Abstract
Data from the 1980 National Election Study are used to examine how well participation theory variables and group consciousness variables account for the nonvoting political activity of traditional-role women. Of the little variance in this activity that is explained by a regression analysis among these women (.070 after adjustments for number of respondents and variables, compared to .240 among modern-role women), most is due to two participation theory variables: party identification and efficacy. However, a discriminant function analysis emphasizes two group consciousness variables (gender consciousness and religious consciousness) and only one participation theory variable (political ideology) as the main forces that distinguish active traditional-role from active modern-role women. These findings indicate the need to make clear which comparison group — other traditional-role women or politically active modern-role women — is being used in efforts to understand traditional-role women's political conduct. The findings also call for new theoretical directions about traditional-role women's nonvoting participation, because of the weak explanatory ability exhibited by all fourteen variables together.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Andersen, Kristi (1975). Working women and political participation 1952–1972.American Journal of Political Science 79:439–453.
Andersen, Margaret (1981). Corporate wives: longing for liberation or satisfied with the status quo?Urban Life 10:311–327.
Arrington, Theodore S., and Kyle, Patricia A. (1978). Equal Rights Amendment activists in North Carolina.Signs 3:666–679.
Bourke, Susan, and Grossholtz, Jean (1974). Politics as an unnatural practice: political science looks at female participation.Politics and Society 4:255–266.
Brady, David W., and Tedin, Kent L. (1976). Ladies in pink: religion and political ideology in the anti-ERA movement.Social Science Quarterly 56:564–575.
Burris, Val (1983). Who opposed the ERA? An analysis of the social bases of antifeminism.Social Science Quarterly 64:305–317.
Cassell, Carol (1979). Change in electoral participation in the South.Journal of Politics 41:907–917.
Conover, Pamela J., and Gray, Virginia (1983).Feminism and the New Right: Conflict over the American Family. New York: Praeger.
Conway, M. Margaret (1979). Women as voluntary political activists: a review of recent empirical research. In Bernice Cummings and Victoria Schuck (eds.),Women Organizing: An Anthology. New York: Scarecrow Press.
Danigelis, Nicholas L. (1982). Race, class and political involvement in the U.S.Social Forces 61:532–550.
Domhoff, William (1970).The Higher Circles. New York: Random House.
Ehrenreich, Barbara (1981). The women's movements: feminist and anti-feminist.Radical America 15:93–101.
Elshtain, Jean Bethke (1974). Moral man and immoral woman: a consideration of the public-private split and political ramifications.Politics and Society 4:453–473.
Fulenwider, Claire K. (1981). Feminist ideology and the political attitudes and participation of white and minority women.Western Political Quarterly 34:17–30.
Hougland, James G., Jr., and Christenson, James A. (1983). Religion and politics: the relationship of religious participation to political efficacy and involvement.Sociology and Social Research 67:405–420.
Huber, Joan, and Spitze, Glenna (1981). Wives' employment, household behaviors, and sex-role attitudes.Social Forces 60:150–169.
Kelly, Rita Mae, and Boutilier, Mary (1978).The Making of Political Women: A Study of Socialization and Role Conflict. Chicago: Nelson-Hall.
Klecka, William R. (1975). Discriminant analysis. In Norman H. Nie et al. (eds.),Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Madron, Thomas W., Nelson, Hart M., and Yokley, Raytha L. (1974). Religion as a determinant of militancy and political participation among black Americans.American Behavioral Scientist 17:783–796.
Mason, Karen O., and Bumpass, Larry L. (1975). U.S. women's sex-role ideology, 1970.American Journal of Sociology 80:1212–1219.
McGrath, Wilma E., and Soule, John W. (1974). Rocking the cradle or rocking the boat: women at the 1972 Democratic National Convention.Social Science Quarterly 55:141–150.
McPherson, J. J., Welch, Susan, and Clark, Cal (1977). The stability and reliability of political efficacy: using path analysis to test alternative models.American Political Science Review 71:509–521.
Miller, Arthur H., Gurin, Patricia, Gurin, Gerald, and Malanchuck, Oksana (1981). Group consciousness and political participation.American Journal of Political Science 25:404–511.
Miller, Warren E., and the National Election Studies Center for Political Studies (1982).American National Election Study. Ann Arbor: Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research.
Mueller, Carol, and Dimieri, Thomas (1982). The structure of belief systems among contending ERA activists.Social Forces 60:657–675.
Ostrander, Susan A. (1980). Upper-class women: the feminine side of privilege.Qualitative Sociology 3:23–44.
Powell, L. W. (1981). Male and female differentials in elite political participation: an examination of the effects of socio-economic and familial variables.Western Political Quarterly 34:31–45.
Prince-Embury, Sandra, and Deutchman, Iva (1981). Sphere of influence profile as a predictor of political behavior in women.Psychology Review 48:876–878.
Rapp, Rayna (1982). Family and class in contemporary America: notes toward an understanding of ideology. In Barrie Thorne and Marilyn Yalom (eds.),Rethinking the Family, pp. 168–187. New York: Longman.
Sapiro, Virginia (1983).The Political Integration of Women: Roles, Socialization and Politics. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.
Smith, David H. (1980). General activity model. In David H. Smith, Jacqueline Macaulay, et al. (eds.),Participation in Social and Political Activities, pp. 461–530. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Sokoloff, Natalie J. (1980).Between Money and Love: The Dialectics of Women's Home and Market Work. New York: Praeger.
Spitze, Glenna, and Huber, Joan (1980). Changing attitudes towards women's non-family roles.Sociology of Work and Occupations 7:317–335.
Tedin, Kent L., Brady, David W., Buxton, Mary E., Gorman, Barbara M., and Thompson, July L. (1977). Social background and political differences between pro- and anti-ERA activists.American Politics Quarterly 5:395–407.
Verba, Sidney, and Nie, Norman H. (1972).Participation in America: Political Democracy and Social Equality. New York: Harper and Row.
Verba, Sidney, Nie, Norman H., and Kim, Jae-On (1978).Participation and Political Equality: A Seven-Nation Comparison. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Volgy, Thomas J., and Volgy, Sandra Sue (1975). Women and politics: political correlates of sex-role acceptance.Social Science Quarterly 55:967–974.
Welch, Susan (1977). Women as political animals? A test of some explanations for male-female political participation differences.American Journal of Political Science 21:711–730.
Wilson, John (1978).Religion in American Society: The Effective Presence. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Wimberley, Ronald C. (1978). Dimensions of commitment: generalizing from religion to politics.Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 17:225–240.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hughes, D.L., Peek, C.W. Ladies against women: Explaining the political participation of traditional- and modern-role females. Polit Behav 8, 158–174 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00987181
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00987181