Candidate Gender and Women's Psychological Engagement in Politics

Abstract

In previous research scholars consistently have documented that women in the United States are less psychologically engaged in the political process than men. Utilizing the unique electoral circumstances surrounding the 1990 and 1992 Senate elections, I determine if the presence of female candidates increases the psychological engagement of women in the electoral process. The empirical analyses suggest that the presence of female candidates by itself does not serve to increase women's engagement in the electoral process. Instead, the combination of issues involving women's representation in politics and female candidates serves to heighten women's psychological engagement in the electoral process. The importance of these results for a symbolic theory of representation and women's engagement in politics is discussed.