Why Are Young Women Less Politically Interested? Resources, Socialization, and Social Context in Adolescence

• In Event: Children and Youth Section Open Call Paper Session

Abstract

Social scientists have long documented a persistent gender gap in political engagement that emerges in childhood and endures into adulthood. Competing explanations attribute this gap to differences in political resources, gendered patterns of socialization within families and schools, and broader institutional and cultural contexts. Yet few studies directly assess these explanations simultaneously and even less is known about whether they operate similarly among majority and minority youth. Using data from the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Survey in Four European Countries (CILS4EU), this study tests these competing accounts to explain variation in political interest among adolescents across four European countries. By situating gender gaps within migration and cross-national contexts, the project sheds light on the social origins of political inequality and clarifies the conditions under which gender differences in political interest emerge.

Authors

• Muna Adem, University of Notre Dame

• Patricia A. McManus