Intermediation Through Secondary Associations : The Organizational Context of Electoral Behaviour

This chapter examines the associational context of political participation. It discusses the extent to which non-political voluntary associations serve as channels through which the citizens are involved in mass politics. It describes the patterns of secondary association membership across the CNEP countries, and present an analysis of the patterns of membership in voluntary associations and an explanatory model of social participation. The chapter points out how countries differ to the degree of politicization of their secondary associations. It also enumerates the factors that affect the respondents' perceptions of stands taken by their respective associations, and the influence of these associations on electoral turnout and partisan choice. The last section analyzes the extent of electoral encapsulation cross-nationally and across different types of secondary associations.