Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-p9bg8 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-25T07:49:38.340Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Legislator Dissent as a Valence Signal

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 June 2016

Rosie Campbell ,
Philip Cowley ,
Nick Vivyan  and
Markus Wagner
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Existing research suggests that voters tend to respond positively to legislator independence due to two types of mechanism. First, dissent has an indirect effect, increasing a legislator’s media coverage and personal recognition among constituents (profile effects). Secondly, constituents react positively to dissent when this signals that the legislator has matching political or representational preferences (conditional evaluation). This article presents a third effect: dissent acts as a valence signal of integrity and trustworthiness. Consistent with the valence signalling mechanism, it uses new observational and experimental evidence to show that British voters have a strong and largely unconditional preference for legislators who dissent. The findings pose a dilemma for political systems that rely on strong and cohesive parties.

Type
Articles
Information
British Journal of Political Science , Volume 49 , Issue 1 , January 2019 , pp. 105 - 128
Copyright
© Cambridge University Press 2016 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Footnotes

*

Department of Politics, Birkbeck, University of London (email: [email protected]); School of Politics and International Relations, Queen Mary University of London (email: [email protected]); School of Government and International Affairs, Durham University (email: [email protected]); Department of Government, University of Vienna (email: [email protected]). Part of this research was funded by a British Academy Small Research Grant awarded to Nick Vivyan (grant number SG112504). We would also like to thank the University of Nottingham for its generous support. We provide supplementary material in the online appendix. Data replication sets are available at https://dataverse.harvard.edu/dataverse/BJPolS and online appendices are available at http://dx.doi.org/doi:10.1017/S0007123416000223.

