Date of Graduation

5-2022

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Political Science

Advisor/Mentor

Parry, Janine A.

Committee Member

Schreckhise, William

Second Committee Member

Robinson, Samantha

Third Committee Member

Sakon, Joshua

Abstract

How does the presence of a high-profile female candidate impact citizen gender perceptions about women in politics, specifically conservative candidates? Studies aimed at finding which common identities voters will align with, whether it be gender or political party, have found that voters will be more likely to align with their party rather than gender. In The Clinton Effect? The (Non)Impact of a High-Profile Candidate on Gender Stereotypes it was found that voters primed for Clinton did not experience a difference in gender perceptions as compared to those not primed. Voters still carry biased views as they define appropriate attributes of a woman differently, but will the introduction of a conservative candidate make any difference? I predict that exposure to high-profile candidates will cause voters to have more egalitarian gendered perceptions. Data was collected in the 2021 Arkansas Poll, a statewide representative survey made up of 800 respondents. I tested the hypotheses by priming half of the survey respondents to approve or disapprove of Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Leslie Rutledge before answering a group of gender perception questions, the latter to which all respondents answered. The results were consistent with the Clinton study in that there was not a significant impact on gender perceptions with the introduction of a high-profile conservative candidate. The findings display how partisan voters experience high-profile, conservative, female candidates and add to discussions on the impact of women in elections.

Keywords

Arkansas; Arkansas Politics; Women in Politics

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