Survey of Women State Legislators, 1976

These data were collected in order to assess the impact of the feminist movement on women who served in the 1975-1976 sessions of their state legislatures, and to determine whether or not the women's movement was a factor in increasing the number of female lawmakers. In late 1976, a self-administered questionnaire was mailed to 611 female legislators; 437 completed instruments were returned. The questionnaire contained six categories: personal and family characteristics, political characteristics, recruitment and reasons for running for office, community organization involvement, attitudes and issues related to improving the status of women, and explanations for the increasing rate of female state legislative aspirants.