Date of Award
6-2010
Document Type
Union College Only
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Psychology
Second Department
Political Science
First Advisor
George Bizer
Second Advisor
Zoe Oxley
Language
English
Keywords
gender, content, participants, perceived, research
Abstract
Prior research has shown that gender acts as a cue for voters. Specifically, men and women are perceived as more competent on different issues. I examined the impact that framing these issues in a gendered manner can have on perceived candidate competency and personality traits. Participants read an excerpt of a speech about energy conservation, the content of which concentrated on either (a) the economic and foreign policy implications, or (b) environmental implications. They were told the politician was either a male or a female. Thus, candidate gender and content either matched or mismatched. Results indicated that Republican participants showed no preference based on gender, while Democratic participants preferred a mismatch between the sex of the politician and the content of the frame. Additionally, this research suggests that perceived “female” personality traits are based on content rather than gender. Overall, this research is inconclusive, but suggests that perhaps voters are less reliant on gender stereotypes than previously thought.
Recommended Citation
Luguri, Jamie B., "The impact of gender of political candidates : how framing affects perceived candidate competency and personality traits" (2010). Honors Theses. 1177.
https://digitalworks.union.edu/theses/1177