• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
• /
• v.25 no.2
• /
• pp.103-139
• /
• 2019

This study aims to verify how trust in government leads voters' electoral participation with paying attention to their political orientations. In particular, this study takes voters' partisan consideration into account to examine different direction of the effect of trust in government on electoral participation depending on their ideology and partisan preferences. Key findings show that governmental trust has a positive influence on electoral participation for voters who have conformable ideological orientations to the incumbent government and positive preferences toward the ruling party. In contrast, distrust in government is more likely to increase the possibility of electoral participation for those who have different ideology from the incumbent, negative attitude toward the ruling party, and partisan preferences of the opposition party. Previous studies on the relationship between governmental trust and electoral participation have been mixed as yet. For the sake of explaining this inconclusiveness, this study focuses on partisan foundation of voters' political decision making. It contributes to our understanding of the political properties of governmental trust and its implications for representative democracy.

• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
• /
• v.27 no.1
• /
• pp.79-115
• /
• 2021

Voters' negative evaluations of government performance lower their trust in government, which functions as the reward and punishment for the government. Trust in government thus serves to promote political accountability of the representative government. However, voters build their confidence toward the party government where the ruling party is responsible for the performance. Considering this partisan nature, we empirically examine that the influence of voters' performance evaluations on governmental trust is conditional on their party identifications. While higher perceptions of political/social conflict and increasing negative evaluations of government policies and economic performance are associated with the lower level of confidence in government, the relationship is contrasted between different party identifiers. For supporters of the ruling party in 2020, the negative evaluations of government performance are not likely to reduce trust in government a lot. On the contrary, those who identify with the main opposition party show the most prominent effect of negative evaluations on their distrust in government. This study demonstrates that trust in government is affected by voters' partisan preferences, not entirely by evaluations of government performance. Such a distortion of the reward and sanction function of governmental trust might lead to the weakening of the accountability mechanism in representative democracy.

• International Area Studies Review
• /
• v.12 no.3
• /
• pp.549-566
• /
• 2008

This study examines the effect of social conservative values that have risen as an important factor in American politics. Focusing on the abortion issue, it discusses how the abortion issue has affected American voters' issue and party preferences and their ideological orientations. The empirical results demonstrate that the abortion issue has contributed to reinforce the existing ideological and partisan divisions, although it has not realigned them. As a consequence, the abortion issue has become a significant determinant for vote choice since 1980s. Particularly in 1990s, when the polarization among the political elites became clear, the political effect of the abortion issue appears to be more evident.

• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
• /
• v.10 no.2
• /
• pp.391-406
• /
• 2024

The current distribution of digital news has the potential to produce politically biased information for users as a result of individual choices and media selection based on those choices. Consequently, this research explored the factors affecting individual news selection and the effects of opinion changes and political participation that can occur when news tailored to users' partisan preferences is recommended. The phenomenon of selective exposure has been shown to be stronger when individuals utilize more limited information processing, experience higher discussion efficacy among groups with similar political beliefs. Furthermore, When a selective exposure group was randomly provided with a one-way message news that matched their partisan leanings, it was found that opinion consolidation, opinion-reinforcing information processing, and online political participation. On the other hand, when they were randomly presented with two-way messaging news in which the media balanced two competing partisan positions, they were found to be more likely to understand the other side's views and arguments, and more willing to adjust their existing opinions. We are confirmed that the balanced use of various opinions is very important in deliberative democratic process.

• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
• /
• v.24 no.3
• /
• pp.29-54
• /
• 2018

Focusing on vastly different results between two presidential elections in 2012 and 2017, this paper examines how political attitudes of conservative voters had changed in 5 years and how these changes had brought about differences in their vote choices in 2017. Using panel data encompassing two presidential elections, this paper finds that, though ideological and affective evaluation of conservative parties and candidates had indeed deteriorated among supporters of Park Geun-Hye in 2012, it is candidate factors rather partisan ones that exerted much more significant influence on their vote choices in 2017. In addition it is found that the differentiation in political and economic policy preferences among conservative voters had only slight influence on their voted choices in 2017. This paper concludes with discussing how to understand the result of the $19^{th}$ presidential elections and what implications it has in prospecting the party realignment in Korean electoral politics.

• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
• /
• v.15 no.2
• /
• pp.159-185
• /
• 2009

This study aims to examine whether committee preference and negotiation group affiliation have an effect on proposals and passages of legislators' bills. Previous studies points out predominances and reflections of partisan interests, but analytic result shows legislators' preferences work on introductions and passages of bills through committee and negotiation group as assembly institutions. The rates of proposals and passages were high in the committee that legislators would like to belong to. The same result was found in negotiation group affiliation. However, active activities of legislators works in only their committees, not in a general meeting. This result shows that committee and negotiation group are significant institutions of national assembly.

• Analyses & Alternatives
• /
• v.6 no.2
• /
• pp.79-115
• /
• 2022

This study aims to account for electoral choice in the 2020 presidential election by focusing on social identity which forms the basis for core partisan groups. Two views compete to explain the origins of polarization, policy versus party. One emphasizes policy as more influential in choosing presidential candidates. This follows the tradition of retrospective voting theory in which voters' choice rely on government performance. Incumbent president whose performance proves well are rewarded to be reelected. Policy performance is based on measures around distinctive preferences for government spending. Republican Individuals prefer individual responsibility to government support, while Democratic counterparts support government support. Another perspective put an emphasis on the role partisanship which favors in-party members and disfavors partisan out-groups. Interparty animosity plays the key role in determining electoral behavior. This study relies on the Views of the Electorate Research (VOTER) Survey which provides a panel data of several waves from 2011 to 2020. A comparative evaluation of two views highlights three findings. First, policy matters. Policy preferences of voters are the primary drives of political behavior. Electoral outcomes in 2020 turned out to be the results of policy considerations of voters. 53.7 percent of voters tilted toward individual responsibility voted for Trump, whereas 70.4 percent of those favorable views of government support than individual responsibility voted for Biden. Thus effects of policy correspond to a positive difference of 26.4 percent points. Second, partisanship effects are of similar extent in influencing electoral choice of candidates: Democrats are less likely to vote for Trump by 42.4 percent points, while Republicans are less likely to vote for Biden by 48.7 percent points. Third, animosity of Republicans toward Democrat core groups creates 26.5 percent points of favoring Trump over Biden. Democrat animosity toward Republican core groups creates a positive difference of 13.7 percent points of favoring Biden.

• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
• /
• v.26 no.3
• /
• pp.37-83
• /
• 2020

This paper presents the results of 'The Survey on the 21^st National Assembly members' conducted by the Korean Association of Party Studies (KAPS) and the Hankyoreh following the 21^st Korean National Assembly Election. Since the 16^th Korean National Assembly Election, the KAPS has surveyed the candidates and/or the elected regarding their views on major policy issues and perceived self-ideology, which has contributed to our understanding of overtime changes in ideology of political parties in South Korea and their members. This year's survey includes 21 questions on the four major policy issue areas including foreign policy, economy, social issues and cultural issues as well as their perceived ideology. Among the 300 elected, 197 participated in the survey. The results suggest that the Justice Party is most liberal, the United Future Party is most conservative, and the Democratic Party is in the middle on average in terms of issue preference and perceived ideology. Compared to the preceding National Assembly, the partisan gap continues to appear salient in foreign policy, economy, and the cultural issues. In contrast, the gap narrows down in the social issues because the members of the Democratic Party embrace more conservative preference. It is noteworthy to examine whether this shift leads to cooperative decision making on social policies between liberal and conservative parties in the upcoming National Assembly. The composite policy preference index of individual assembly members, on the other hand, shows significant difference among members of different parties. Political parties in South Korea has evolved from a group of people from the same region into a group of people with distinctive policy preferences.