Poster #41 - Gender Disparities in Indian Youths’ Political Interest and Aspirations

• In Event: Poster Session 14

Abstract

Background: India lags behind in measures of female political representation, and Indian women are less involved in politics (Iyer & Mani, 2019). Only 14% of its Parliament is female, yet there is scant research exploring gender differences in Indian youths’ political interests and aspirations. This study examines gender differences in how Indian girls perceive and aspire to engage in politics.
Methods: Kuviraa, an Indian non-profit working with girls and young women to increase female political representation in India, conducted a preliminary survey in November 2021 with 419 Indian youth from 24 different states (64.2% female, Mage=19).
In November of 2022, we will distribute an updated survey to Indian youth ages 14-22, with an anticipated sample size of 500-1000 youth. Youth will be recruited via Kuviraa’s network of youth-focused non-profits, schools, and parents. The survey will be virtual and available in English and Hindi. Data will be analyzed using a combination of descriptive, regression analysis and structural equation modeling to explore differences in youths’ political interest, political efficacy, and political career aspirations by gender. Measures are drawn from prior research on gender differences in youths’ political interests and aspirations (e.g. Bos et al., 2021; Kahne, Middaugh, & Schutjer-Mance, 2005; Maurissen, 2020).
Results: The November 2021 survey revealed several important gender gaps:
Political Knowledge: More than half of the boys surveyed (51%) reported familiarity with India’s political processes and institutions compared with only 40% of girls.
Political Aspirations: When asked if they were likely to get involved in politics in the future, only 19% of girls expressed a high likelihood as compared to 32% of boys.
Positive Perceptions of Political Leaders: Only 9% of girls had a positive perception of India’s political leaders compared to 16% of boys.
For this proposal, we will present findings from the updated November 2022 survey on the following hypotheses:
RQ1: What are gender differences in youths’ political interest, efficacy, and aspirations?
H1: Girls will have lower political interest, efficacy, and aspirations than boys.
RQ2: What are gender differences in youths’ level of family support for their political engagement?
H2: Girls will receive less family support for their political engagement than boys.
RQ3: What is the relationship between level of family support and youths’ political interest, efficacy, and aspirations, analyzed by gender?
H3: Girls’ level of family support for their political involvement will be positively associated with their level of political interest, efficacy, and aspirations.
Implications: Women’s political participation and representation is an important part of any functioning democracy. The results from this study will help scholars, parents, and educators understand ways to better support Indian girls in aspiring to political engagement and careers.

Authors

• Laura Wray-Lake, University of California - Los Angeles
  Presenting Author

• Sara Wilf, University of California - Los Angeles

• Shevika Mishra, Kuviraa