2007 Conference Program - Midwest Political Science Association

23-3 INTERNET AND NEW CAMPAIGNING
TECHNOLOGIES
Room Salon 7, 3 rd Floor, Thur at 4:25 pm
Chair Margaret Carne, Rhodes College
Paper Campaigning on the Internet
Joe L. Gaziano, Lewis University
Laurette Liesen, Lewis University
Overview: This paper examines how statewide campaigns are
conducted over the Internet. It analyzes how this form of
campaigning is similar to and different from the traditional model
of campaigning.
Paper Financing Primaries 1980-2008: Hosting Fundraisers, Web-
Hosted Fundraising
Christopher C. Hull, Georgetown University
Overview: Have new money-gathering tools transformed, or just
improved, presidential primary campaign fundraising? This paper
analyzes dollar flows from Bush vs. Reagan in 1980 bout through
Dean vs. Kerry in 2004, with a peek into 2008 fundraising as well.
Paper The Rise of Consumer-Based Campaigns
Richard J. Semiatin, American University
Overview: Campaigns are changing from being candidate-driven
races to being consumer-driven races. Technology is permanently
changing campaigns.
Paper Electronic Grassroots: Measuring the Impact of the Internet
on the Campaign
Kevin M. Wagner, Florida Atlantic University
Jason Gainous, University of Louisville
Overview: Using a sample of U.S. Congressional districts, we
estimate both the quality and quantity of the campaign’s Internet
presence for the incumbent and challenger and correlate those
measures with electoral success.
Disc. Donald A. Zinman, Grand Valley State University
24-201 INFORMAL ROUNDTABLE: ELECTORAL
SYSTEMS AND REPRESENTATION
Room State, 4 th Floor, Table 1, Thur at 4:25 pm
Presenter The Green Machine: Environmental Constituents and
Congressional Voting
Sarah E. Anderson, Stanford University
Overview: This paper finds that Members of Congress respond to
district membership in environmental groups by voting more proenvironmental.
It assesses whether polarization has had an impact
on how moderates respond to their constituency.
Presenter Descriptive Representation in Congressional Offices
Curt Ziniel, University of California, Riverside
Overview: Racial demographics of the district are a better
indicator of Congressional staff racial demographics than
Members’ of Congress own race, party, or ideology. This has
important implications for the measurement of representation in
Congress.
24-202 INFORMAL ROUNDTABLE: REPRESENTATION
IN U.S. STATES
Room State, 4 th Floor, Table 2, Thur at 4:25 pm
Presenter Who Leads, Who Follows? The Nature of Representation in
California, 1996-2006
Delia Bailey, California Institute of Technology
Betsy Sinclair, California Institute of Technology
Overview: We examine roll call data from the California state
assembly and election returns on state ballot propositions to
explore the relationship between constituency preferences and
legislative behavior and to test hypotheses about the nature of
representation.
Presenter Who State Legislators Represent: Lessons From Three States
Justin T. Gollob, Temple University
Overview: Evidence from a three state mail survey of state
legislators shows that representation is not as confined to district
boundaries as once thought, and that previous explanations of
extra-district areal orientations (geo-political foci) are incomplete.
25-5 THE POLITICAL CONSEQUENCES OF INCOME
INEQUALITY
Room Salon 9, 3 rd Floor, Thur at 4:25 pm
Chair Joe Soss, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Paper On the Determinants of Social Trust in the United States
Christian Bjornskov, University of Aarhus
Overview: This paper explores the determinants of trust in 48 U.S.
states across three periods. The results show support for the
detrimental effects of income inequality but no or little support for
alternative theories.
Paper The Effect of Income Inequality on Political Attitudes and
Behavior
James C. Garand, Louisiana State University
Kim Nguyen, Louisiana State University
Overview: We explore how income inequality affects turnout,
political efficacy, and political trust. We consider direct and
interaction effects of income inequality using data from the 2000
American National Election and state estimates of income
inequality.
Paper Perceiving Inequality: Examining Contextual Influences on
Public Opinion
Amber M. Wichowsky, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Overview: Linking data from the 2002 ANES and the U.S.
Census, this paper examines community-level contextual
influences, including racial and class composition, economic
heterogeneity and religious diversity, on public opinion towards
income inequality.
Disc. Joe Soss, University of Wisconsin, Madison
David C. Wilson, University of Delaware
26-5 POLITICAL HABIT AND POLITICAL
PSYCHOLOGY: WHY CITIZENS PARTICIPATE
Room Clark 9, 7 th Floor, Thur at 4:25 pm
Chair Christopher F. Karpowitz, Brigham Young University
Paper Persistence in Political Participation
Marc N. Meredith, Stanford University
Overview: Discontinuities imposed by voting age restrictions are
used to identify the effects of past turnout on individuals’
participation decisions. The analysis reveals the effects of voting
age restrictions persist when they are no longer binding.
Paper Repeated Turnout as a Habit
Jacob M. Montgomery, Duke University
John H. Aldrich, Duke University
Wendy Wood, Duke University
Ashley Taylor, Duke University
Overview: Why are some people repeat voters? Using data from
the 1972-1976 ANES panel study, we demonstrated that the
strength of voting habits—established through frequent past
voting in a stable context—can account for some instances of
repeated voting.
Paper The Nexus of Political Efficacy and Political Learning: An
HLM Analysis of the Development of Political Engagement
Elizabeth Beaumont, University of Minnesota
Jeff Greene, University of Maryland
Judith Torney-Purta, University of Maryland
Overview: Explores relative influence of SES, civic background,
and other individual characteristics vis-à-vis contextual peer
effects and political learning experiences on development of
internal efficacy, then examines how these factors predict
participation.
Paper Do Happier People Participate More? Life Satisfaction and
Civic Engagement
Michael J. Keane, University of Notre Dame
Patrick J. Flavin, University of Notre Dame
Overview: Are citizens who are happier with their lives more
involved in politics and community affairs? We examine the
relationship between subjective life satisfaction and civic
engagement as mediated through traditional predictors of
participation.
Disc. Casey A. Klofstad, University of Miami
Evan Parker-Stephen, University of North Carolina
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