Not in His Image: The Moderating Effect of Gender on Religious Appeals

Abstract

Religious appeals have been part and parcel of campaign strategy for decades. Most often, however, these appeals to have come from men, but little is known about howwomenwould fare using religious appeals on the campaign trail. To remedy this, we used an experimental design to examine voter reaction to religious appeals from a female and a male candidate competing for an open United States Senate seat. We find that women's use of religious appeals is governed by the dynamics of tokenism — reinforcing traditional gender stereotypes and serving to reduce voter support of the female candidate. This suggests that women must be careful in using a key campaign tool traditionally employed by men, and that this may affect the extent to which female candidates can effectively shape voter perceptions on the campaign trail.

Religion, Gendered Authority, and Identity in American Politics

“…Scholars have also shown that the concentration of politically-active, conservative evangelicals in states inversely relates to the proportion of women in state legislatures, suggesting support for traditional gender roles translates into preferences for male candidates and leadership (Merolla, Schroedel, and Holman 2007). Future research could explore the effect of masculine views of authority on gender stereotypes, support for female candidates, and women's willingness to run for political office (Calfano and Djupe 2011). Given that we find different effects for men and women, continued research on how these beliefs shape political behavior and engagement among women is particularly important.…”

Cueing God: Religious Cues and Voter Support

“…Calfano and Djupe (2011) demonstrate how covert religious cues stop being advantageous when females deliver them because citizens tend to more critically evaluate messages from females. Calfano and Djupe (2011) demonstrate how covert religious cues stop being advantageous when females deliver them because citizens tend to more critically evaluate messages from females.…”

Belonging In a “Christian Nation”: The Explicit and Implicit Associations between Religion and National Group Membership

“…Politicians can use subtly coded religious language and Americans pick up on it, altering their assessments of candidates for elected office (Calfano and Djupe 2011). Politicians can use subtly coded religious language and Americans pick up on it, altering their assessments of candidates for elected office (Calfano and Djupe 2011).…”