Final PSCI 3172

Spatial Models of Vote Choice

Voters pick candidates or parties that best represent their interests.

Proximity Voting

A form of spatial voting where voters choose parties that are closest to their preferences.

Directional Voting

Voting for the candidate that best represents the intensity and direction of your preferences.

Region of Acceptability

The bounds within which voters consider candidates to the left or right of their preferences.

Compensational Vote Model

A model where voters consider who to vote for knowing the winner will have to compromise.

Institutional Balancing

The phenomenon where more compromise is required by institutional arrangements affecting voter behavior.

Critiques of the Spatial Model

Includes oversimplification of left-right ideology, malleability of preferences, and the influence of identities and social cues.

SALIPP Critique Acronym

Sophistication, Left-right oversimplification, Identitites and cues, Preferences malleability, Valence issues, and Performance evaluations.

Ideological Congruence

The ideological gap between a party and a voter; greater congruence increases voting likelihood.

Retrospective Voting

Voting based on past performance of incumbents.

Prospective Voting

Voting based on predictions of future performance or conditions.

Pocketbook Voting

Voting based on an individual's own financial situation.

Sociotropic Voting

Voting based on the overall economic conditions rather than personal financial situations.

Clarity of Responsibility (CoR)

Voter ability to assign blame for government performance; low CoR makes accountability difficult.

Room to Maneuver (RtM)

The degree of space parties have to set their own agenda in political decision making.

Globalization and Party Responsiveness

As globalization increases, party responsiveness to mean voter positions decreases.

Partisanship

Political identity formed by loyalty to a political party, influencing beliefs and behaviors.

Michigan Model of Partisanship

Partisanship is a psychological identification that influences political perception.

Running Tally Model

Partisanship as an accumulation of factors influencing party alignment over time.

Civic Community

Relates to a place’s democratic culture and is measured through engagement, associations, equity, and trust.

Social Capital

The networks of civic engagement characterized by trust, reciprocity, and mutuality.

Insufficient Information Theory

Voters lack sufficient economic information, relying instead on heuristics for decision making.

Institutional Clarity Dimension

The concentration of power within a governmental structure that affects accountability and responsiveness.