Conceptions of female political representation : Perspectives of Rwandan female representatives

SynopsisAn increasing amount of research has investigated the number of female representatives in national Parliaments (descriptive representation) and the effect on both policy output (substantive representation) and women's political participation and trust (symbolic representation). Little research exists, however, on how female representatives themselves think about female political representation and no study has empirically investigated their conceptions of female political representation. Using Q methodology, this explorative one case study investigates the conceptions of female political representation held by female representatives in the Rwandan Parliament, which is the most gender-equal Parliament in the world. On the basis of our analysis, three groups of female representatives emerged, each with a unique conception of female political representation: female representatives focusing on (a) symbolic and descriptive representations; (b) symbolic representation and power; and (c) substantive representation. These conceptions matter because they are crucial to our understanding of female representatives' actual behavior.