Symbolic empowerment and female heads of states and government: a global, multilevel analysis

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis article examines whether the presence of a woman head of state or government is associated with enhanced symbolic empowerment. We assess this through gauging support for female leaders and increased political engagement among citizens, both women and men. Working with the most recent public opinion data available, covering the years from 2010 through 2014, we hypothesize that female executives offer symbolic empowerment through positively shaping people’s views about women in politics and increasing their levels of political engagement. To evaluate our hypotheses, we use multilevel models to explain the variation in public opinion across 62,000 individuals nested in over 40 countries. The results largely support our hypothesis, strengthening our call for the literature to expand analysis beyond women’s presence in national legislatures.