Hostname: page-component-7b9c58cd5d-6tpvb Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-03-16T17:26:47.747Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Power and Influence in State Legislative Policymaking: The Interaction of Gender and Position in Committee Hearing Debates

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 September 2013

Lyn Kathlene
Lyn Kathlene
Affiliation:
Purdue University
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

There is an implicit assumption behind advocating for more minorities or women in elected office, namely, that these officials will bring a new power and influence to their underrepresented groups. However, for women, this idealized viewpoint ignores the social dynamics that subordinate women's words and actions even in “well-balanced” male and female group interactions. Using transcribed verbatim transcripts of 12 state legislative committee hearings, this research analyzes the conversational dynamics of committee members, witnesses, chairs, and sponsors. Sex differences among committee members are highly significant, even after accounting for political factors and structural features of the hearing. In addition, male and female chairs do not conduct hearings in the same way, and these differences affect the behavior of witnesses and committee members. The findings suggest that as the proportion of women increases in a legislative body, men become more verbally aggressive and controlling of the hearing. Women legislators may be seriously disadvantaged and unable to participate equally in legislative policymaking in committee hearings.

Type
Articles
Information
American Political Science Review , Volume 88 , Issue 3 , September 1994 , pp. 560 - 576
Copyright
Copyright © American Political Science Association 1994

