Learning to talk the talk: Gender differences in adolescent socialization to world politics

Abstract

Several Oklahoma universities sponsor Model United Nations simulations as an extracurricular activity for adolescents from middle school through college. These simulations provide a window on adolescent socialization to world politics. Offering an opportunity to examine whether male and female adolescents participate in the same way or have similar experiences. This project assessed gender differences in participation at the Model United Nations of the Southwest (MUNSW) at the University of Oklahoma. Important gender differences in participation were observed in the number of speaking turns taken by male and female delegates, types of committees chosen by participants, and interactions among delegates. The analysis suggests that adolescents already have learned gendered norms of political behavior and they reenact those norms in such extracurricular activities. The structure of the event affects behavior and can be altered to enhance the participation of all delegates, particularly females.