Message from the President

Anticipating Atlanta!

Pippa Norris, Harvard University

The Women and Politics Section continues to expand, with more than 500 members including faculty, graduate students and other scholars. We had a very successful and well-attended annual meeting at the 1998 APSA meeting in Boston. Our official program included a wide range of papers in 11 panels.

The pre-APSA one-day, workshop on "Frontiers of Women and Politics Research"—which was co-sponsored by the section and held at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University on September 2, 1998—attracted around 80 graduate students for a full day of meetings. Another 50 members of the section attended the informal evening reception that followed. The workshop proved invaluable as a way of networking and breaking the ice, especially for younger scholars, and Karen Beckwith is to be congratulated for organizing this event.

At this year’s APSA meeting September 2-5, 1999 in Atlanta, we have an exciting program with 14 panels and a poster session organized by Eileen McDonagh. This includes two themes, each of which have a series of consecutive panels on "Gender and Leadership" and "Feminist Activism." There is also a one-day, pre-APSA workshop on Gender, Political Representation, and Civic Identity, co-sponsored with the Politics and History section. Course organizers are Eileen McDonagh (Northeastern, emcd@neu.edu), Carol Nackenoff (Swarthmore, cnacken1@swarthmore.edu), and Gretchen Ritter (Texas, Austin, ritter@mail.utexas.edu). The workshop explores the use of historical and analytical approaches for the study of the relationship between gender and the construction of political representation and civic identity. I hope many members will apply to participate in this workshop. Further details are available from the organizers.

We also will be organizing another reception in Atlanta, with additional details to follow. Eileen is to be congratulated on doing an excellent job at a time when the number of applicants who want to present at our annual meeting is steadily rising, thereby increasing the workload involved in this task. The number of panels we are allocated depends upon attendance at the previous year’s meeting. So, the more members who attend our panels in Atlanta, the more slots we will have available for presentations at Washington, DC, August 31-September 3, 2000.

This year we have made a real effort to produce a revised and updated homepage for the Women and Politics Research section, and details can be found at:

http://www.apsanet.org/~wpol/

The web page currently includes:

• details about the provisional program organized for Atlanta;
• information about the annual awards for the best paper and best dissertation;
• contact details for the officers and executive council;
• an extensive set of links to related groups;
• an e-mail directory of our members, available for searching;
• the newsletter;
• announcements;
• calls for papers; and,
• a summary of the one-day workshop on the "Frontiers of Women and Politics Research" held September 2, 1998 in Boston, including papers and photos of the event.

• draft conference papers,
• syllabi on Women and Politics,
• research resources/datasets on Women and Politics,
• links to the home pages of members,
• links to departments offering courses in Women and Politics,
• announcements of new books,
• announcements of new jobs,
• links to graduate student networks and contacts,
• and so on.

Finally, we believe that the mailing costs for distributing the newsletter by traditional post involves a considerable drain on our modest budget, involves staff hours for the editor, and slows down the distribution process. We are, therefore, experimenting with distributing the newsletter this year in electronic form by e-mail and by simultaneously posting it on the web. Nearly all our members (more than 500 out of 577) are now on e-mail. We will continue to print up a few copies for those who do not have this facility or who would prefer the traditional paper copy. We will evaluate this policy at the annual business meeting in Atlanta to see how members feel about this change of distribution. But, we hope it will allow us to produce a more timely newsletter and will allow us to use our meager resources for other services to members (like a great reception in Atlanta!)

You can send copy for the next newsletter, which will be e-mailed and posted on the website in August 1999, to editor Dianne Bystrom at dbystrom@iastate.edu.

Look forward to seeing y’all in Atlanta!

Eileen McDonagh, Northeastern University
Program Organizer

This year’s APSA meeting on September 2-5 in Atlanta will feature 14 panels sponsored or co-sponsored by the Women and Politics Research Section and a poster session. Highlights of the program as well as a listing of panels follows:

Theme Panels—The Women and Politics Research Section is sponsoring two sets of theme panels: "Gender and Leadership" and "Feminist Activism." Each set consists of three panels, and each panel within each theme will be scheduled consecutively. See below for a listing of these panels along with other panel and poster presentations.

Co-Sponsored Panels—The Women and Politics Research Section is co-sponsoring a number of panels with other divisions, including Law and Courts; Foundations of Political Theory, Elections and Voting; Representation and Electoral Systems; Politics and History; and Race, Ethnicity and Politics.

Short Course/Workshop: Gender, Political Representation, and Civic Identity—The Women and Politics Research Section is sponsoring a Short Course/Workshop in collaboration with the Politics and History Division. Course organizers are Eileen McDonagh (Northeastern, emcd@neu.edu), Carol Nackenoff (Swarthmore, cnacken1@swarthmore.edu), and Gretchen Ritter (Texas, Austin, ritter@mail.utexas.edu). The Course explores the use of historical and analytical approaches for the study of the relationship between gender and the construction of political representation and civic identity. The causes and consequences of gendered political regimes and institutions will be examined from a wide range of feminist perspectives, including social movements, maternalist welfare state policies, and the incorporation of women as full citizens. The emphasis will be on the United States in the context of theories and models of American political development, but cross-national comparisons will be included where possible. All are welcome to contribute ideas and to indicate topics of interest. Please e-mail, call, or write to course organizers at your earliest convenience.

Thanks to all. On behalf of the Women and Politics Research Section, I wish to thank all those who submitted the many fascinating proposals for papers, panels and posters. We have an unusually active membership, as reflected by the hundreds of submissions received. Unfortunately, the APSA allotted only 11 panels to our division, which severely limited the number of papers that could be accepted, even when accounting for co-sponsorship with other divisions.

Let me encourage everyone not only to continue their active research programs, but also to support the research of others by attending as many of the panels sponsored by our division as possible. The APSA panel allotments for next year will be based on attendance at this year’s panels. So, by supporting Women and Politics presentations, you will hear first-hand the full scope of research projects of our members and increase the likelihood that we will have more presenters next year.

Pippa Norris, president of the Women and Politics Research Section, has created a new, updated and improved version of our web page. The web page includes details about the forthcoming program for our section at the September 2-5, 1999, meeting in Atlanta, where Eileen McDonagh has created an excellent program; as well as a recap about the September 1998 one-day workshop in Boston; details about the executive officers, information about our awards; a long list of related feminist links, this newsletter, and so on.

Check out our new, revised web site at: http://www.apsanet.org/~wpol/

We also would like to include links to any on-line syllabi that members may have on the web as well as a searchable e-mail directory of members, links to centers on women and politics, and so on. Send information to Pippa Norris at pippa_norris@harvard.edu.

The Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics at Iowa State University is accepting abstracts for papers to present at its seventh annual conference on women and politics and applications for its $1,000 research prize through July 1, 1999.

The Center’s 1999 conference, "World Politics: Women Moving to the Center Stage," will be presented in conjunction with the International Studies Association-Midwest on October 8-10 at the Savery Hotel in Des Moines, Iowa. The joint conference seeks to explore international peace and politics, including the role and status of women¾ politically, socially and economically ¾ around the world. Scholars from political science, women’s studies, public administration, communication, rhetoric, journalism, history, sociology, and other disciplines are invited to submit abstracts of theoretical papers, position papers, original databased studies and developed research proposals for consideration.

Papers should relate to the conference’s general theme. Of particular interest will be papers that explore the challenges that women face, in terms of access to the political power structure, and how this has been affected by changes in their government. Papers addressing women’s impact as a mobilized force upon their political, economic and social rights in various nations are encouraged. Also, family, religion and culture serve as determinants of women’s political status and would be welcome units of analysis for paper presentation. All of these topical areas are broadly conceived.

