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Informatization, voter turnout and income inequality

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  • Ryo Arawatari

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Abstract

In recent years, voter turnout has been decreasing in most industrial countries, and about 40% of all electors abstain from voting. This may affect income inequality and the GDP growth rate through a redistribution policy determined by majority voting. In this paper, we explore the reasons for this continuing decrease in voter turnout and assess its social costs. We conclude that informatization lowers voter turnout by generating an information overload, and that a decrease in voter turnout lowers GDP growth by limiting income redistribution.

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File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1007/s10888-007-9062-z
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Bibliographic Info

Article provided by Springer in its journal The Journal of Economic Inequality.

Volume (Year): 7 (2009)
Issue (Month): 1 (March)
Pages: 29-54

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Handle: RePEc:kap:jecinq:v:7:y:2009:i:1:p:29-54

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Web page: http://springerlink.metapress.com/link.asp?id=111137

Related research

Keywords: Income inequality; Information; Informatization; Voter turnout; Voting; D31; O15; O41; P16;

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  12. David Dreyer Lassen, 2004. "The Effect of Information on Voter Turnout: Evidence from a Natural Experiment," EPRU Working Paper Series 04-03, Economic Policy Research Unit (EPRU), University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics.
  13. Timothy J. Feddersen & Wolfgang Pesendorfer, 1995. "The Swing Voter's Curse," Discussion Papers 1064, Northwestern University, Center for Mathematical Studies in Economics and Management Science.
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  16. Lucas, Robert Jr., 1988. "On the mechanics of economic development," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 3-42, July.
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