“We would be better off if power were more egalitarian between women and men”

ICONIST: What deters women?

Vera Steinhäuser: A key aspect is that it is still the case that women pay a much higher social price for assuming positions of power. It fits our stereotype of seeing a man in a position of power. The associations with powerful women are unfortunately mostly negative. And that’s also why women rarely or only very carefully want to adorn themselves with these feathers.

ICONIST: But women also evaluate powerful men more positively than powerful women. The Australian philosopher Kate Manne calls it “Himpathy”.