To be considered for presentation, authors should submit, postmarked or faxed by July 1, 1999:

• an abstract of 250 words maximum that describes the main focus of the paper and methodology; and
• a cover page with title of paper, complete names and titles of all authors, and mailing addresses and telephone numbers where they can be reached in August 1999.

The Center also is accepting applications for the 1999 Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research on Women and Politics. This annual competition is designed to encourage and reward scholars embarking on significant research in the area of women and politics. The prize includes a $1,000 cash award and travel expenses to Des Moines, Iowa, where awards will be presented October 8-10, 1999 during the seventh annual Catt Center conference. More than one $1,000 prize may be awarded, and honorable mention prizes also may be granted. Prize recipients will present an overview of their research at the conference.

Research projects submitted for prize consideration can address this year’s conference theme¾ which will explore the role of women as political leaders, social and political activists, and participants in the arena of world politics¾ or any other topic related to women and politics.

Scholars at any level, including graduate students and junior faculty members can apply. To be considered for the prize, applicants should submit, postmarked or faxed by July 1, 1999:

• a detailed description of the research project, including its goals, its relationship to previous work in the field, the methodology employed, and a timetable for completion;
• a cover letter outlining the researcher’s professional interests and experiences related to the project and providing mailing addresses and telephone numbers where s/he can be reached in September 1999;
• and a current curriculum vitae.

Abstracts of papers to present at the 1999 conference and/or proposals for the Catt Prize for Research on Women and Politics should be sent to: Dr. Dianne Bystrom, Director; Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics, 309 Carrie Chapman Catt Hall, Ames, Iowa 50011-1305; FAX: (515) 294-3741. For more information, contact the Center at (515) 294-3181 or cattcntr@iastate.edu.

The Center for the American Woman and Politics (CAWP) is pleased to announce a new initiative to assist institutions and non-profits to build and strengthen their work in young women's political education. With a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, CAWP is expanding it successful National Education for Women's Leadership (NEW Leadership) program—recently named an "Exemplary Program" by Kellogg—through a development network. The development network will provide curricular, financial and programming assistance to nine institutions so they can develop new programs focused on young women's political leadership development.

Through the NEW Leadership Development Network, CAWP will work with institutional partners across the country to expand the opportunities for young women’s political education. Partners will participate in a three-day program development institute in June, observe and participate in CAWP’s NEW Leadership New Jersey program, then return to their home institutions with $10,000 seed grants to develop their own programs. As partners plan their young women’s political leadership programs, CAWP will provide on going phone and e-mail consultation. A multifaceted web site will facilitate information-sharing with and between partners and serves as a resource to NEW Leadership participants and other young women interested in politics. Additionally, NEW Leadership staff will attend the partners’ first programs to provide on-site advice and expertise and help ensure that the first year of the new programs is a success.

The newly developed programs will be based on CAWP’s NEW Leadership model, tailored to fit the particular needs of the partners’ target audiences and institutional requirements. The NEW Leadership program, founded in 1991, was designed to address the historic and contemporary absence of women in politics. Although women have always been active in public affairs, their contribution has often been overlooked or dismissed. A look at the U.S. Congress or into state houses demonstrates that women are underrepresented in positions of power.

Unfortunately, this situation will not change soon if young women show little interest in a life in politics. A recent UCLA study showed that only 15.4 percent of first-year college women students see influencing the political structure as a priority, and only 26.5 percent of those students consider it important to keep up to date with political affairs. NEW Leadership is a proactive effort to build a new generation of women’s leadership in politics and policymaking.

NEW Leadership is based on two objectives: education and empowerment. Through education, NEW Leadership seeks to increase participants' knowledge about the political process and women’s historic and contemporary participation in that process. The program expands students’ knowledge of the myriad ways that citizens can and must participate. By demystifying the political process and political actors, NEW Leadership seeks to overcome the apathy and pessimism that pervade opinions about politics.

Knowledge alone is not enough. Students must also see themselves as leaders who can make a difference. Through knowledge and inspiration and by connecting with women who can serve as role models, students can break down barriers that have traditionally kept women from political life.

Undergraduate students from across the country have participated in NEW Leadership. The year-long program begins with an intensive residential institute designed to address the historical and contemporary participation of women in politics, leadership in a diverse society, connecting with women leaders in the public sphere, and building leadership skills. Students then develop a campus-based leadership project to put their learning into action.

CAWP’s year one partners include the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics, Iowa State University; Chatham College, Pittsburgh, PA; and the University of Texas at Dallas.

If you are interested in learning more about this program or becoming a partner, please contact Tobi Walker, CAWP’s senior education associate, at 732/932-9384, ext. 230 or by

e-mail, twalker@rci.rutgers.edu.

Uma Narayan of Vassar College received the 1998 Schuck Award for the best book on women and politics published in 1997. Narayan received the $500 award for Dislocating Cultures: Identities, Traditions, and Third World Feminism published by Routledge.

The 1998 Prize for the Best Dissertation on Women and Politics Research was presented by the Women and Politics Research Section of the American Political Science Association to Christina Wolbrecht (Ph.D., Washington University, St. Louis) who now teaches at the Univeristy of Notre Dame. Lisa Baldez (Ph.D., University of California, San Diego), who now teaches at Washington University, received honorable mention.

Wolbrecht’s dissertation, "The Politics of Women’s Rights: Parties, Positions, and Change, 1952-1992," is, on one level, a careful and detailed legislative history of women’s rights initiatives, broadly construed, in the latter half of the 20th century. The dissertation is methodologically ambitious and sophisticated; a variety of data are gathered and analyzed in support of the arguments, which are clear and persuasive. Wolbrecht describes a sequence of political equilibria and disequilibria on women rights issues and examines the impact of changing levels of public attention on the behavior of politicians and parties. On another level, Wolbrecht’s research uses the rather dramatically shifting positions of the parties on issues related to women as a way to speak to larger issues of party change and change in the national political agenda. This is an ambitious and complex project successfully carried out.

Baldez’ dissertation, "In the Name of the Public and the Private: Conservative and Progressive Women’s Movements in Chile," examines two quite different women’s movements in Chile: right-wing groups that worked to overthrow the Allende government and progressive groups that opposed the subsequent Pinochet regime. Women played a significant role in both of these transitions. Baldez conducted extensive interviews with women activists in both groups and brings out a range of fascinating commonalities and differences between the organizations, strategies and experiences that characterized the two movements. She presents a very subtle and nuanced account of the ways women mobilized: some groups relied on traditional images of women in their emphasis on pots and pans and women's importance in feeding their families, whereas others took more explicitly feminist stands. According to the award selection committee, this research brings together empirical work and issues in feminist theory and makes a truly important contribution to our understanding of the ways that conceptions of the "public" and "private" realms have shaped women’s political opportunities.

Serving on the 1998 selection committee were Kristi Andersen, Syracuse University; Rick Matland, University of Houston; Eve Sandberg, Oberlin College; and Nancy Hartsock, University of Washington.

The 1999 Prize for the Best Dissertation on Women and Politics Research, which carries with it a cash award of $200, will be awarded at the section's annual business meeting at the APSA convention September 2-5 in Atlanta. Dissertations eligible for nomination must have been completed and accepted by the dissertation committee in 1998. Nominations were due April 30. For more information on the 1999 prize, contact the committee chair, Professor Susan Gluck Mezey at the Department of Political science, Loyola University, Chicago, Illinois, 60626, e-mail: smezey@wpo.it.luc.edu.

At the 1998 meeting of the American Political Science Association, Gretchen Ritter of the Government Department of the University of Texas at Austin won the award for the Best Paper in the Field of Women and Politics Research for "Regendering Citizenship after the Second World War."

The annual award is presented by the Women and Politics Research Section.

According to the awards selection committee, the paper adopts a legal institutional perspective to investigate how and why women’s citizenship was regendered in the 1940s. Ritter successfully links citizenship, law and social policy through a lens of gender analysis in an original way. Her thesis on the impact on women’s citizenship of a shift from electoral/partisan to bureaucratic/interest group politics in the 1940s is provocative and well supported. Ritter uses T.H. Marshall’s scheme of civil, political and social rights and citizenship in a non-sequential way to demonstrate how citizenship in the United States goes through periods of progress and regress for different social groups in different historical periods.

Members of the 1998 awards selection committee were Jane Jaquette, chair; Janet Flammang; Amy Mazur; and Elisabeth Prugl.

The 1999 award for the Best Paper on Women and Politics will be presented at the annual business meeting of the Women and Politics Research Section at the APSA meetings September 2-5 in Atlanta. The prize carries a cash award of $100.

The deadline to submit papers for the 1999 prize was April 30. For more information, contact the chair of the 1999 award selection committee, Professor Mamie Locke, Dean, School of Liberal Arts and Education, Hampton University, 199 Armstrong Hall, Hampton University, Hampton, VA 23668. E-mail: locke@hamptonu.edu.

In addition to Gretchen Ritter, past winners of the Best Paper Prize have included Elizabeth Friedman, 1997, for "Paradoxes of Party Politics: The Impact of Gendered Institutions on Women's Incorporation in Latin American Democratization" and Anna L. Harvey, 1996, for "Women, Party, and Policy: A Rational Approach".

Sapiro Corrects Error of Attribution

To the Editor:

I would like to correct a likely error of attribution printed in the August 1998 issue of Women/Politics.

Peregrine Schwartz-Shea writes that I "put too much stock in the notion that 'any good methods course' will be sufficient for graduate students to understand the subtle interactions between theory, method, evidence, and conclusions." (emphasis added.)

I would like to draw attention to the fact that the only phrase that is a quotation of what I wrote is "any good methods course." I have never been foolish enough to think that a methods course could accomplish what she claims I said.

I grow weary of being used from time to time as the whipping girl for "positivism" within gender studies. I wouldn't mind nearly as much if I had ever believed most of the things on this topic that have been read into my work and words.

I guess I'm too readerly, and not enough writerly.

Virginia Sapiro

Sophonisba P. Breckinridge Professor
Department of Political Science, 1050 Bascom Mall
University of Wisconsin - Madison
Madison, WI 53706
Tel: 608-263-2024 Fax: 608-265-2663
sapiro@polisci.wisc.edu

To the Editor:

I apologize to Virginia Sapiro if she feels that I have taken her remarks out of context. The nightmare of every scholar is to feel that her work has been misrepresented. It also distresses me that my call for better communication has apparently decreased rather than increased that possibility.

That said, I invite the readers of the Women/Politics Newsletter to examine for themselves the section (pgs. 25-26 of Women & Politics, Vol. 7, No. 4, Winter 1987, 21-27) from which I chose both the intact as well as the partial quotation. I was attempting to give the reader a sense of what I saw as the then "underdeveloped nature of the conversation," a sense of the tone of Sapiro's 1987 remarks (a subtlety I’ll thrice about in the future).

Virginia Sapiro was kind enough to e-mail me a citation that she says better represents her views. See the entire issue of Political Psychology, Vol. 15, No. 3, 1994 in which Kroeger and Sapiro respond to P. E. Tetlock's claim that research in political psychology has become politicized. From reading that issue, it is clear that Sapiro is positioned quite differently in political psychology debates over these issues than in gender studies debates. What I found important about the exchange was that Tetlock responded to Kroeger and Sapiro's cogent critique by arguing that they encourage the fusion of scholarship and politics in a way he finds troublesome. In short, he sees few rules for how to understand this relationship and he argues for squeezing out the politics rather than admitting and analyzing the politics.

