An Early Leak in the Pipeline–Online Abuse as a Barrier for Young Women’s Political Engagement

Abstract

To what extent does online abuse on social media platforms obstruct an equal representation of women and men in politics? We investigate the frequency, character, and consequences of online abuse among youth party members and ask to what extent it affects women’s and men’s decisions to pursue a career in politics. Empirically, we draw on an original survey of youth party members in Switzerland. The results show pronounced gendered patterns in the character and consequences of online abuse. First, young women are more likely to be attacked based on their gender. Second, women youth party members are more likely to indicate that personal experiences with abuse on social media are an obstacle to their political work as well as a reason for them to resign from politics. Our analysis demonstrates that online abuse discourages many young women from running for political office before their actual political careers have even begun.