War and the Political Zeitgeist: Evidence from the History of Female Suffrage

Abstract

Despite the great social upheaval associated with state warfare, empirical evidence linking conflict with institutional development is limited. This paper examines the hypothesis that international wars accelerated democratization by fostering political inclusion. Employing survival analysis, I find that during the 20th century, nations which engaged in external conflict were more than twice as likely to extend the franchise to women in the post-conflict period, even after controlling for other commonly cited determinants of suffrage adoption. I explore several potential mechanisms for this association and find evidence consistent with stories which connect war with increased national unity, ideological fervor, and international posturing. Finally, examining conflict-induced changes in sex ratios and female labor force participation suggests that the underlying determinants of suffrage expansion at the national and sub-national level differ, implying that distinct theory may be needed to explain institutional change in each setting.

Information Aggregation, Growth, and Franchise Extension With Applications to Female Enfranchisement and Inequality

“…Around the end of World War II, women received the vote in Japan in 1945, in France and Italy in 1946, in Belgium in 1948, and in Greece in 1952. Empirical analysis presented by Hicks () shows that ‘participation in external conflict by a nation previously lacking female suffrage more than doubles the probability of female enfranchisement in the immediate post‐conflict period, even after controlling for other commonly theorized determinants of suffrage expansion’ (pp. 60–61) We would argue that an information‐based explanation of franchise extensions fits well with this evidence.…”

“…We use the dates for female enfranchisement given in appendix A of Hicks (). We do not discuss the issues involved in assigning a date to female enfranchisement, except to note that the dates given are generally the dates when national legislation gave women the vote in these countries.…”

“…Hicks () presents evidence that spillover effects from other countries and GDP per capita are relevant in explaining female enfranchisement.…”

Information Aggregation, Growth, and Franchise Extension With Applications to Female Enfranchisement and Inequality

“…Around the end of World War II, women received the vote in Japan in 1945, in France and Italy in 1946, in Belgium in 1948, and in Greece in 1952. Empirical analysis presented by Hicks () shows that ‘participation in external conflict by a nation previously lacking female suffrage more than doubles the probability of female enfranchisement in the immediate post‐conflict period, even after controlling for other commonly theorized determinants of suffrage expansion’ (pp. 60–61) We would argue that an information‐based explanation of franchise extensions fits well with this evidence.…”

“…We use the dates for female enfranchisement given in appendix A of Hicks (). We do not discuss the issues involved in assigning a date to female enfranchisement, except to note that the dates given are generally the dates when national legislation gave women the vote in these countries.…”

“…Hicks () presents evidence that spillover effects from other countries and GDP per capita are relevant in explaining female enfranchisement.…”

Information Aggregation, Growth, and Franchise Extension With Applications to Female Enfranchisement and Inequality

“…Around the end of World War II, women received the vote in Japan in 1945, in France and Italy in 1946, in Belgium in 1948, and in Greece in 1952. Empirical analysis presented by Hicks () shows that ‘participation in external conflict by a nation previously lacking female suffrage more than doubles the probability of female enfranchisement in the immediate post‐conflict period, even after controlling for other commonly theorized determinants of suffrage expansion’ (pp. 60–61) We would argue that an information‐based explanation of franchise extensions fits well with this evidence.…”

“…We use the dates for female enfranchisement given in appendix A of Hicks (). We do not discuss the issues involved in assigning a date to female enfranchisement, except to note that the dates given are generally the dates when national legislation gave women the vote in these countries.…”

“…Hicks () presents evidence that spillover effects from other countries and GDP per capita are relevant in explaining female enfranchisement.…”

Information Aggregation, Growth, and Franchise Extension With Applications to Female Enfranchisement and Inequality

“…Around the end of World War II, women received the vote in Japan in 1945, in France and Italy in 1946, in Belgium in 1948, and in Greece in 1952. Empirical analysis presented by Hicks () shows that ‘participation in external conflict by a nation previously lacking female suffrage more than doubles the probability of female enfranchisement in the immediate post‐conflict period, even after controlling for other commonly theorized determinants of suffrage expansion’ (pp. 60–61) We would argue that an information‐based explanation of franchise extensions fits well with this evidence.…”

“…We use the dates for female enfranchisement given in appendix A of Hicks (). We do not discuss the issues involved in assigning a date to female enfranchisement, except to note that the dates given are generally the dates when national legislation gave women the vote in these countries.…”

“…Hicks () presents evidence that spillover effects from other countries and GDP per capita are relevant in explaining female enfranchisement.…”