A_09 Politicized Gender Issues Between Voting Behavior and Online Communication

The work package (WP) investigates processes of politicization and polarization surrounding gender issues on three levels: individual attitudes, social media discourses, and party positions. It examines whether divergent political attitudes give rise to societal conflicts and polarization tendencies that become visible in social media and in voting behavior. In doing so, the WP contributes to the overarching research focus by analyzing the relationship between politicization processes and social cohesion in the context of negotiating gender as a structuring feature of society.

Gender issues constitute a contested field of transformation, with a focus on gender equality for women, recognition discourses surrounding LGBTIQ+ individuals, the legitimacy of abortion, conceptions of the gendered division of labor within families, and the rise of essentialist gender ideologies. Despite egalitarian developments, demands for gender equality and related policies increasingly encounter resistance and trigger controversies as societal “flashpoints.” At the same time, democratic countries exhibit divergent developments, ranging from the expansion to the rollback of gender equality measures. These discursive and institutional trends are commonly interpreted as a gender backlash.

The politicization of gender issues intensifies societal conflicts that become particularly visible on social media and at the party-political level. Gender thus operates either as an independent line of division (gender cleavage) in political decision-making processes—for example, in welfare state design and voting behavior—or as an additional politicizing category within existing conflicts, such as those surrounding migration or environmental protection.

Analyzing processes of politicization and polarization across the examined levels allows for conclusions about the forms, dynamics, and interactions of positions on gender issues within and between different discourse arenas. The analysis explores whether the salience of gender issues increases steadily or whether abrupt rises and declines in public attention can be observed. It is conceivable that online debates on gender issues are conducted in a more polarized manner than individual attitude patterns in the general population would suggest. At the same time, heated controversies may increase public salience and contribute to the politicization of the issue, thereby influencing attitudes and party positions. The analyses shed light on when the politicization of these differences turns into destructive forms of polarization and when it contributes to the constructive handling of societal conflicts.

In this context, the WP addresses the following questions: To what extent are individual attitudes toward gender issues polarized? To what degree can an increased politicization of gender issues on social media platforms be observed in recent years? What relevance do individual attitudes have for voting behavior when other political lines of division, such as climate change, migration, and economic redistribution, are taken into account (issue packaging)? What party-political mobilization potential corresponds to this, and how do parties engage in the politicization of gender issues?