References

Adams, James, and Merrill, Samuel III. 2013. Policy-Seeking Candidates Who Value the Valence Attributes of the Winner. Public Choice 155:139–161.10.1007/s11127-011-9845-4Google Scholar
Ansolabehere, Stephen, and Jones, Philip E.. 2010. Constituents’ Responses to Congressional Roll-Call Voting. American Journal of Political Science 54 (3):583–597.10.1111/j.1540-5907.2010.00448.xGoogle Scholar
Benedetto, Giacomo, and Hix, Simon. 2007. The Rejected, the Ejected, and the Dejected: Explaining Government Rebels in the 2001–2005 British House of Commons. Comparative Political Studies 40 (7):755–781.Google Scholar
Bengtsson, Asa, and Wass, Hanna. 2011. The Representative Roles of MPs: A Citizen Perspective. Scandinavian Political Studies 34 (2):143–167.10.1111/j.1467-9477.2011.00267.xGoogle Scholar
Berrington, Hugh. 1973. Backbench Opinion in the House of Commons 1945–1955. Oxford: Pergamon Press.Google Scholar
Bowler, Shaun, Farrell, David, and Katz, Richard. 1998. Party Discipline and Parliamentary Government. Columbus: Ohio State University Press.Google Scholar
Cain, Bruce E., Ferejohn, John A., and Fiorina, Morris P.. 1987. The Personal Vote: Constituency Service and Electoral Independence. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.10.4159/harvard.9780674493285Google Scholar
Campbell, Rosie, and Lovenduski, Joni. 2015. What Should MPs Do? Public and Parliamentarians’ Views Compared. Parliamentary Affairs 68 (4):690–708.10.1093/pa/gsu020Google Scholar
Canes-Wrone, Brandice, Brady, David W., and Cogan, John F.. 2002. Out of Step, Out of Office: Electoral Accountability and House Members’ Voting. American Political Science Review 96 (1):127–140.Google Scholar
Carey, John M. 2009. Legislative Voting and Accountability. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Carey, John M., and Shugart, Matthew S.. 1995. Incentives to Cultivate a Personal Vote: A Rank Ordering of Electoral Formulas. Electoral Studies 14 (4):417–439.Google Scholar
Carman, Christopher J. 2006. Public Preferences for Parliamentary Representation in the UK: An Overlooked Link? Political Studies 54 (1):103–122.10.1111/j.1467-9248.2006.00568.xGoogle Scholar
Carson, Jamie L., Kober, Gregory, Lebo, Matthew L., and Young, Everett. 2010. The Electoral Costs of Party Loyalty in Congress. American Journal of Political Science 54 (3):598–616.10.1111/j.1540-5907.2010.00449.xGoogle Scholar
Collie, Mellisa P. 1988. Voting Behaviour in Legislatures. In Handbook of Legislative Research, edited by Gerhard Lowenberg, 471–518. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
Converse, Philip E., and Pierce, Roy. 1986. Political Representation in France. Harvard: Belknap Press.10.4159/harvard.9780674187887Google Scholar
Cowley, Philip. 2002. Revolts and Rebellions: Parliamentary Voting Under Blair. London: Politicos.Google Scholar
Cowley, Philip. 2005. The Rebels: How Blair Mislaid His Majority. London: Politicos.Google Scholar
Cowley, Philip. 2013. Analysis: You Don’t Have To Be a Rebel, But It Helps. (Accessed http://www.politics.co.uk/comment-analysis/2013/03/04/analysis-you-don-t-have-to-be-a-rebel-but-it-helps, accessed 21/04/16). April 2016.Google Scholar
Cox, Gary W. 1987. The Efficient Secret: The Cabinet and the Development of Political Parties in Victorian England. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.10.1017/CBO9780511571473Google Scholar
Crisp, Brian, Olivella, Santiago, Malecki, Michael, and Sher, Mindy. 2013. Vote-Earning Strategies in Flexible List Systems: Seats at the Price of Unity. Electoral Studies 32 (4):658–669.Google Scholar
Crowe, Edward. 1983. Consensus and Structure in Legislative Norms: Party Discipline in the House of Commons. Journal of Politics 45 (4):907–931.10.2307/2130418Google Scholar
Dalton, Russell. 2004. Democratic Challenges, Democratic Choices: The Erosion in Political Support in Advanced Industrial Democracies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Dalton, Russell, Farrell, David M., and McAllister, Ian. 2011. Political Parties and Democratic Linkage: How Parties Organize Democracy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Davidson, Roger H. 1970. Public Prescriptions for the Job of Congressman. Midwest Journal of Political Science 14 (4):648–666.Google Scholar
Eulau, Heinz, Wahlke, John C., Buchanan, William, and Ferguson, Leroy C.. 1959. The Role of the Representative: Some Empirical Observations on the Theory of Edmund Burke. American Political Science Review 53 (3):742–756.10.2307/1951941Google Scholar
Finer, Samuel E., Berrington, Hugh B., and Bartholomew, David J.. 1961. Backbench Opinion in the House of Commons 1955–1959. Oxford: Pergamon Press.Google Scholar
Franklin, Mark, and Norton, Philip, eds. 1993. Parliamentary Questions. Oxford: Clarendon Press.Google Scholar
Goldstein, Daniel G., and Gigerenzer, Gerd. 2002. Models of Ecological Rationality: The Recognition Heuristic. Psychological Review 109 (1):79–90.Google Scholar
Green, Paul E., Krieger, Abba M., and Wind, Yoram (Jerry). 2001. Thirty Years of Conjoint Analysis: Reflections and Prospects. Interfaces 31 (3, Supplement):S56–S73.Google Scholar
