Does having daughters cause judges to rule for women's issues?

Judges with daughters consistently vote in a more feminist fashion on gender issues than judges who have only sons, and the effect appears to be driven primarily by Republican judges.

The findings are based on data on the families of 224 judges sitting on the US Courts of Appeals, as well as nearly 1,000 gender-related cases decided by these judges.

The American Journal of Political Science study reveals that personal experiences influence how judges make decisions, and that empathy may indeed be a component in how judges decide cases.

More information: Glynn, A. N. and Sen, M. (2014), Identifying Judicial Empathy: Does Having Daughters Cause Judges to Rule for Women's Issues?. American Journal of Political Science. DOI: 10.1111/ajps.12118

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Citation: Does having daughters cause judges to rule for women's issues? (2014, September 15) retrieved 18 March 2024 from https://phys.org/news/2014-09-daughters-women-issues.html
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