Women politicians receive more identity-based attacks on social media than men, study finds

Women politicians in Europe receive uncivil tweets regardless of how known they are – and woman also receive more identity-based attacks than other politicians, revealed a new study in Politics & Gender, published on behalf of the American Political Science Association by Cambridge University Press. 

This study used a machine learning approach to analyse over 23 million tweets addressed to politicians in Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States, to determine the degree of incivility that female politicians face. Women in politics frequently report serious online harassment, yet the extent of this harassment and how it compares to harassment experienced by men remains understudied, or uses surveys with varying response rates. This new research aimed to address this gap. 

The research found that more prominent politicians in the US, both male and female, have a higher likelihood of receiving uncivil tweets. However, women in the study’s European sample experience online incivility regardless of whether they are prominent or not, potentially creating additional barriers for women entering politics.  

This incivility can include everything from sexist and misogynistic remarks to attempts to defame or humiliate, to violent threats. 

Lead researcher Maarja Lühiste, Associate Professor in politics at Newcastle University, noted how incivility and threats typically differ depending on the gender of the person being addressed. 

“We noticed that female candidates targeted with abusive language typically receive more morality-focused words, such as ‘vile’, ‘shame’, ‘shameful’, ‘disgraceful’, ‘hypocrite’, ‘deluded’,” Lühiste said. 

“They also receive messages with more references to personal attacks – including words like ‘kill’, ‘destroy’, and ‘rape’ – rather than simple swear words.” 

The research also founds that uncivil tweets targeted at Spanish and German politicians appear to use fewer deliberately abusive words than in the US and the UK – making the impoliteness sound comparatively polite. 

What counts as an uncivil tweet?  

The researchers defined uncivil tweets as ones that contained one or more of the following elements:  

• assigning stereotypes or hate speech; 

• undermining or excluding a social group (e.g. “women should stay at home 
  rather than do politics”); 

• threatening one’s rights (freedom to speak, life preferences); 

• name-calling (“weirdo”, “idiot”); 

• aspersion (“liar”, “traitor”); 

• pejorative speak or vulgarity; 

• sarcasm; 

• ALL CAPS; 

• words or sentiments that are incendiary, obscene, or humiliating.