The impact of social factors on voting behaviour

Question 1

Define social class

Answer 1

The way social researchers classify people based on their occupation and income

Question 2

Why is defining social class a contentious issue?

Answer 2

Because class can include many aspects aside from economics, like social and political capital

Question 3

State the four different social classifications for citizens in the UK

Answer 3

• AB
• C1
• C2
• DE

Question 4

Describe some general characteristics of the AB classification

Answer 4

Higher and intermediate managerial, administrative and professional occupations

Question 5

Describe some general characteristics of the C1
classification

Answer 5

Supervisory, clerical and junior management, administrative and professional occupations

Question 6

Describe some general characteristics of the C2 classification

Answer 6

Skilled manual occupations

Question 7

Describe some general characteristics of the DE classification

Answer 7

Semi-skilled and unskilled manual occupations, unemployed and lowest grade occupations

Question 8

Describe some typical occupations for the AB social classification

Answer 8

• Banker
• Doctor
• Company director
• Senior executive

Question 9

Describe some typical occupations for the C1 social classification

Answer 9

• Teacher
• Office manager
• IT manager
• Social worker

Question 10

Describe some typical occupations for the C2 social classification

Answer 10

• Plumber
• Hairdresser
• Mechanic
• Train driver

Question 11

Describe some typical occupations for the DE social classification

Answer 11

• Labourer
• Bar staff
• Call centre staff
• Unemployed

Question 12

What proportion of the population belongs to the AB social classification?

Answer 12

22%

Question 13

What proportion of the population belongs to the C1 social classification?

Answer 13

31%

Question 14

What proportion of the population belongs to the C2 social classification?

Answer 14

21%

Question 15

What proportion of the population belongs to the DE social classification?

Answer 15

26%

Question 16

What is the issue with the use of social classifications?

Answer 16

Many people will identify as part of a class that does not fall within these definitions; not everyone will agree or identify with the social classification they have been placed in

Question 17

What proportion of people voted in alignment with what their social class suggested in the 1960s?

Answer 17

80%

Question 18

Describe voting proclivities according to social class during the mid to late 20th century

Answer 18

• The C1 class was typically, though not overwhelmingly, Conservative
• The DE class mostly voted for Labour
• The AB mostly favoured the Conservatives
• The C2 class mostly voted for Labour

Question 19

Where was the political battle largely fought throughout the 20th century?

Answer 19

Between the C1 and C2 voters; as they were less likely to vote in alignment with class. Consequently, political parties would tailor their manifestos to these groups

Question 20

What is a floating/swing voter?

Answer 20

A voter who tends to vote unpredictably in different elections and who is liable to change the way they vote fairly often and who does not identify closely with any party

Question 21

What is a manifesto?

Answer 21

Used by a political party to spell out in details what actions and programmes it would like to put into place if it is successful in the next election; a set of promises for future action

Question 22

How has voting been a part of someone’s class identity historically?

Answer 22

To be middle or upper class was to be conservative; to be working class meant that you would support the party of the working class

Question 23

Why can it be seen as a rational decision to vote for the party associated with your class?

Answer 23

The Conservative party was conceived of as governing more in the interests of the middle and upper class, while Labour developed policies to help the working class and the poor

Question 24

How much has DE voting for Labour decreased between 1964-2019?

Answer 24

25%

Question 25

How much has AB voting for the Conservatives decreased between 1964-2019?

Answer 25

33%

Question 26

How can the fact that 1/3 of the traditional working class still voted conservative be explained?

Answer 26

• This was partially the result of a factor called ‘deference’. This was a tendency for some members of the class to ‘defer’ to or respect those whom they conceived to be their superiors
• Some lower class voters aspired to be part of the upper classes and voted conservative as evidence of this aspiration

Question 27

Which correlation between class and voting tendency has remained relatively strong?

Answer 27

AB voters and the conservatives

Question 28

How can the decline in AB voters voting for the conservatives be explained?

Answer 28

New Labour’s success in taking some of the conservative’s middle class support

Question 29

Define class dealignment

Answer 29

The process whereby individuals no longer identify themselves as belonging to a certain class and, for political purposes, fail to make a class connection with their voting pattern

Question 30

Why have the larger parties started to adopt more centrist and consensual policies?

Answer 30

So they can appeal to a wider class base, largely in the centre of society

Question 31

How are electoral turnout and social class linked?

Answer 31

There is a higher turnout amongst higher social groups

Question 32

List some of the potential explanations for why turnout increases with class

Answer 32

• Education levels
• Perceptions about how much their vote is valued
• A class-based feeling of disconnection from the political process

Question 33

Why are parties who target voters from the C2 and DE class currently struggling?

Answer 33

Because these classes have been shrinking as a proportion of the population, and are much less likely to turn out in elections

Question 34

How can the participation crisis surrounding DE voters be seen as a negative cycle?

Answer 34

DE voters feel ignored by politicians and so do not vote. Politicians then ignore DE voters because they do not vote

Question 35

State some of the arguements in favour of the idea that social class is still an important factor in deciding elections

Answer 35

• Issues over levels of taxation and welfare payments, closely linked to class, still distinguish the main two parties
• A number of voters still identify with a party based on their social class
• Regional voting tends to reflect class-based issues like wealth and poverty
• Social immobility and inequality still remain big concerns for many voters

Question 36

State some of the arguements against the idea that social class is still an important factor in deciding elections

Answer 36

• Major issues, like Brexit and immigration, cross class divides
• The size and importance of the working class has declined, making it less of an electoral force
• Increased home ownership and better levels of education have made it harder to determine class affiliations
• To be successful, parties must now appeal to a wide range of social classes, rather than just one or two of them

Question 37

State the 6 main contributary factors in class dealignment

Answer 37

• The members of the working class who wish to become more middle class have started to vote aspirationally
• The service sector has expanded
• The tradtional industrial working class of the 1970s has disappeared
• The public sector was privatised
• Better education has led to greater social mobility
• Deference, accepting ones place in society, has become less commonplace

Question 38

How did Margaret Thatcher help social mobility in 1979?

Answer 38

She catered to aspiration by selling council houses

Question 39

How did Blair try to cater to a broader spectrum of classes?

Answer 39

• Labour marketed themselves as New Labour in 1997
• Blair reworded clause IV in the Labour Party constitution

Question 40

How did Theresa May try to appeal to classes who may not traditionally vote conservative?

Answer 40

She branded the conservatives as the ‘party of aspiration’

Question 41

How are Lib Dem votes distributed across the class system?

Answer 41

21% of AB and C1 voters vote Lib Dem, compared to just 11% of C2 and DE voters

Question 42

How are UKIP votes distributed across the class system?

Answer 42

36% of C2 and DE voters voted UKIP, compared to just 19% of C1 and AB voters

Question 43

How are Green Party votes distributed across the class system?

Answer 43

Green party votes are virtually evenly distributed across the different classes

Question 44

What proportion of the AB class voted to leave the EU in 2016?

Answer 44

43%

Question 45

What proportion of the C1 class voted to leave the EU in 2016?

Answer 45

51%

Question 46

What proportion of the C2 class voted to leave the EU in 2016?

Answer 46

64%

Question 47

What proportion of the DE class voted to leave the EU in 2016?

Answer 47

64%

Question 48

Analyse the 2016 Brexit referendum in terms of class?

Answer 48

Those of greater wealth and social status were less likely to want to leave the EU