Sveinung Arnesen: Upward Representation Bias
Upward Representation Bias: How Voters Sustain Political Inequality
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Sveinung Arnesen, researcher at NORCE will present at this Tuesday seminar.
Abstract:
Inequality in representation and responsiveness has been reported widely, but we are only starting to understand why these inequalities might occur.
In this contribution, we demonstrate a new source of political inequality: Upward representation bias. Citizens of lower socio-economic status tend to want politicians with higher socio-economic status even if they know their political views will be less represented. We demonstrate this phenomenon using a candidate choice experiment fielded in probability-based surveys in France, Germany, Iceland, The Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden (N=17,405). These types of voter biases reinforce existing inequalities even under equal participation. We encourage scholars to further explore ways voter biases affect political inequality.
Lunch is served at first come, first served basis.
