Sex, gender, and the US presidency

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine perceptions of the “Ideal President” and candidates in the 2008 US presidential election in relation to gender and leader prototypes. Design/methodology/approach A total of 768 undergraduate business students rated either the ideal President or a presidential candidate on Bem Sex‐Role Inventory and Implicit Leadership Theory scales. Findings The ideal President was seen as more similar to male candidates as a group than female candidates as a group (i.e. “think president – think male”). The ideal President was seen as higher in masculinity than femininity (i.e. “think president – think masculine”). Research limitations/implications Additional factors beyond gender and leader prototypes may affect perceptions of presidential candidates and the ideal President. Respondents came exclusively from northeastern USA; hence, results may not be generalizable to other populations. Replication of this study in nations that have elected a female leader is recommended. Future theory and research should link perceptions of male and female leaders in different nations to dimensions of national culture such as gender egalitarianism. Social implications The results suggest the continued presence of sex‐related biases in leader evaluations in the political context. Such biases influence whether specific groups are excluded from political leadership because of their personal characteristics (e.g. women), which would dilute the talent of the pool of available candidates. Originality/value The results increase knowledge of the linkages among sex, gender, and political leadership by incorporating both gender and leader prototypes

Affect (linguistics · Context (archaeology · Egalitarianism · Femininity · Ideal (ethics · Masculinity · Originality · Perception · Political science · Politics · Presidency · Presidential system · Sociology · Value (mathematics · Gender Diversity and Inequality · Gender Roles and Identity Studies · Gender Studies · Law · Psychology · Social Psychology · Sports, Gender, and Society

• Gender, diversity and the 2020 US presidential election

  Open Access•Gary N Powell, D Anthony Butterfield et al.•Gender in Management An…•2022

  Incluir item

• Six ways of seeing the elephant

  Open Access•Gary N Powell•Gender in Management An…•2012

  Incluir item

• Sex role stereotypes

  Open Access•Lori D Paris, Diane L Decker•Gender in Management An…•2012

  Incluir item

• Gender, authentic leadership and identity

  Open Access•Isla Kapasi, Katherine J C Sang et al.•Gender in Management An…•2016

  Incluir item

• Man Tears and Masculinities

  Open Access•Maxine Gesualdi•Journal of Communication Inquiry•2013

  Incluir item

• Why Trump and Clinton won and lost

  Open Access•Gary N Powell, D Anthony Butterfield et al.•Equal Opportunities International•2018

  Incluir item

• From Ideal to Real

  Olga Epitropaki, Robin Martins•Journal of Applied Psychology•2005

  Incluir item

• Implicit Leadership Theories in Applied Settings

  Olga Epitropaki, Robin Martins•Journal of Applied Psychology•2004

  Incluir item

• The "Good Manager"

  G N Powell, D Anthony Butterfield•Academy of Management Journal•1979

  Incluir item

• Role congruity theory of prejudice toward female leaders.

  Alice H Eagly, Steven J Karau•Psychological Review•2002

  Incluir item

• Gender, Nature, and Nurture

  Richard A Lippa•Gender, nature, and nurture•2005

  Incluir item

• The measurement of psychological androgyny

  Sandra L Bem•Journal of Consulting and…•1974

  Incluir item

• Is the “Presidential Image” Reserved for Males? Sex-Role Stereotypes and the 1984 Presidential Election

  Open Access•Gary N Powell, D Anthony Butterfield•Psychological Reports•1987

  Incluir item

• Leader evaluations

  Open Access•Gary N Powell, D Anthony Butterfield et al.•Gender in Management An…•2008

  Incluir item

• Think manager—think male

  Open Access•Virginia E Schein, Ruediger Mueller et al.•Journal of Organizational Behavior•1996

  Incluir item

• Sex role stereotyping and requisite management characteristics

  Open Access•Virginia E Schein, Ruediger Mueller•Journal of Organizational Behavior•1992

  Incluir item

• Twenty-Five Years After the Bem Sex-Role Inventory

  Rose Marie Hoffman, L Dianne Borders•Measurement and Evaluation in…•2001

  Incluir item

• Sexist language and person perception

  Open Access•Signe A Dayhoff•Sex Roles•1983

  Incluir item

• A Global Look at Psychological Barriers to Women's Progress in Management

  Open Access•Virginia E Schein•Journal of Social Issues•2001

  Incluir item

• Toward a redefinition of sex and gender

  Rhoda K Unger•American Psychologist•1979

  Incluir item

• Gender, Leadership and Choice in Multiparty Systems

  Open Access•Susan Banducci, Susan A Banducci et al.•Political Research Quarterly•2000

  Incluir item

• Gender as a Factor in the Attribution of Leadership Traits

  Open Access•Deborah Alexander, Kristi Andersen•Political Research Quarterly•1993

  Incluir item

• Gender Stereotypes and the Perception of Male and Female Candidates

  Leonie Huddy, Nayda Terkildsen•American Journal of Political…•1993

  Incluir item

• Prescriptive Gender Stereotypes and Backlash Toward Agentic Women

  Open Access•Laurie A Rudman, Paul Glick et al.•Journal of Social Issues•2001

  Incluir item

• Gender and leadership style

  Alice H Eagly, Blair T Johnson•Psychological Bulletin•1990

  Incluir item

• Gender and the evaluation of leaders

  Alice H Eagly, Mona G Makhijani et al.•Psychological Bulletin•1992

  Incluir item

• Transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire leadership styles

  Alice H Eagly, Mary C Johannesen-Schmidt et al.•Psychological Bulletin•2003

  Incluir item

• Gender and the effectiveness of leaders

  Alice H Eagly, Steven J Karau et al.•Psychological Bulletin•1995

  Incluir item