Boys, girls, and children
Gender and Question-Wording in the Measurement of Authoritarianism
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6341536 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Drexel A Peterson (0000-0002-5673-4826, Iowa State University, corresponding author), Carrie Swartz (Iowa State University) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 13 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 680-701 |
| Publication date | 2025-07-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Political Science Research and Methods (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2049-8470 • E-ISSN: 2049-8489 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/psrm.2024.49 |
| OpenAlex | W4407924324 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 40 |
The standard measure of authoritarianism asks respondents about desirable qualities in children. Although these questions are gender-neutral, respondents may differ in the gender of the child in their heads when answering. The items also may tap into gendered expectations about boys' and girls' behavior. We conducted three experiments that randomly assigned respondents to be asked about a child, a boy, or a girl in the items. We compare the means, measurement properties, and correlation between authoritarianism and other important variables across the conditions. Asking respondents about a girl creates significant differences in the level and measurement of authoritarianism, which is partially driven by the respondents' sexism. There are, fortunately, few other significant differences in the correlates of authoritarianism
Authoritarianism · Democracy · Developmental psychology · Girl · Political science · Politics · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Experimental Behavioral Economics Studies · Psychology · Social and Intergroup Psychology · Social Psychology
New Effect Size Rules of Thumb
Item bias and item response theory
Mirt
Mini Meta‐Analysis of Your Own Studies
Statistical Power Analysis
The Psychology of Survey Response
Comparing Prescriptive and Descriptive Gender Stereotypes About Children, Adults, and the Elderly
The Authoritarian Dynamic
Descriptive representation and political knowledge
Do authoritarians vote for authoritarians? Evidence from Latin America
Hostile and Benevolent Sexism
The Ambivalence Toward Men Inventory
Stereotypes about children with traditional and nontraditional gender roles
Attitudes and expectations about children with nontraditional and traditional gender roles
Prius or Pickup? How the Answers to Four Simple Questions Explain America’s Great Divide
The Ambivalent Sexism Inventory
Authoritarianism and political choice in France
When Does Measurement Invariance Matter
The Variable Nature of the Gender Gap in Political Knowledge
Testing for the equivalence of factor covariance and mean structures
Anes Scales Often Do Not Measure What You Think They Measure
Reexamining the “Racial Gap” in Political Knowledge
Reconsidering the Relationship between Authoritarianism and Republican Support in 2016 and Beyond
Authoritarianism and American Political Behavior from 1952 to 2008
Support for Anti‐Muslim Policies
Personality Dispositions and Political Preferences Across Hard and Easy Issues
Perceived Threat and Authoritarianism
To Love or Hate Thy Neighbor
Enforcing Social Conformity
Mind the Gap
Advancing the Measurement of Authoritarianism
Authoritarianism in Black and White
Reconceptualizing Political Knowledge
The Mediating Effect of Authoritarianism on Immigrant Access to Tanf
Political Ignorance and Collective Policy Preferences
The Question(s) of Political Knowledge
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |