Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Moving Beyond Binary Measures Of Gender In Political Ambition, Rolfe Daus Peterson, Carl L. Palmer, Elizabeth Bosanko

Faculty Publications – Politics and Government

This research considers the effects of gendered personalities on political ambition. The sex gap in political ambition is a normatively troubling empirical reality. Ambition research is often limited by binary conceptions and measurement of gender and sex. Recent scholarship urges scholars to employ more nuanced measures, including gendered personality as a measure beyond sex. Using original survey research incorporating the Bem Sex Roles Inventory (BSRI), we explore how femininity and masculinity influence nascent political ambition. Respondents who score higher in masculinity are more likely to have higher political ambition regardless of sex. However, sex remains significant, as female respondents are …