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Gender Gaps in Civic and Political Participation in Latin America

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Rosario Espinal  and
Shanyang Zhao
Rosario Espinal
Affiliation:
Temple University. espinal@temple.edu
Shanyang Zhao
Affiliation:
Temple University. bzhao001@temple.edu
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Abstract

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This article examines whether there is gender segmentation in civic participation in Latin America, and whether such segmentation is related to gender differences in political participation. Confirming the findings of other studies, this analysis indicates that there is gender segmentation in civic associational activities, and that men are more involved than women in political activities, except for voting. Among those involved in civic activities, however, women attend meetings more often than men or about equally in all types of activities under consideration, except for sports and recreational pursuits. This highlights the need to differentiate between type and intensity of civic participation and provides empirical evidence that Latin American women have strong community ties through a variety of organizations. The regression analysis shows that civic engagement has a positive effect on political participation but that the magnitude of that effect varies by gender depending on the activity.

Type
Research Article
Information
Latin American Politics and Society , Volume 57 , Issue 1 , Spring 2015 , pp. 123 - 138
Copyright
Copyright © University of Miami 2015

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