Seeing women, strengthening democracy : how women in politics foster connected citizens / Magda Hinojosa and Miki Caul Kittilson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hinojosa, Magda, 1975- author.

Kittilson, Miki Caul, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Women--Political activity--Latin America.

Women.

Latin America--Politics and government--21st century.

Latin America.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (ix, 165 pages)

Place of Publication:

New York, New York : Oxford University Press, [2020]

Summary:

"How does the more equitable representation of women in positions of power affect male and female citizens? We argue that the election of women to political office-particularly where women's presence is highly visible to the public-strengthens the connections between women and the democratic process. For women, seeing more "people like me" in politics changes attitudes and orientations toward the democratic process. Substantial variation persists across the region in gender gaps in political engagement and political support. To assess the effects that women's officeholding has on these, we pair comparative survey data from Latin American countries with case study evidence from Uruguay. The Uruguayan case offers a unique laboratory for testing the impact of women's representation in elected positions of power on political engagement and support. Our panel survey of Uruguayan citizens reveals that the expected gender gaps in political knowledge, political interest, and other forms of political engagement were alive and well six weeks before the elections. Yet, just six weeks following the election-after the use of a gender quota had led to a doubling of women's representation in the Senate-those gender gaps had largely disappeared or had significantly waned. Our findings indicate that far-reaching gender gaps can be overcome by more equitable representation in our political institutions"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Women and politics across Latin America

How visibility matters : the visible cue theory of representation

Women's political inclusion in Latin America : the challenges of gauging visibility

Invisible laws, visible gains : gender and politics in Uruguay

Piquing political interest, forging political engagement

Inspiring trust in institutions, building political support

Seeing women, strengthening democracy.

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0-19-752696-9

0-19-752697-7

0-19-752695-0