1. Family Influence on Voting
Behaviour in the Irish
Marriage Referendum 2015
Orlaith McGuinness
***
B.A in Sociology & Spanish, TSM
Trinity College, Dublin
Supervisor: Dr. Richard Layte
April 2016

2. Abstract
While extensive research has gone into investigating family influence on factors such as party
and candidate selection in national elections, few studies exist which focus on the effects of
family in a referendum pertaining to same-sex marriage. The aim of this study was to
investigate the influence that people’s families had on how and whether they voted in
Ireland’s 2015 marriage referendum, focusing particularly on the trickle-up impact that
younger family members had on their older relatives. Throughout this study, socialization
theory was employed as a framework from which to explain the power that people have to
influence their family’s voting behaviour. Data from over 400 participants was gathered via
an online self-completion survey and was analysed using SPSS. Results of this quantitative
study point towards the fact that one’s family has the power, not only to influence one’s views
on same-sex marriage, but also to govern their voting behaviour. Overall, the findings
demonstrate a strong link between family discussion and voting behaviour. It can be
concluded that, in terms of the 2015 marriage referendum, family acted as a site of influence,
a medium through which discussions were facilitated, disagreements were had and opinions
were shared. The results also provide an alternative way to study the effects of disagreement
in family discussion. The research framework is very applicable to future researchers who
wish to study family influence on an abortion referendum, something which is undoubtedly
on the horizon for Ireland.