Brazilian Public Opinion and free trade: the gender gap and attitudes toward trade liberalization

• Grant number: 23/00372-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: February 01, 2023
• End date: August 31, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Political Science
• Principal Investigator: Maria Hermínia Brandão Tavares de Almeida
• Grantee: Pedro Henrique Valiente da Silva
• Host Institution: Centro Brasileiro de Análise e Planejamento (CEBRAP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 18/00646-1 - Brazil, the Americas and the world: public opinion and foreign policy, AP.TEM

Abstract

This project seeks to analyze determinants of differences of opinion between brazilian men and women toward trade liberalization. Specifically, it seeks to deepen the explanation that relates the protectionist tendency of women with their low job security in a gender-segregated labor market. For that, we will gather data from the public opinion surveys carried out on the project Brazil, the Americas and the World between 2010 and 2022, separating women who integrate the economically active population (EAP) from those who don't.The research will test the hypothesis that the greater protectionism between women comes from a more vulnerable position in the labor market. Thus, women outside the EAP are expected to be less protectionist compared to those inside it, which would corroborate with the explanation based on the self-interested assessment of position in the labor market.The hypothesis comes from the well-established observation in the area that women are more protectionist than men. Naoi (2005) makes an extensive review of works that find this result. However, the explanatory mechanism for this finding is still not clear and must be further studied.