THE GENDER DIFFERENTIAL IN PARENTHOOD FOR PARLIAMENTARIANS: EVIDENCE FROM SINGAPORE.

Abstract

Much of women’s representation in parliament and parenthood have been examined separately and studied in the Western context. I collect two data sets, one on Singapore’s parliamentarians from 1992-2016 and another on individuals in elite positions of non-parliament sectors in 2006. I find that a gender gap exists in substantive representation despite more women being in parliament. I further investigate whether there are heterogeneous effects of parenthood associated with gender on likelihood of entry into parliament and holding higher-ranking positions. The results indicate that women seem to face a penalty of motherhood at entry level but experience an advantage of having children when it comes to the likelihood of holding higher-ranking positions. I also find an ability threshold differential between men and women in parliament, where controlling for qualifications increases the gender gap in holding higher-ranking positions. This study contributes to the understanding of the gender gap in political leadership.