The Gendered Construction of Interpersonal Power in Political Office

Abstract

This study examines the use of interpersonal power by women in elected political positions.  Power relationships, access to power, and the way in which power is perceived and wielded, are heavily influenced by the individual’s gender schema. Gender schema, by nature of its social construction and reliance on individual cognition, is influenced by the power relationships that the individual engages in. At the hub of the schema’s attempt to evaluate and organize information are interaction and the reinforcing power that is achieved through social acceptance of the individual. The basis of interaction, then, becomes the gender appropriate use of power. The analyses of data test a single hypothesis: H1:  Female and male political leaders will differ in their uses of interpersonal power. Strong support is seen in the findings for the gendered construction of interpersonal power in political office. The differences between males and females identified in the findings indicate that females receive different information than males about the acceptability of their roles and that females both process information differently from males and employ different sources and levels of interpersonal power to achieve their goals. Males are more likely to rely on both coercion and expert power, while females are more likely to rely on connection power, the power of important relationships. This reliance on social network suggests a direct linkage between gender and the formation of interpersonal power.