Depression and the gender gap in political interest

Ojeda, Christopher, Bernardi, Luca ORCID: 0000-0001-5875-9990 and Landwehr, Claudia (2023) Depression and the gender gap in political interest ELECTORAL STUDIES, 82. 102598-. ISSN 0261-3794, 1873-6890

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Abstract

It is well-documented that women report less interest in politics than men on average. We argue that depression—and the differential strategies used to cope with its symptoms—contribute to this persistent gender gap in political interest. While women tend to rely on rumination when experiencing depression, there is less agreement on men's coping strategies. Depressive symptoms should thus more greatly reduce political interest among women than among men. We analyze data from the European Social Survey and the German GESIS Panel Study. We find some evidence that depressive symptoms, even those that are sub-clinical and short-lived, reduce political interest among women, but have little or no effect on the political interest of men. These findings have implications for political and gender equality, especially with the rising prevalence of depression around the world, and contribute to our understanding of the impact of depression on political engagement.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Political interest, Gender, Depression, Mental health, Political inequality
Divisions:	Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences > School of Histories, Languages and Cultures
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	13 Feb 2023 09:01
Last Modified:	16 Jun 2026 10:52
DOI:	10.1016/j.electstud.2023.102598
Related Websites:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3168363
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