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Take up thy bed, and vote : measuring the relationship between voting behaviour and indicators of health
Author(s)
Date Issued
2005-11-14
Date Available
2008-05-23T16:17:52Z
Abstract
Individuals experiencing poor health are less likely to vote at election time, despite being the ones most affected by health policies implemented by the successful party. This paper investigates the relationship between health and voter turnout and political party choice in the 1979, 1987 and 1997 British general elections using the National Child Development Study (NCDS). It finds that poor health is associated with lower
turnout, as the perceived costs of voting, such as the physical and mental effort
involved, are greater than the perceived benefits, which are derived from the policy
implications of the election outcome. In addition, the subset of unhealthy individuals who do vote at election time generally support Labour, as such voters are more likely to utilise the NHS and hence support parties that advocate public provision of health services. Given the low participation rates of the unhealthy, a political party which formulates an attractive policy package aimed at such potential voters could therefore mobilise a previously untapped source of the electorate.
Type of Material
Working Paper
Publisher
University College Dublin; Geary Institute
Series
UCD Geary Institute Discussion Paper Series
WP2005/11
UCD Centre for Economic Research Working Paper Series
WP05/22
Copyright (Published Version)
UCD Geary Institute
Subject – LCSH
Health behavior
Voting research
Language
English
Status of Item
Not peer reviewed
This item is made available under a Creative Commons License
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