Project description
Gender equality and the rise of the populist right parties
Increasing gender equality, gender policies, and the salience of gender issues characterise our societies. However, populist radical right (PRR) parties are on the rise in contemporary Western societies. Is this due to a cultural backlash? The MSCA-funded GEPU project examines the link between gender equality, cultural dynamics, and electoral outcomes, specifically focusing on the rise of PRR parties in Western societies. It concentrates on Italy and Spain, analysing parties such as Fratelli d’Italia and Vox, Lega. The project estimates the impact of electing a female mayor, assesses the effect of increased female representation in municipal councils and government, and conducts an online experiment to understand the influence of gender equality information on electoral support for PRR parties.
Objective
"The GEPU (Gender Equality and Populist Upsurge) research project delves into the interplay between gender equality, cultural dynamics, and electoral outcomes, focusing on the rise of populist radical right (PRR) parties in contemporary Western societies. Drawing from the ""cultural backlash theory,"" it investigates whether the increasing gender equality, gender policies, and salience of gender issues have contributed to a cultural backlash affecting the electoral success of PRR parties. Spain and Italy serve as the primary research contexts, examining parties like Spain's Vox and Italy's Lega and Fratelli d’Italia.
The project's central aim is to explore whether the presence of women in politics significantly influences electoral outcomes, specifically the rise in the vote shares of extreme-right parties. It seeks to establish a causal relationship between gender equality and PRR party support. Three specific research objectives guide the study: 1) Estimate the impact of electing a female mayor on extreme-right party vote shares, using a regression discontinuity design; 2) Assess the effect of increased female representation in municipal councils and government, leveraging gender quotas; 3) Conduct an online experiment to understand the influence of gender equality information on electoral support for PRR parties.
The project addresses gaps in economic and political science literature, where gender equality's role in explaining the upsurge of extreme-right parties remains underexplored. It employs a multifaceted methodology, combining quasi-experimental econometric techniques and online experiments, with data from Italy and Spain. The study's findings promise to shed light on the intricate relationship between gender values, political movements, and societal change, contributing to a nuanced understanding of the cultural backlash phenomenon."
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
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CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques.
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Keywords
Programme(s)
- HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Main Programme
Funding Scheme
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European FellowshipsCoordinator
08007 Barcelona
Spain