Though developing such rules was not within the purview of the Kroeger and Sapiro critique, what Tetlock has going for his argument is inertia: the positivist and neo-positivist rules are currently what is taught in most methods classes. Thus, those who disagree with his view (which is that politics can only be dangerous for science), have the burden of developing new ways for analyzing and teaching about the complex relationship between political values and scholarship. In short, what should we be teaching our graduate students in methods classes about the relationship between scholarship and political values? I have my own ideas but, as I argued in the August 1998 Newsletter, I think feminist philosophers and feminist empirical researchers working together can most effectively bridge the unfortunate divide between normative and empirical work.

Finally, I can't resist noting that Tetlock states that Kroeger and Sapiro mistakenly attribute a "ridiculous position" to him (p. 575), so I guess I'm in good company.

Peregrine Schwartz-Shea
Associate Professor
Political Science Department
260 South Central Campus Drive Room 252
University of Utah
Salt Lake City, UT 84112-9152
581-6300 phone mail
psshea@poli-sci.utah.edu

Section for Women and Politics Research, Boston, MA

Mamie E. Locke, Secretary
Hampton University
locke@hamptonu.edu

The meeting was called to order at 12:35 p.m. by President Karen Beckwith. She welcomed attendees to the meeting and proceeded with the agenda.

BEST DISSERTATION AWARD

The Best Dissertation on Women and Politics Prize was presented by Kristi Andersen, Committee Chair. The award was presented to Christina Wolbrecht, University of Notre Dame, for her work "The Politics of Women's Rights: Politics, Position and Change." Honorable mention went to Lisa Baldez.

BEST PAPER ON WOMEN AND POLITICS PRIZE

The best paper award was presented by Janet Flammang to Gretchen Ritter, University of Texas @ Austin, for her 1997 APSA paper "Regendering Citizenship After the Second World War."

TREASURER'S REPORT

Lee Ann Banaszak reported a beginning balance of $4,676.01; income of $3,333.68; expenditures of $4,496.26; leaving a balance of $3,513.43 as of July 27, 1998. Low income reflects a stagnating and declining membership.

ELECTION OF NEW OFFICERS

The following individuals were elected by acclamation:

President (elected 1996) Pippa Norris
President-Elect (elected 97)Eileen McDonagh
President-Elect Designate Gwendolyn Mink
Treasurer Lee Ann Banaszak
Secretary Mark Jones
Executive Council Susan Gluck Mezey
Lisa Baldez
Theda Skocpol
Mamie Locke

PROGRAM REPORT

Program Chair, Pippa Norris, reported on the successful one-day seminar held at the Kennedy School with 70 graduate students present. This seminar was sponsored by the Section and the Women and Public Policy Program at the Kennedy School.

RECOMMENDATIONS

There was extensive discussion on the recommendation concerning a proposal from Kathleen Jones, Editor, International Feminist Journal of Politics, for a formal relationship with the Section. The recommendation coming from the Committee on this issue, chaired by Susan Welch, was for the Section not to endorse the new journal. The rationale was that to do so would send a negative signal to other journals in the field. A motion was made and seconded for the section to refrain from a formal endorsement. During discussion, Kathy Jones indicated that the request was not intended for the new journal to become the official/exclusive journal for the section. The request was for the Section to endorse affiliation with the journal to lend stature and crediblity to it. Hence, the request was for the promotion of outreach as opposed to endorsement. After additional discussion, a substitute motion was made and seconded to table the discussion and send to the Executive Committee for further action.

OLD BUSINESS

None reported.

NEW BUSINESS

None reported.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

There was an announcement regarding the new list serve.

Janet Clark is the new editor for Women and Politics.

The meeting adjourned at 1:30 p.m.

The deadline for copy for the next newsletter of the Organized Section for Women and Politics (Vol. 11, No. 2, August 1999) is AUGUST 1, 1999.

Send copy to Dianne Bystrom, newsletter editor, at dbystrom@iastate.edu. (Word attachments preferred.) The next newsletter—with more news about the APSA 1999 meeting in Atlanta—will be e-mailed to members of the Section and posted on the web site in August 1999.