Research question/goal:

The central aim of the project is to develop a theoretical framework for the emergence of women’s social citizenship. SheCitizen proposes a systematic investigation of the policy consequences of female parliamentarians through their agenda setting. The research spans 18 advanced capitalist countries from 1883 to 1980. Empirically, the project uses two complementary approaches: a systematic comparative analysis and in-depth case analyses. First, annual country-year analyses examine links between female parliamentary representation and women’s social citizenship rights, drawing on a newly constructed historical database covering civil codes, constitutions, labor regulations, and welfare legislation. The analysis considers whether female parliamentarians were linked to changes in policy outcomes directly or indirectly— via political parties. Second, in-depth studies of parliamentary discourse identify the policy stances of female MPs and parties and assess whether female MPs shifted discourse within or across parties. Together, these contributions open new lines of inquiry in gender politics by showing how the initial translation of gender cleavages into party competition helped set trajectories for subsequent partisan politics.