Party and Gender Stereotypes in Campaign Attacks

被引:0
作者
Erin C. Cassese
Mirya R. Holman
机构
[1] West Virginia University,Department of Political Science
[2] Tulane University,Department of Political Science
来源
Political Behavior | 2018年 / 40卷
关键词
Negative campaigning; Stereotypes; Traits; Issue ownership; Vote choice; Gender; Partisanship;
D O I
暂无
中图分类号
学科分类号
摘要
Research on negative campaigning has largely overlooked the role of stereotypes. In this study, we argue that the gender and partisan stereotypes associated with traits and policy issues interact with a candidate’s gender and partisanship to shape the effectiveness of campaign attacks. We draw on expectancy-violation theory to argue that candidates may be evaluated more harshly when attacks suggest the candidate has violated stereotypic assumptions about their group. Thus, attacks on a candidate’s “home turf,” or those traits or issues traditionally associated with their party or gender, may be more effective in reducing support for the attacked candidate. We use two survey experiments to examine the effects of stereotype-based attacks—a Trait Attack Study and an Issue Attack Study. The results suggest that female candidates are particularly vulnerable to trait based attacks that challenge stereotypically feminine strengths. Both male and female candidates proved vulnerable to attacks on policy issues stereotypically associated with their party and gender, but the negative effects of all forms of stereotype-based attacks were especially large for democratic women. Our results offer new insights into the use of stereotypes in negative campaigning and their consequences for the electoral fortunes of political candidates.
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页码:785 / 807
页数:22
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