The role of personal staff for women's political representation

My doctoral research investigates the often-overlooked role of MP's personal staff in European parliamentary democracies in shaping political representation.

While most studies focus on elected officials, my work shifts the lens to those who operate behind the scenes, examining how staffers influence women’s descriptive, substantive, and symbolic representation within legislatures. To explore these dynamics, I collected the first ever comparative survey dataset on personal staff in the United Kingdom, Germany, and Austria, developed through and complemented by qualitative interviews.

This mixed-method, cross-national approach provides new insights into how gender and institutional contexts shape the everyday practices and hidden dimensions of political representation.

I am deeply grateful to every personal staffer who has commited their time to contribute to this project and shared their invaluable experiences with me.

This cumulative project consists of the following papers:

Paper 1 (with Anna-Lena Högenauer, University of Luxembourg): Who’s got MPs back? Understanding the drivers of specialisation in the offices of MPs. published with Politics & Governance
Paper 2: Working in Parliament as a Gendered Stepping Stone to Become an MP? Why Politically Engaged Women Staffers Won’t Run for Elected Office.
Paper 3: Representation Backstage? When Women Staffers Act for Women’s Interests.
Paper 4 (with Anne Van Bavel, VUB): The Paradox of Presence: Testing the Negative Role Model Effect

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you would like to know more about my research. I am always happy to exchange ideas and explore opportunities for collaboration to further develop this work.