Beyond coercion
How female political representation shapes sanctions termination
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 24225183 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Hoan La (0009-0007-5909-1487, Texas Tech University) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Publication date | 2026-10-15 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Peace Research (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0022-3433 • E-ISSN: 1460-3578 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (OUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1093/jopres/xjag081 |
| OpenAlex | W7222168260 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 96 |
What explains variation in the duration of international sanctions and the mechanisms through which they are terminated? While the existing literature on sanctions termination focuses on strategic and structural factors, this study introduces a gender-based perspective, arguing that higher female political representation in the target state increases the likelihood of sanctions termination, particularly for sanctions with significant human costs. Two main pathways link women's representation to sanctions outcomes. First, women in leadership positions foster compliance with sender demands by increasing government responsiveness to humanitarian suffering and facilitating collaborative compliance processes. Second, female officeholders influence senders’ strategic calculations by signaling reforms and creating humanitarian pressure, giving senders a reason to lift sanctions. Using event history analysis on panel data of 366 sanctions cases from 1990 to 2018, the study finds that women in executive and legislative roles in target states predict shorter sanction durations, primarily through faster target compliance, while evidence for sender capitulation is more limited.
Economic Sanctions and International Relations · Gender Politics and Representation · International Relations and Foreign Policy
Women as Foreign Policy Leaders
The Sanctions Paradox
Gendering Legislative Behavior
Gender Differences in Foreign Policy Attitudes
Trust and gender
Why People Obey the Law
Female political representation and substantive effects on policies
Sanctioned to Death? The Impact of Economic Sanctions on Life Expectancy and its Gender Gap
Are women really the “fairer” sex? Corruption and women in government
Event History Modeling
Direct and indirect effects of economic sanctions on women’s health
Moving beyond Sanctions
When do women represent women’s rights
Economic sanctions outcomes
Gendering Foreign Policy
Using the Carrot as the Stick
Ending Economic Sanctions in the Shadow of Bargaining Problems
Economic Sanctions and Human Security
Economic interdependence and economic sanctions
Ending Economic Coercion
A Female Leadership Trust Advantage in Times of Crisis
Why can’t a woman be more like a man? Female leaders in crisis bargaining
The Determinants of Economic Sanctions Success and Failure
How women promote peace
Women’s Participation in Peace Negotiations and the Durability of Peace
More women in the Tanzanian legislature
Why Economic Sanctions Do Not Work
The Sanctions Debate and the Logic of Choice
The Leadership Styles of Women and Men
Are Women More Attracted to Co-operation Than Men
The Origins of Human Rights Regimes
Numerical and policy representation on the international stage
Signaling Woman and Leader
In the Defense of Women
Managing the Costs of Backing Down
Governing Well after War
When Backing Down Is the Right Decision
Corruption, Accountability, and Women’s Access to Power
Legislative Power and Women's Representation
Does the Descriptive Representation of Gender Influence Accountability for Substantive Representation
The Story of the Theory of Critical Mass
Exploring Gender Differences in State Legislators’ Policy Preferences
Legislative Gender Diversity and the Resolution of Civil Conflict
How Long Do Economic Sanctions Last? Examining the Sanctioning Process through Duration
Gender and Foreign Policy
The Effect of Increased Women's Representation in Parliament
Are Women More Likely to Vote for Women's Issue Bills than Their Male Colleagues
Do sanction types affect the duration of economic sanctions? The case of foreign aid
The Domestic Political Costs of Economic Sanctions
An Institutional Theory of Sanctions Onset and Success
Gender, Violence, and International Crisis
Political Institutions, Coercive Diplomacy, and the Duration of Economic Sanctions
Ending Economic Sanctions
Carrots as Sticks
A Hand upon the Throat of the Nation
The Gendered Peace Premium
Friends or Foes? Major Trading Partners and the Success of Economic Sanctions
Gender Equality and Intrastate Armed Conflict
Do Women Make More Credible Threats? Gender Stereotypes, Audience Costs, and Crisis Bargaining
International sanctions as international punishment
Diplomacy and domestic politics
Foreign aid, democracy, and gender quota laws
Estimating Causal Relationships Between Women’s Representation in Government and Corruption
Global Economic Sanctions
Gender and Leadership in Executive Branch Politics
Women in Parliaments
Gender Stereotypes and the Perception of Male and Female Candidates
Audience Costs and the Dynamics of War and Peace
Do Economic Sanctions Destabilize Country Leaders
Still Supermadres? Gender and the Policy Priorities of Latin American Legislators
Gender Quotas and International Reputation
Peacemakers or Iron Ladies? A Cross-National Study of Gender and International Conflict
Economic sanctions
Political leadership and gendered multilevel games in foreign policy
Economic Sanctions
Designing foreign policy
The Gender Gap in Foreign Policy Attitudes
Gendered Conflict
Better or Worse? The Effect of Economic Sanctions on Human Rights
International Sanctions Termination, 1990-2018
The Impact of Gender on Activities and Priorities of State Legislators
Domestic Political Audiences and the Escalation of International Disputes
| Highly cited | No |
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