Rosie the Riveter, Vera the Volunteer: Sexism, Racism, and Female Enlistment in WWII

Artiles, Alexandra; Treneska, Joana; Fahey, Kevin; Atkinson, Douglas B.

Abstract

What influenced women to volunteer for service in the U.S. military during World War II? While previous literature focused on potential intrinsic and extrinsic individual-level motives, we consider the broader structural context that may have played a role in female volunteerism. We leverage original data containing information on all volunteers who served in the U.S. Army during World War II, along with detailed county-level economic, political, and demographic data, to explore patterns of female volunteerism in the military. Our findings suggest that racism and sexism played a role in female volunteerism in many parts of the country, which may have undermined the government's goals of mobilizing the whole country in support of the war effort.

Citation

Artiles, A., Treneska, J., Fahey, K., & Atkinson, D. B. (2023). Rosie the Riveter, Vera the Volunteer: Sexism, Racism, and Female Enlistment in WWII. PS: Political Science and Politics, https://doi.org/10.1017/S104909652300015X

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Mar 17, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Mar 17, 2023
• Publication Date: Mar 17, 2023
• Deposit Date: Mar 17, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 17, 2023
• Journal: PS: Political Science and Politics
• Print ISSN: 1049-0965
• Electronic ISSN: 1537-5935
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S104909652300015X
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/18528228
• Publisher URL: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/ps-political-science-and-politics/article/rosie-the-riveter-vera-the-volunteer-sexism-racism-and-female-enlistment-in-world-war-ii/B8C50BBD83B939770C31DAD809DA1D27