Religion, Gender, and Participation: Survey Experimental Evidence from Colombia

• In Event: Comparative Politics of Gender in the Global South Mini-Conference: Gender and Mobilization

Abstract

We investigate the effects of religious doctrine about gender roles on support for gender equality. More specifically, we investigate whether Evangelical Pentecostal teachings are more likely to fuel support for gender equality than Catholic ones in the Latin American context. While this may seem a counter-intuitive proposition, in fact scholars of Latin American and African religion have for some decades observed differences in gender doctrine between these traditions. On the one hand, Catholic discourse focuses on women as mothers, with traditional ideas of femininity rooted in self-sacrifice and forbearance. In contrast, (some) Latin American Evangelical churches’ prescribe more equal responsibilities for both sexes in sustaining homes and families. They also legitimize women operating in non-traditional capacities, such as being single or having careers. Thus, each bears distinct implications for how believers perceive women’s roles inside and outside the home. To test the effects of these real-world religious doctrines, we use a randomized online survey experiment in Colombia with 3000 participants to compare the effect of an Evangelical Pentecostal and a Catholic sermon about gender roles (as well as a neutral sermon) on attitudinal and behavioral outcomes related to the division of domestic tasks between men and women, and women’s economic and political participation. The treatments (sermons) are delivered in an audio format (recordings by a professional voice actor), and were synthesized by combining paragraphs from actual Pentecostal and Catholic sermons delivered by churches based in Bogota, Colombia, that are published on YouTube. We believe the results of this study will elucidate the surprising ways in which religious doctrine can further the pursuit of gender equality.

Authors

• Radha Sarkar, Yale University

• Ana Sofia Elverdin, Yale University

• Sebastian Lucek, Stanford University