Women in public office are often assumed to "make a difference" for
women, as women--in other words, to represent their female
constituents better than do their male counterparts. But is sex
really an accurate predictor of a legislator's political choices
and actions? In this book, Beth Reingold compares the
representational activities and attitudes of male and female
members of the Arizona and California state legislatures to
illuminate the broader implications of the election and integration
of women into public office. In the process, she challenges many of
the assumptions that underlie popular expectations of women and men
in politics.
Using in-depth interviews, survey responses, and legislative
records, Reingold actually uncovers more similarities between
female and male politicians than differences. Moreover, the stories
she presents strongly suggest that rather than assuming that
who our representatives are determines
what they will
do in office, we must acknowledge the possibility that the
influence of gender on legislative behavior can be weakened,
distorted, or accentuated by powerful forces within the social and
political contexts of elective office.