Transcript PPA 419 – Aging Services Administration

PPA 419 – Aging Services
Administration
Lecture 3a – The Political and Policy
Context of Aging Services
Political Behavior of Older
Americans
 Source: Steven A. Peterson and Albert Somit
 The political behavior of older Americans is
of significance mainly because of the growth
in size of the older population in the United
States during the 21st century as the Baby
Boom generation ages.
Political Behavior of Older
Americans
 Although older Americans are diverse, on average
they will have greater education, higher incomes,
and better health than in the past.
 These factors are associated with greater
participation in politics.
 Thus, it is thought that in the future, the interests of
older Americans will shape politics and public
policy to an even greater extent than they do today.
Political Behavior of Older
Americans
 Authors use data from the 1987 National Opinion
Research Center survey (60 and older, 55 and older
for African-Americans).
 Peterson and Somit use the socioeconomic model of
political participation as the baseline.
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Education causes civic orientations causes political
participation.
They also expand the model to include the effects of age,
measures of life circumstances, and other variables.
Caveats
 Arbitrariness of age cut-off.
 Age-cohort-period effects.
Summary of Previous Research
 Participation.
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Political interest rises with age.
Voting increases with age.
Other forms of participation increase with age.
Intensity of partisanship increased with age (but results equivocal).
 Political attitudes and issue preferences.
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No consistent differences on ideology or issue preferences.
No consistent effects on political efficacy.
No consistent effects on political alienation.
 The Aged as Voting Bloc or Lobby.
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The aged have not coalesced into a voting or lobbying bloc.
Baseline Socioeconomic Model
Socioeconomic
Status
Civic
Orientations
Political
Participation
Socioeconomic Model: Variables
 Independent.
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Education, age, gender, race, group memberships.
 Dependent.
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Ideology: Republican, conservative, tolerant, lifestyle liberalism.
Alienation: anomie, misanthropy, confidence in political institutions,
trust in federal government, personal powerlessness.
Politicization: follow news regularly, information level, political
interest.
Participation: summary, campaign, communal, particularistic
contacting, voting
Socioeconomic Model: Baseline
Results
Socioeconomic Model: Baseline
Results
Socioeconomic Model: Path
Analyses
Socioeconomic Model: Path
Analyses
Socioeconomic Model: Path
Analyses
Socioeconomic Model: Path
Analyses
Socioeconomic Model: Path
Analyses
Political Behavior of Older
Americans
 Main findings
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Confirmation of socioeconomic model.
The largest effects are between education and
political interest (civic orientation), and political
interest and political participation.
Group memberships and education have large
direct effects on participation.
Life Experiences and Political
Behavior of Older Americans
 Independent Variables
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Health status, stress, number of siblings, marital
status, church involvement.
Life Experiences: Results
Able Elderly (Health and
Education): Results
Political Behavior of Older
Americans
 Extending the model
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Life circumstances also have both direct and
indirect effects on participation.
Direct link: happiness and participation
 Health: affects both interest and happiness
 Age: small positive effect on happiness
 Widowhood: small negative effect on happiness.
 Older women participate somewhat less than older
men, partly because of lower interest
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Older African-Americans: Results
Older White Americans
Political Behavior of Older
Americans
 Older African-Americans
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Simpler model
Age, which has a negative impact on political interest,
education, and group memberships, is more important for
African-Americans than for whites.
Life circumstances are less important.
Political participation among older African-Americans is
more likely to go up as a result of improvements in
socioeconomic status than as a result of increases in
racial consciousness or empowerment.
Older Women: Results
Older Men: Results
Political Behavior of Older
Americans
 Older Women
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Large education effects for older women than
older men
Simpler model
Political Behavior of Older
Americans
 Conclusions
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Ignorance about the actual behavior of older Americans
has led to misperceptions about the potential for the
growth of gray political power.
Older Americans, although they will grow in numbers
and will participate at higher rates, lack political
cohesion.
They are extraordinarily diverse in terms of
sociodemographic characteristics, party attachments, and
issue opinions.
Political Behavior of Older
Americans
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Conclusions
Elected public officials, fed by media stereotypes, fear
gray political power because of a paralyzing terror
(mostly irrational) of election defeat.
 Plainly, there is no single, coherent, unified voting
bloc of older Americans.
 This is true even of issues that are of direct concern to
them.
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