Kathy Gooch Draft Thesis
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BECAUSE SHE’S A WOMAN: GENDER STEREOTYPES AND WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION IN AUSTRALIAN POLITICS KATHRYN GOOCH 2015 A dissertation by Kathryn Gooch, BA (Hons.), University of Western Sydney Submitted for the degree requirements of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY under the supervision of: Dr Kate Gleeson, PhD Senior Lecturer, Macquarie Law School and Professor Marion Maddox, PhD, PhD ARC Future Fellow, Modern History, Politics and International Relations, Macquarie University and Dr Judy Lattas, Interdisciplinary Gender Studies, Macquarie University. July, 2015 Candidate Declaration I certify that the thesis entitled Because She’s A Woman: Gender Stereotypes and Women’s Participation in Australian Politics and submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Politics is my own work. It is the result of my own research, except where otherwise acknowledged, and has not previously been submitted as part of the requirements for a higher degree to any institution other than Macquarie University. I declare that all information sources and literature used are appropriately acknowledged. Signature: ………………………………… Date: ……………………… Student ID: 41683110 i Acknowledgements My acknowledgement and gratitude is first directed to Professor Marion Maddox, whose gentle guidance was integral to my completion of this thesis. Marion’s consistent confidence in my research was especially encouraging. I once remarked to Marion that simply being in her presence was calming and inspiring; this, along with Michael’s perfect coffees, is to be blamed for my tendency to stretch out our supervision meetings. I have learned a great deal more from Marion than I could have anticipated: about research and academy; politics, the media and cynicism; and how much personality chickens have. I am thankful for everything Marion has taught me and hope this thesis reflects the inspiration her dedicated supervision provided. I am also thankful for the opportunity to work with Dr Kate Gleeson and Dr Judy Lattas. Kate has been extremely positive, practical and patient, and without her calm guidance this thesis may never have survived its evolution from ‘submitted’ to ‘revised’. Judy is extremely generous with her formidable wealth of knowledge and expertise, and her forthright manner and insightful advice has been especially helpful throughout the PhD process. Even when on the other side of the world, Judy contributed time and effort to guiding my research and writing, which was very much appreciated. A number of other academics also contributed to the completion of this thesis. I would like to thank Murray Goot for his generous feedback on chapter 8, and acknowledge the many useful comments from anonymous reviewers on earlier versions of chapters 3, 6 and 9 which were submitted for publication. To my CRSI colleagues and friends, Liberty, Gai and Bona, thank you for your kindness, laughter and understanding. Thanks also to my wonderful friends Jackie, David, Dawn, Danisa, Tanya, Pariece, Deborah and Ebony, for the mental stimulation and entertainment, support and exercise that has kept me sane, and for putting up with my regular absences over the last few years. Words cannot describe the gratitude I feel for my parents, Jim and Glenda Gooch. They have carried more of my burden than seems fair, supplying not only regular coffee, meals, babysitting and cash donations, but an incredible amount of emotional support. Initially I felt this journey was a solo one, and that as a single parent I was battling on my own. In the intensive process of researching and writing a PhD, however, I learned that I have never been alone: my parents continue to support my little family and I in any way they can. I am humbled by their selflessness and offer the deepest thanks. Finally, the biggest thanks of all must go to my children, Harry and Cordelia, who supported me with cuddles whenever I needed them. They helped tidy the house when it became unbearable; they put up with quick-fix meals when I was at my computer (which was a lot); and they encouraged me when things became difficult, which was very mature for 8 and 11 year olds. Most of all, Harry and Cordy have waited, and waited, and waited for this PhD to be over. So, to the two most wonderful people in the world, Harry and Cordy, thank you - it is finally done. ii Contents Declaration ................................................................................................................................ i Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................. ii Abstract .................................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................ 2 Research context ...................................................................................................................... 4 Overview .................................................................................................................................. 9 PART ONE: INTERDISCIPLINARY THEORETICAL FRAMEWORKS AND METHODOLOGY 1. Women and politics: An interdisciplinary approach ........................................................ 15 1.1 Interdisciplinary research frameworks................................................................. 15 1.1.1 The feminist study of politics and gender ............................................. 16 1.1.2 Stereotype theories and the social positioning of women..................... 22 1.1.3 Social and political psychological frameworks .................................... 34 1.2 Importance and Contribution ............................................................................... 40 2. Methodology ..................................................................................................................... 47 2.1 An introduction to discourse ................................................................................ 52 2.2 Critical Discourse Analysis ................................................................................. 53 2.3 Discourse: the political press ............................................................................... 61 2.4 Method overview ................................................................................................. 64 2.5 Chapter-specific methods - current discourses .................................................... 68 2.5.1 Online comments as data source ........................................................... 70 2.5.2 Stereotypes and self-representations ..................................................... 74 2.6 Chapter-specific methods - historical discourses................................................. 79 2.7 Chapter-specific methods - challenging and re-visioning future discourses ....... 80 2.8 Scope and limitations ........................................................................................... 82 PART TWO: DISCOURSES AND COUNTER-DISCOURSES 3. ‘Our First Female Prime Minister’ .................................................................................... 87 3.1 Political context ................................................................................................... 89 3.2 Early responses .................................................................................................... 91 3.3 Hostility ............................................................................................................... 96 3.4 Election ................................................................................................................ 99 4. ‘Gender Lunacy’? Gendered Voting in Press Reports of the Australian 2010 Federal Election Campaign .................................................................................... 111 4.1 Media, the internet and political participation ................................................... 114 4.2 Mainstream representations of gendered voting in 2010 ................................... 119 4.2.1 Polling ................................................................................................. 121 4.2.2 Leaders debate .................................................................................... 124 4.2.3 Letters to the editor ............................................................................. 126 iii 4.3 Women’s responses ............................................................................................ 127 4.3.1 Denial .................................................................................................. 132 4.3.2 Political literacy ................................................................................... 134 4.3.3 Irrelevance ........................................................................................... 135 4.3.4 Abbott .................................................................................................. 136 4.3.5 Critique of reasoning ........................................................................... 136 4.4 Discussion .......................................................................................................... 138 PART THREE: PSYCHOLOGICAL RESPONSES 5. ‘Mere Mood Music’? Does Politics Make a Difference to Women’s Online Participation? ...................................................................................... 143 5.1 ‘Political’ and ‘non-political’ articles ................................................................