Beyond Rhetoric: A Quantitative Analysis on the Influence of Right-Wing Populism on Gender Equality Within the European Union.

The rise of populism within the European Union (EU) threatens the protection of human rights, including gender-equality. Although several studies tried to explain the effect of populism on gender-equality, they do so by using case study analyses focusing mainly on populist rhetoric. To deepen the understanding of previous research, this study reanalyzes the effect of populism on gender-equality. I add to the existing literature by taking a quantitative approach studying the effect of right-wing populism on gender-equality within the EU. Using an Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression analysis, I combine several datasets to explore the relationship between 2010 and 2021 within all EU member states. I hypothesize that countries which contain a higher share of right-wing populist posts as part of the total cabinet posts, show lower levels of gender-equality. To test this hypothesis, I identify right-wing populist parties within the EU by using data of the Supplement to the Comparative...Show moreThe rise of populism within the European Union (EU) threatens the protection of human rights, including gender-equality. Although several studies tried to explain the effect of populism on gender-equality, they do so by using case study analyses focusing mainly on populist rhetoric. To deepen the understanding of previous research, this study reanalyzes the effect of populism on gender-equality. I add to the existing literature by taking a quantitative approach studying the effect of right-wing populism on gender-equality within the EU. Using an Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression analysis, I combine several datasets to explore the relationship between 2010 and 2021 within all EU member states. I hypothesize that countries which contain a higher share of right-wing populist posts as part of the total cabinet posts, show lower levels of gender-equality. To test this hypothesis, I identify right-wing populist parties within the EU by using data of the Supplement to the Comparative Political Data Set – Government Composition 1960-2021 dataset (CPDS). Moreover, I operationalize gender-equality consulting the Gender Equality Index (GEI) measured by the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE). The results illustrate the effect of populism on gender-equality is context-dependent, meaning that populism only influences some areas of gender-equality.Show less

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Beyond Rhetoric: A Quantitative Analysis on the Influence of Right-Wing Populism on Gender Equality Within the European Union.