Title

Cleavage formation in Norway: The contextual dimension

Authors

Authors

B. S. Kinsey

Comments

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Abbreviated Journal Title

Scand. Polit. Stud.

Keywords

SOCIAL-STRUCTURE; MOBILIZATION; BEHAVIOR; CHOICE; CHILE; Political Science

Abstract

To explore the mechanism underlying the formation and persistence of cleavage structures the author applies a contextual approach in the case of Norway where regional variation in political cleavages persists over time. This study focuses on the time period between 1890 and 1930, the formative years of the Norwegian party system. The premise of the argument is that a factor contributing to persisting patterns of electoral mobilization is the location of new voters in patterns of social interaction deriving from the class composition in different regions. Initial electoral mobilizations coupled with enduring social structures can be carried on for a long time. These social conditions may pose high costs of mobilization to new parties in a political system. The article shows the persistence of a distinct class composition across regions in Norway and demonstrates the contextual effect by examining the behaviour of new voters in the 1900 election. It evaluates the contextual argument against other party incentives for mobilization by means of a statistical model that incorporates contextual incentives in addition to incentives deriving from electoral rules and political competition.

Journal Title

Scandinavian Political Studies

Volume

29

Issue/Number

3

Publication Date

1-1-2006

Document Type

Article

Language

English

First Page

261

Last Page

283

WOS Identifier

WOS:000239775900005

ISSN

0080-6757

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