AMERICAN SOCIOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION ELECTIONS, 1975 TO 1996 - EXPLORINGEXPLANATIONS FOR FEMINIZATION

Since 1972, the proportion of women in American Sociological Associati on governance positions has increased. Woman candidates for ASA office s and the ASA Council have been overrepresented and generally have had higher odds of winning than male candidates. We examine three possibl e factors behind these trends: the general impact of the women's movem ent, the influence of Sociologists for Women in Society (SWS), and eli te dilution. Liberal attitudes fostered by the women's movement appear to have raised voter willingness to select woman candidates. SWS memb ers were overrepresented among candidates, and SWS membership (for wom en) and support for its goals increased chances of being elected. High voting rates of SWS members could have swayed elections, as well. Con trary to elite dilution arguments, woman and man candidates differed l ittle from each other or over time in productivity, honors, or experie nce, although women were elected earlier in their careers than were me n and were less often employed in the most prestigious graduate depart ments. In analysis using measures of all three factors together, gende r affected election success, with marginal effects for productivity; e ffects of SWS membership and professional location were not statistica lly significant.