton in her presidential race. In
order to combat earlier claims about her lack of tenderness, Clinton shared an emotional
moment with the nation, leaving her with tears in her eyes. While this is exactly the
emotion that she had been criticized for lacking, she was then baratted with comments of
strong gender bias such as “the first thing a woman does, of course, is cry.” Along with
these comments regarding her emotions, she also faced general misogyny, such as shouts
by male voters at her speeches to “Iron my shirt!,” and claims by commentators that she
was “witchy.” Through comments such as these, the media and the crowds are using her
gender against her in misogynistic ways, creating an environment that makes it far more
difficult for a female to succeed in comparison to her male counterparts. (Lawless, 2009)
Claim:. An increase in encouragement and support networks will ultimately direct women to run
for office and result in a rise in their representation.
- Fox and Lawless argue that when women receive encouragement, it significantly boosts
their likelihood of running, nearly bridging the gender gap in political ambition. This
highlights the critical role that external encouragement plays a crucial role, and without
it, women are less likely to cultivate the political ambition that drives many men into
office. Because of this, the lack of encouragement becomes a self-perpetuating barrier,
where there are fewer women in office to provide fewer role models and mentors for
future female candidates, reinforcing the cycle of underrepresentation.
- Women who do pursue politics often encounter institutional gatekeeping, where political
party leaders (predominantly men) are less likely to endorse or prioritize female
candidates. Norris and Inglehart point out that in traditional political culture, parties may
be apprehensive to support gender parity policies. This gatekeeping perpetuates a
male-dominated political space, as women are overlooked or sidelined during candidate
selection, reducing their representation in office.
Counter:
- Party lines are more of a motivating factor in political and electoral support than gender
is. Hayes and Lawless argue that party affiliation often plays a more decisive role in
influencing voter support than gender. This suggests that, although gender biases exist,
partisan loyalty is typically a stronger determinant of electoral outcomes, meaning that
voters are more likely to support candidates who align with their political party,
regardless of whether the candidate is male or female. Hayes and Lawless explain that
party cues serve as powerful voters who often prioritize shared political values and policy
positions over the gender of the candidate. This tendency reflects how deeply embedded
partisan identities have become within the electorate, often overshadowing gender as a
factor in candidates' evaluation. Their findings indicate that, even as gender stereotypes
and expectations might shape perceptions of female candidates, voters will generally
favor candidates from their preferred party, suggesting that enhancing bipartisan appeal
or strong partisan alignment could be as critical for female candidates as overcoming
gender bias. (Hayes and Lawless)
