Gender Quotas and Women's Representation

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts related to gender quotas and women's representation in politics.

Gender Quotas

Constitutional regulations, electoral laws, or party rules that require a certain percentage of candidates or legislators to be women.

Reserved Seats

Seats set aside for women in parliaments as a type of legal quota.

Legislative Quotas

Require a certain percentage of political parties’ nominees to be women.

Voluntary Party Quotas

Individual parties promise to nominate a certain percentage of women candidates without any enforcement mechanism.

Parity Quotas

Quotas that aim for equal numbers of men and women in political representation.

Placement Mechanisms

Requires parties to place women in electable positions.

Relative Deprivation

The idea that women protest when their lived experiences don’t match their expectations, especially related to gender discrimination.

Resource Mobilization

The concept that protests require resources, making it easier for women to organize when they have such resources.

INGOs

International Non-Governmental Organizations that work across countries independently from any government.

WINGOs

Women’s International Non-Governmental Organizations that support women in organizing protests and provide necessary resources.

Intersectionality

The idea that various forms of discrimination are interrelated and create multiple barriers to power.

Social Movement Activism

Activism that aims to change public opinion and policy by engaging citizens and sending signals to political elites.

Peace Agreements

Formal accords intended to end hostilities and establish the terms for peace between conflicting parties.

Role Model Effects

The phenomenon where individuals pursue certain goals or careers after seeing others they identify with succeed.

Signaling Game

A situation where adopting gender quotas demonstrates a country’s commitment to gender equality and democracy.

CEDAW

Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, an important UN treaty for promoting women's rights.

Boomerang Effect

When domestic women's groups connect with international organizations for coordination, support, and resources.

Tandem Quotas

National gender and minority quotas implemented simultaneously.

Mixed Quotas

Any combination of party level and national level gender or minority quotas.

Political Utility of Women

Increased perception of the value and effectiveness of women in politics, usually after civil wars.

Hypervisibility

The phenomenon where women of diverse backgrounds stand out due to identifiable features, which may lead to gendered discrimination.