Understanding the Symbolic Effects of Gender Representation: A Multi-Source Study in Education

Abstract

Symbolic effects of bureaucratic representation assume that outcomes for citizen–clients change in response to the mere presence of bureaucrats with similar backgrounds. The social–psychological mechanisms in clients that may explain these changes are barely examined, though. Based on multi-source data on male and female high school students in the Netherlands, this study empirically tests a theoretical model that links student–teacher gender congruence to students’ performance in math and Dutch language through the mediating role of students’ gender-stereotypical beliefs and self-perceived abilities. The empirical analyses do not support the hypotheses. For student performance in math, no effects were found, while for Dutch language, a negative gender-representation effect was found for male students. In all, the results point at divergent relations between gender congruence, self-perceived abilities and performance for male and female students across subjects. The null results in this study suggest that symbolic effects of gender representation may be affected by national context and socio-economic status which should be considered as new frontiers for future research on representative bureaucracy.