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Beattie, G. W. 1983. Talk: An Analysis of Speech and Non-Verbal Behaviour in Conversation. Milton Keynes: Open University Press.Google Scholar
Berkman, Michael B. 1993. “Former State Legislators in the U.S. House of Representatives: Institutional and Policy Mastery.” Legislative Studies Quarterly 18:77–104.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bernard, Jessie. 1972. The Sex Game. New York: Atheneum.Google Scholar
Blair, Diane D., and Stanley, Jeanie R.. 1991. “Personal Relationships and Legislative Power: Male and Female Perceptions.” Legislative Studies Quarterly 16:495–507.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carroll, Susan. 1985. Women as Candidates in American Politics. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.Google Scholar
Center for the American Woman and Politics. 1989. “Women in State Legislatures 1989.” Fact Sheet. New Brunswick: Rutgers University.Google Scholar
Center for the American Woman and Politics. 1993a. “Solid Gains for Women in State Legislatures.” CAWP News and Notes (New Brunswick) 9(1):3–4. Rutgers University.Google Scholar
Center for the American Woman and Politics. 1993b. “Women in State Legislatures 1993.” Fact Sheet. New Brunswick, Rutgers University.Google Scholar
Coates, Jennifer. 1988. “Gossip Revisited: Language in All-Female Groups.” In Women in Their Speech Communities, ed. Coates, Jennifer and Cameron, Deborah. London: Longman.Google Scholar
Craig, D., and Pitts, M. K.. 1990. “The Dynamics of Dominance in Tutorial Discussions.” Linguistics 28:125–38.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dodson, Debra L., ed. 1991. Gender and Policymaking: Studies of Women in Office. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Center for the American Woman and Politics.Google Scholar
Dodson, Debra L., and Carroll, Susan J.. 1991. Reshaping the Agenda: Women in State Legislatures. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Center for the American Woman and Politics.Google Scholar
Duerst-Lahti, Georgia, and Johnson, Cathy Marie. 1990. “Gender and Style in Bureaucracy.” Women and Politics 10:67–120.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eagly, Alice H., and Johnson, Blair T.. 1990. “Gender and Leadership Style: A Meta-Analysis.” Psychological Bulletin 108:233–56.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Edelsky, C. 1981. “Who's Got the Floor?” Language in Society 10:383–421.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Elazar, Daniel J. 1972. American Federalism: A View from the States. New York: Crowell.Google Scholar
Evans, C. Lawrence. 1991a. Leadership in Committee: A Comparative Analysis of Leadership Behavior in the U.S. Senate. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Evans, C. Lawrence. 1991b. “Participation and Policy Making in Senate Committees.” Political Science Quarterly 106:479–98.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fishman, Pamela M. 1978. “Interaction: The Work Women Do.” Social Problems 25:397–406.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Flammang, Janet A. 1985. “Female Officials in the Feminist Capital: The Case of Santa Clara County.” Western Political Quarterly 38:95–118.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Francis, Wayne L. 1989. The Legislative Committee Game: A Comparative Analysis of Fifty States. Columbus: Ohio State University Press.Google Scholar
Francis, Wayne L., and Riddlesperger, James W.. 1982. “U.S. State Legislative Committees: Structure, Procedural Efficiency, and Party Control.” Legislative Studies Quarterly 7:453–71.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gilligan, Carol. 1982. In a Different Voice: Psychological Theory and Women's Development. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
Guy, Mary E., ed., 1992. Women and Men of the States. New York: Sharpe.Google Scholar
Guy, Mary E., and Duerst-Lahti, Georgia. 1992. “Agency Culture and Its Effect on Managers.” In Women and Men of the States, ed. Guy, Mary E.. New York: Sharpe.Google Scholar
Hall, Richard L. 1987. “Participation and Purpose in Committee Decision Making.” American Political Science Review 81:105–27.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hedlund, Ronald D. 1984. “Organizational Attributes of Legislatures: Structure, Rules, Norms, Resources.” Legislative Studies Quarterly 9:51–121.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jewell, Malcolm E. 1962. The State Legislature: Politics and Practice. New York: Random House.Google Scholar
Jewell, Malcolm E. 1982. Representation in State Legislatures. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky.Google Scholar
Jones, Bryan D., ed., 1989. Leadership & Politics: New Perspectives in Political Science. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas.Google Scholar
Jones, Bryan D., Baumgartner, Frank R., and Talbert, Jeffery C.. 1993. “The Destruction of Issue Monopolies in Congress.” American Political Science Review 87:657–71.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kanter, Rosabeth Moss. 1977. Men and Women of the Corporation. New York: Basic.Google Scholar
Kathlene, Lyn. 1989. “Uncovering the Political Impacts of Gender: An Exploratory Study.” Western Political Quarterly 42:397–421.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kathlene, Lyn. 1990. “A New Approach to Understanding the Impact of Gender on the Legislative Process.” In Feminist Research Methods, ed. Nielsen, Joyce McCarl. Boulder: Westview.Google Scholar
Kathlene, Lyn. 1991. “Gender, Public Policy, and the Legislative Process: Delineating the Gendered Perspectives and Outcomes of Policymaking in the 1989 Colorado State House.” Ph.D. diss., University of Colorado, Boulder.Google Scholar
Kathlene, Lyn, Clarke, Susan E., and Fox, Barbara A.. 1991. “Ways Women Politicians Are Making a Difference.” In Gender and Policymaking, ed. Dodson, Debra. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Center for the American Woman and Politics.Google Scholar
Kollock, Peter, Blumstein, Philip, and Schwartz, Pepper. 1985. “Sex and Power in Interaction: Conversational Privileges and Duties.” American Sociological Review 50:34–46.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lorch, Robert S. 1991. Colorado's Government. 5th ed.Niwot: University Press of Colorado.Google Scholar
Mooney, Christopher Z. 1991. “Peddling Information in the State Legislature: Closeness Counts.” Western Political Quarterly 44:433–44.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Murray, S. O., and Covelli, L. H.. 1988. “Women and Men Speaking at the Same Time.” Journal of Pragmatics 12:103–11.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
National Conference of State Legislators. 1992. Inside the Legislative Process. Denver: NCSL.Google Scholar
Ragins, Belle Rose, and Sundstrom, Eric. 1989. “Gender and Power in Organizations: A Longitudinal Perspective.” Psychological Bulletin 105:51–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reingold, Beth. 1992. “Concepts of Representation among Female and Male State Legislators.” Lgislative Studies Quarterly 17:509–37.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rosener, Judy B. 1990. “Ways Women Lead.” Harvard Business Review, November/December, pp. 119–25.Google ScholarPubMed
Saint-Germain, Michelle A. 1989. “Does Their Difference Make a Difference? The Impact of Women on Public Policy in the Arizona Legislature.” Social Science Quarterly 70:956–68.Google Scholar
Smith-Lovin, Lynn, and Brody, Charles. 1989. “Interruptions in Group Discussions: The Effects of Gender and Group Composition.” American Sociological Review 54:424–35.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Silverberg, Helene. 1990. “What Happened to the Feminist Revolution in Political Science? A Review Essay.” Western Political Quarterly 43:887–903.Google Scholar
Straayer, John A. 1990. The Colorado General Assembly. Niwot: University Press of Colorado.Google Scholar
Swacker, Marjorie. 1975. “The Sex of the Speaker as a Sociolinguistic Variable.” In Language and Sex: Difference and Dominance, ed. Thorne, Barrie and Henley, Nancy. Rowley, MA: Newbury House.Google Scholar
Swann, Joan. 1988. “Talk Control: An Illustration from the Classroom of Problems in Analyzing Male Dominance of Conversation.” In Women in Their Speech Communities, ed. Coates, Jennifer and Cameron, Deborah. London: Longman.Google Scholar
Thomas, Sue. 1989. “Voting Patterns in the California Assembly: The Role of Gender.” Women and Politics 9:43–53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thomas, Sue. 1991. “The Impact of Women on State Legislative Policies.” Journal of Politics 53:958–76.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thomas, Sue. 1994. How Women Legislate. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Thomas, Sue, and Welch, Susan. 1991. “The Impact of Gender on Activities and Priorities of State Legislators.” Western Political Quarterly 44:445–56.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
West, Candace, and Zimmerman, Don H.. 1977. “Women's Place in Everyday Talk: Reflections on Parent–Child Interactions.” Social Problems 24:521–28.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Willis, F. N., and Williams, S. J.. 1976. “Simultaneous Talking in Conversation and Sex of Speakers.” Perceptual and Motor Skills 43:1067–70.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wood, Marion M. 1966. “The Influence of Sex and Knowledge of Communication Effectiveness on Spontaneous Speech.” Word 22:117–137.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Woods, Nicola. 1988. “Talking Shop: Sex and Status as Determinants of Floor Apportionment in a Work Setting.” In Women in Their Speech Communities, ed. Coates, Jennifer and Cameron, Deborah. New York: Longman.Google Scholar
Yoder, Janice D. 1991. “Rethinking Tokenism: Looking beyond Numbers.” Gender and Society 5:178–92.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zimmer, Lynn. 1988. “Tokenism and Women in the Workplace: The Limits of Gender-neutral Theory.” Social Problems 35:64–77.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zimmerman, Don H., and West, Candace. 1975. “Sex Roles, Interruptions, and Silences in Conversation.” In Language and Sex: Difference and Dominance, ed. Thorne, Barrie and Henley, Nancy. Rowley, MA: Newbury House.Google Scholar
Submit a response

Comments

No Comments have been published for this article.