No abstract

In an examination of the impacts on electoral success of candidate gender, candidate physical attractiveness, prestige and responsibility of office sought, and voter characteristics, 219 college students evaluated six challengers to an incumbent in either a mayoral or county clerk's race. Challengers represented men and women of high, moderate, and low physical attractiveness. Male, but not female, voters discriminated against female candidates. While physical attractiveness accentuated perceptions of masculinity in a man and femininity in a woman, the appeal of an attractive (i.e., more feminine) woman seeking a masculine‐stereotyped position was not damaged by the so‐called “beauty is beastly” effect. However, attractiveness was less consistently an asset for female candidates than it was for male candidates. Male, but not female, candidates directly benefitted from being physical attractive and were also more positively evaluated to the extent that they were perceived as highly masculine. These findings not only contribute to understanding of the joint impacts of sex‐role and attractiveness stereotypes, but call into question survey findings pointing to the demise of sexism in electoral politics.

This article examines the legitimacy-conferring potential of the U.S. Supreme Court. Legitimacy-conferring potential is conceptualized as the Court's ability, through mere endorsement of a particular policy, to elevate mass acceptance of that policy. The study reports the results of three experiments utilizing a split-ballot design where, in general, one group is given a version of an issue endorsed by the Supreme Court and a second group is given the same issue not endorsed by the Court. In two of the experiments a third attribution condition is used where an issue is endorsed by the Supreme Court as interpreter of the Constitution. Based on the analysis of 16 policy issues across three experiments, the Court does not appear to have the power to legitimate specific policies bearing its stamp of approval.

No abstract

No abstract