Change in Party Identification

Abstract

In the past few years, a new direction has been taken in the study of economics and politics. Researchers have begun to focus on the role of prospective economic evaluations. The research presented here applies the prospective model to changes in partisanship. Regardless of the time period examined, these prospective economic evaluations exert an important influence on party identification. Individuals change their partisanship in response to their expectations concerning the ability of the parties to provide financial prosperity. These findings indicate that previous examinations of the electorate have understated the rationality of the populace, and, accordingly, previous theories of political behavior are in need of revision.