It´s widely believed that emotions play a crucial role in politics. Experimental studies have shown that emotional communication of politicians can influence political judgments and decisions of recipients. However, these studies often disregard that gender mediates the effects of emotions on political attitudes. According to the double blind dilemma, women suffer from strong stereotypical expectations in male dominated fields such as politics, particularly from expectations regarding their emotional behavior.
However, stereotypes are cognitive schemata, which associate social groups with negative as well as positive traits. Therefore, we suppose that women candidates can also improve their impression as credible or likeable by showing specific gender-appropriate emotions. To test this hypothesis, we conducted an online experiment whereby participants watched emotional expressions of female and male politicians and assessed these politicians thereafter. The results indicate that displaying positive emotions is particularly beneficial for ratings of female politicians.
In order to assess the real-word relevance of these causal relationships, we carry out a visual media content analysis of 5000 video sequences based on a sample of 70 news broadcasts and 20 political talk shows. This comprehensive sample includes video sequences of German politicians from various positions within the political system on regional and national levels. Using this material we aim to answer the following question: How does the emotional (self-)presentation differ between female and male politicians on television? How frequently and intensly do female and male politicians actually express emotions? Do female politicians show ‘female’ emotions like hope, fear, sadness and happiness more often than their male counterparts do? Furthermore, we also investigate, whether the mass media portrays female politicians to appear more emotionally. This includes the analysis of media strategies such as the intentional use of camera angles and music recordings.
