Replication Data for: A Theory of Gender's Role on Presidential Approval Ratings in Corrupt Times

The rise of female chief executives appears to signal gender progress, but this may not be unequivocally so. This article advances a contextual theory for the role of gender on leaders’ approval ratings, a key measure of “success” and source of executive power. I argue that because of gendered expectations and discourse, female presidents will receive lower approval ratings in contexts of corruption. The study focuses on Latin America, known for its powerful, masculinist presidential regimes and its democratically-elected female leaders. I first trace the gendered construction of President Michelle Bachelet’s image as an honest mother. Upon a presidential scandal, higher standards and gendered discourse resulted in deeply disappointed citizens, significantly undermining her popularity. Models of 18 Latin American countries next reveal a negative impact of being a female—rather than a male—president on approval ratings. Marginal effects plots show that female presidents score worse than their male counterparts in contexts of at least one presidential scandal and higher executive corruption. This article contributes to the growing literature on gender and corruption. It also challenges some conventional wisdom on the pro-women consequences of female leadership in providing a more nuanced account of the role of gender in the executive branch.

女性国家行政首长的崛起看似昭示着性别进步，但这未必全然如此。本文提出了一种情境化理论，用以阐释性别对领导人支持率的作用——后者是衡量行政首长“政绩”与权力来源的核心指标。笔者认为，由于性别化的社会期待与话语叙事，在腐败横行的情境中，女性国家元首的支持率会更低。本研究聚焦拉丁美洲——该地区以强势的男性中心主义总统制及民主选举产生的女性国家元首而闻名。笔者首先梳理了米歇尔·巴切莱特总统以“诚实母亲”形象进行的性别化建构。在总统丑闻爆发后，更高的道德标准与性别化话语使得民众深感失望，大幅削弱了她的民望。随后针对18个拉美国家的模型分析显示，相较于男性总统，女性总统的支持率会受到负面影响。边际效应图表明，在至少发生过一起总统丑闻且行政腐败程度较高的情境中，女性总统的支持率得分显著低于男性同行。本文为不断发展的性别与腐败研究学术脉络做出了贡献。同时，本文也挑战了部分关于女性领导将惠及女性群体的传统共识，为阐释行政分支中性别角色的作用提供了更为精细的分析视角。