Are Female Legislators Different? Exploring Sex Differences in German MPs’ Outside Interests

Abstract

This article examines whether sex matters with respect to a type of legislator behaviour that has thus far been neglected in the literature analysing the distinctive nature of female and male legislators: parliamentarians' outside interests. Using data for 614 German Members of Parliament (MPs), our analysis confirms that female MPs on average hold fewer outside jobs than men—especially in private-sector functions. We also find that individual characteristics such as political experience, having (young) children and age reflect sources of this divergence. These findings and their implications are discussed in the light of extensive research on sex and gender effects in other political and labour market settings.