This document discusses factors that influence voter behavior and turnout in US elections. It explores sociological and psychological theories for why people vote the way they do. Socioeconomic factors like age, gender, income and education all impact likelihood to vote, with older, female, richer and more educated citizens voting more. Partisanship, social context, attitudes and political knowledge also shape voting decisions. The document examines reasons people may vote based on past performance, future considerations, costs/benefits, and pocketbook or sociotropic issues. Barriers to voting like legal obstacles and decreased social connections can impact turnout.

1. POL 205
Fall 2019

3. Answer the following questions:
What make people vote the way they do?
Why don’t some people vote?
What percentage of U.S. citizens vote in presidential
elections? Midterm elections?

4.  Who votes –and who doesn’t?
 What makes people vote the way they do?
 Why don’t people vote?

5.  Age Older >Younger
 Gender Women > Men
 Income Richer > Poorer
 Education College Degree > HS Graduate
 Race and Ethnicity Mixed Evidence

8. SOCIOLOGICALTHEORY
 Importance of
Social Context
 Partisanship of Family
and Friends
 Impact of Socio-
Economic Status (SES)
and Religion
PSYCHOLOGICALTHEORY
 Political Socialization
 Party ID
 Political Attitudes
 Voting Decision
 How are attitudes
formed?

10.  Voting based on past performance
 If you are the incumbent:
 Remember great things?
 “Are you better off than you were four years ago?”
 If you are the challenger:
 Remember problems?
 “Are you better off than you were four years ago?”

11.  Voting based off of future considerations
 If you are the incumbent:
 Plans for a new term if re-elected
 What will future look like with challenger?
 If you are the challenger:
 Reject incumbent’s policies
 Vote for change in years ahead

13.  Based on costs and benefits
 Voting Components:
 Probability ofVote Mattering (“P)
 Benefits ofVoting (“B”)
 Costs ofVoting (“C”)
 “Civic Duty” (“D”)
 Individuals weigh these items
and make their voting decision

14. POCKETBOOKVOTING SOCIOTROPICVOTING

16. Citizens’ political
knowledge hasn’t increased
in the last few decades.

17.  Party ID (#1)
 Is candidate a Republican or a Democrat?
 Interpersonal Communications
 Friends and Family; “Opinion Leaders”
 The Media
 Agenda-Setting, Priming, and Framing
 Idea of “Representativeness”
 People compare actual candidate to “ideal” version

19.  Legal Obstacles
 Attitude Changes
 Voter Mobilization
 Decrease in Social Connectedness
 Generational Changes
 The “Rational Nonvoter”