Can descriptive representation be justified outside politics?

Abstract

In the first part of the chapter an institutional perspective on the difference between political and economic decision making is presented, including the tendency of institutional confusion. In the second part I draw on representation theory and present some central arguments within the political science literature in favor of descriptive representation of gender in political organizations. Third, I present the main arguments for descriptive representation of gender in economic decision making, more precisely arguments for corporate board gender quotas as they were put forward in the Norwegian policy debate (by the government, consultative bodies and in the parliamentary debate) prior to the historic adoption corporate board gender quotas by the Norwegian parliament in 2003. I then discuss the arguments in favor of regulation of gender balance in corporate boards in light of the main arguments central in the political science literature for descriptive representation of gender in political structures.

Can descriptive representation be justified outside politics?