Greene, Zachary, and Haber, Matthias. 2015. The Consequences of Appearing Divided: An Analysis of Party Evaluations and Vote Choice. Electoral Studies 37 (1):15–27.Google Scholar
Grose, Christian R., Malhotra, Neil, and van Houweling, Robert P.. 2015. Explaining Explanations: How Legislators Explain their Policy Positions and How Citizens React. American Journal of Political Science 59 (3):724–743 –43.10.1111/ajps.12164Google Scholar
Hainmueller, Jens, Hopkins, Daniel J., and Yamamoto, Teppei. 2014. Causal Inference in Conjoint Analysis: Understanding Multi-Dimensional Choices Via Stated Preference Experiments. Political Analysis 22 (1):1–30.10.1093/pan/mpt024Google Scholar
Harbridge, Laurel, and Malhotra, Neil. 2011. Electoral Incentives and Partisan Conflict in Congress: Evidence from Survey Experiments. American Journal of Political Science 55 (3):494–510.Google Scholar
Jacobson, Gary. 1989. Strategic Politicians and the Dynamics of U.S. House Elections, 1946–86. American Political Science Review 83 (3):773–793.10.2307/1962060Google Scholar
Johnson, Catherine, and Rosenblatt, Gemma. 2007. Do MPs Have the ‘Right Stuff?’. Parliamentary Affairs 60 (1):164–169.10.1093/pa/gsl055Google Scholar
Kam, Christopher J. 2009. Party Discipline and Parliamentary Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Kam, Cindy D., and Zechmeister, Elizabeth J.. 2013. Name Recognition and Candidate Support. American Journal of Political Science 57 (4):971–986.Google Scholar
Kellerman, Michael. 2012. Estimating Ideal Points in the British House of Commons Using Early Day Motions. American Journal of Political Science 56 (3):757–771.10.1111/j.1540-5907.2012.00587.xGoogle Scholar
Mayhew, David. 1974. Congress: The Electoral Connection. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.Google Scholar
McCurley, Carl, and Mondak, Jeffery J.. 1995. Inspected by #1184063113: The Influence of Incumbents’ Competence and Integrity in U.S. House Elections. American Journal of Political Science 39 (4):864–885.10.2307/2111660Google Scholar
Mendez-Lago, Monica, and Martinez, Antonia. 2002. Political Representation in Spain: An Empirical Analysis of the Perception of Citizens and MPs. The Journal of Legislative Studies 8 (1):63–90.Google Scholar
Mondak, Jeffrey J. 1995. Competence, Integrity, and the Electoral Success of Congressional Incumbents. Journal of Politics 57 (4):1043–1069.Google Scholar
Mondak, Jeffrey J., and Huckfeldt, Robert. 2006. The Accessibility and Utility of Candidate Character in Electoral Decision Making. Electoral Studies 25 (1):20–34.10.1016/j.electstud.2005.02.006Google Scholar
Norton, Philip, and Wood, David M.. 1993. Back from Westminster. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky.Google Scholar
Oeusoonthornwattana, Onvara, and Shanks, David R.. 2010. I Like What I Know: Is Recognition a Non-Compensatory Determiner of Consumer Choice? Judgement and Decision Making 5 (4):310–325.Google Scholar
Patterson, Samuel C., Hedlund, Robert H., and Boynton, Robert G.. 1975. Representatives and Represented: Bases of Public Support for the American Legislatures. New York: John Wiley and Sons.Google Scholar
Pattie, Charles, Fieldhouse, Ed, and Johnston, Ron. 1994. The Price of Conscience: The Electoral Correlates and Consequences of Free Votes and Rebellions in the British House of Commons, 1987–92. The British Journal of Political Science 24 (3):359–380.Google Scholar
Patty, John W. 2015. 2015. Signaling Through Obstruction. American Journal of Political Science 60 (1):175–189–89.10.1111/ajps.12202Google Scholar
Powell, G. Bingham. 2000. Elections as Instruments of Democracy. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.Google Scholar
Sanbonmatsu, Kira. 2002. Gender Stereotypes and Vote Choice. American Journal of Political Science 46 (1):20–34.Google Scholar
Sanders, David, Clarke, Harold, Stewart, Marianne, and Whiteley, Paul. 2007. Does Mode Matter for Modeling Political Choice. Political Analysis 15 (3):257–285.Google Scholar
Stone, Walter J., and Simas, Elizabeth N.. 2010. Candidate Valence and Ideological Positions in U.S. House Elections. American Journal of Political Science 54 (2):371–388.10.1111/j.1540-5907.2010.00436.xGoogle Scholar
Vivyan, Nick, and Wagner, Markus. 2012. Do Voters Reward Rebellion? The Electoral Accountability of MPs in Britain. European Journal of Political Research 51 (2):235–264.10.1111/j.1475-6765.2011.01998.xGoogle Scholar
Vivyan, Nick, Wagner, Markus, and Tarlov, Jessica. 2012. Representative Misconduct, Voter Perceptions and Accountability: Evidence from the 2009 House of Commons Expenses Scandal. Electoral Studies 31 (4):750–763.Google Scholar
Webb, Paul. 1996. A Partisanship and Anti-Party Sentiment in the United Kingdom: Correlates and Constraints. European Journal of Political Research 29 (3):365–382.10.1111/j.1475-6765.1996.tb00657.xGoogle Scholar
Whiteley, Paul. 2011. Political Participation in Britain: The Decline and Revival of Civic Culture. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.Google Scholar
Supplementary material: Link

Campbell et al. Dataset

Dataset

https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/3YCVOF
Link
Supplementary material: File

Campbell supplementary material

Appendix

Download Campbell supplementary material(File)
File 1.6 MB