Voting May Be Habit-Forming: Evidence from a Randomized Field Experiment

• Published in: American journal of political science Vol. 47; no. 3; pp. 540 - 550
• Main Authors: Gerber, Alan S., Green, Donald P., Shachar, Ron
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 350 Main Street , Malden , MA 02148 , USA , and 9600 Garsington Road , Oxford OX4 2DQ , UK Blackwell Publishing 01.07.2003; Blackwell Publishing Ltd
• Subjects: Canvassing; Control groups; Elections; Electoral behaviour; Field study; Habits; Habitual behavior; Local elections; Mailings; Policy making; Political action; Political behaviour; Political campaigns; Political participation; Political psychology; Political science; Polls; Voter registration; Voter turnout; Voters; Voting; Voting Behavior; Voting behaviour; Voting turnout

Habit is a frequently mentioned but understudied cause of political action. This article provides the first direct test of the hypothesis that casting a ballot in one election increases one's propensity to go to the polls in the future. A field experiment involving 25,200 registered voters was...