Study across 40 countries: Political activism linked to representation

Not happy with the election result? Don’t worry. Election Day is not the only opportunity to influence politics.

Political scientists from Lund University and the University of Gothenburg, among others, have investigated whether certain forms of political participation are more effective than others.

They cross-referenced survey data on political participation with data on people’s views of policy proposals and whether those proposals were implemented within five years. The study is based on a dataset of 270,000 people in 40 countries who took part in surveys between 1996 and 2016.

The study is published in the journal Political Behavior.

Minor differences between voters and nonvoters

One much-discussed finding concerns the impact of voting. In the data, 74% had voted and 26% had not. When the researchers compared the groups, they found that voters’ views were no more reflected in the policies pursued than those of nonvoters.

Voting does not, therefore, correlate with better political representation. However, other forms of political activity were associated with policy outcomes, including demonstrating, organizing petitions, boycotting and contacting politicians. The more political activities a person takes part in between elections, the greater the chance that they will get the policies they prefer five years later.

“This supports the hypothesis that it is in fact activism that brings about outcomes, but we cannot say for certain that this is the case,” says Jesper Lindqvist, a political scientist at Lund University.

The researchers can therefore demonstrate that activism is linked to better representation, but not that activism itself causes it. They accounted for factors that might also contribute to a person being better represented in politics, such as education, income, age, gender or geographic location.

“These socioeconomic factors played a certain role, but even when they were taken into account, the link between political activism and better representation remained,” says Lindqvist.

Several possible explanations

Another possible explanation highlighted by the researchers is that politically active individuals have a better understanding of how politics works and that their views are more often in line with those of decision-makers. Consequently, they may also feel that they have greater scope to influence policy.

“Political activism can be a sign of broader social change. When people start holding demonstrations and organizing petitions, it serves as a signal to politicians that public opinion is shifting.”

“Our study provides a good basis for further research,” continues Lindqvist. “We have identified some fundamental correlations, but you cannot take them too far. Many people wonder whether it is worth, for example, taking part in demonstrations, and some evidence suggests that, yes, it is.”

But what conclusions can be drawn from your study? That there is no point in voting?

“No, absolutely not. Elections remain the foundation of representative democracy and determine which parties come to power. Our study, on the other hand, shows that the views of people who are also politically active between elections tend to be better represented in policy.

“This lends support to the theory that political activism influences policymaking, but there are still other explanations that could account for the correlation we have found. But for anyone who wants to influence politics and play it safe, a useful tip is not just to vote, but also to make use of the other democratic opportunities available,” concludes Lindqvist.

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