Perceived Norms and the Politics of Women’s Rights

In this paper, I argue that perceived social norms, or beliefs about what others believe and value, play a critical role in the evolving politics of women's rights. Perceived norms are what individuals believe to be the socially shared definitions of what is “appropriate” among their reference group, either because it is what most people do or because it is was most people should do. Drawing on insights from political science, social psychology, and economics, I introduce perceived social norms and discuss the related phenomenon of pluralistic ignorance, or the collective misperception of what others believe. Synthesizing recent scholarship on women's rights advances, I then argue that misperceived conservatism, or the over-estimation of others’ embrace of patriarchal gender attitudes, is especially relevant in contexts where women's rights have advanced in recent decades: because reforms have often occurred in response to international pressure or incentives or through the actions of non-democratic regimes, they are less likely to represent a credible signal that society is becoming more supportive of gender equality—even if such change is actually taking place. I then outline several ways that misperceived conservatism, particularly among men, may matter for subsequent political contestation over women's rights: by fostering “policing” behavior that enforces adherence to perceived norms, by hampering the implementation of women's rights policies, and by turning activists’ attention away holding the state accountable for policy implementation. I present evidence from original quantitative and qualitative research undertaken in Morocco, a liberal autocracy, that misperceived conservatism exists and is consequential.