Jones, Stephanie, Charles, Nickie and Davies, Charlotte Aull. (2009) Transforming masculinist political cultures? Doing politics in new political institutions. Sociological Research Online, Vol.14 (No.2). Article no. 1. ISSN 1360-7804

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Abstract

In the devolved legislative assemblies of Scotland and Wales the proportion of women representatives is approaching parity. This is in marked contrast to Westminster where one in five MPs are women. In this paper we explore the extent to which the masculinist political cultures characterising established political institutions are being reproduced in the National Assembly for Wales or whether its different gendering, both in the numbers of women representatives and in terms of its institutional framework, is associated with a more feminised political and organisational culture. Drawing on interviews with half the Assembly Members, women and men, we show that the political style of the Assembly differs from that of Westminster and that Assembly Members perceive it as being more consensual and as embodying a less aggressive and macho way of doing politics. AMs relate this difference to the gender parity amongst Assembly Members, to the institutional arrangements which have an 'absolute duty' to promote equality embedded in them, and to the desire to develop a different way of doing politics. We suggest that the ability to do politics in a more feminised and consensual way relates not only to the presence of a significant proportion of women representatives, but also to the nature of the institution and the way in which differently gendered processes and practices are embedded within it. Differently gendered political institutions can develop a more feminised political culture which provides an alternative to the masculinist political culture characterising the political domain.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HM Sociology J Political Science > JN Political institutions (Europe) > JN101 Great Britain
Divisions:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Sociology
Journal or Publication Title:	Sociological Research Online
Publisher:	Sage Publications Ltd.
ISSN:	1360-7804
Date:	31 May 2009
Volume:	Vol.14
Number:	No.2
Page Range:	Article no. 1
Identification Number:	10.5153/sro.1863
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Publication Status:	Published
Funder:	Economic and Social Research Council (Great Britain) (ESRC)
Grant number:	RES000231185 (ESRC)
URI:	http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/42562

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