Constituency Service among Sub-National Legislators in Australia and Canada

Abstract

Numerous studies confirm the significance of service work, a universal and time consuming responsibility of legislators (e.g., Kornberg and Campbell, 1978; Mezey, 1979). However, a recent survey reports that is relatively little detailed description or quantitative analysis of allocational and service activities, particularly from western countries outside Britain, Canada, and the United States (Jewell, 1985, p. 114). Moreover, while comparisons have been made of several intermediate spheres of government within one country (Clarke, Price, and Krause, 1975; Jewell, 1982; Kumbhat and Marican, 1976), there is little evidence from systematic crossnational research. This study seeks to contribute to the field by comparing constituency service among members of parliament from two countries, representing a total of 16 legislatures. A number of arguments have been advanced to explain why the level of constituency work varies among both legislatures and legislators. Some explanations operate at the individual level (interpretations of roles, priorities, and psychosocial factors) and some at the system level (including institutional or structural factors). The results show that a