The Reason for a Disengaged Generation
A disengaged generation? Analyzing the reasons for low turnout by 18-24 year olds and how turnout differs between different elections in the UK.
Turnout in the United kingdom has been falling slowly for the past twenty years, with this general fall there has been an even bigger fall in the number of 18-24 year olds voting. In the last general election the turnout within the 18-24 age group was 45% much lower than the 63.8% average (ipsos-mori). So why does the youngest age group have the lowest turnout? This will be my primary question within this paper. I will also be analyzing the different reasons for the turnout between general elections, local council elections and the recent police commissioner elections within the 18-24 age group. I will do this by first discussing the current literature on the subject, then addressing the methodology of my research starting with my choice of a questionnaire and use of interviews. I will then present my findings in the questionnaire and analyze them, followed by doing the same with an interview. I will then evaluate my research project and the methods used. Finally I will come to the conclusion that young people tend not to vote when they are unsure about what and who they are voting for. This reason does not change between different elections it remains a primary reason in all three the elections I have chosen to investigate.
There is a fair amount of literature on the subject of low turnout elections especially on the turnout of young voters or the lack as most seem argue. Many academics have researched the reasons for young voters apathetic view of voting. They have been described as “uninterested’ youths (Henn 2005) ‘politically apathetic’ (Kimberlee, 1998) and as a ‘disengaged generation’ (Jowell and Park, 1998) (Mycock and Tonge). However there is little on why turnout varies on different elections there is also no age breakdown on local council elections so for this I will have to use my own data and produce my
Turnout in the United kingdom has been falling slowly for the past twenty years, with this general fall there has been an even bigger fall in the number of 18-24 year olds voting. In the last general election the turnout within the 18-24 age group was 45% much lower than the 63.8% average (ipsos-mori). So why does the youngest age group have the lowest turnout? This will be my primary question within this paper. I will also be analyzing the different reasons for the turnout between general elections, local council elections and the recent police commissioner elections within the 18-24 age group. I will do this by first discussing the current literature on the subject, then addressing the methodology of my research starting with my choice of a questionnaire and use of interviews. I will then present my findings in the questionnaire and analyze them, followed by doing the same with an interview. I will then evaluate my research project and the methods used. Finally I will come to the conclusion that young people tend not to vote when they are unsure about what and who they are voting for. This reason does not change between different elections it remains a primary reason in all three the elections I have chosen to investigate.
There is a fair amount of literature on the subject of low turnout elections especially on the turnout of young voters or the lack as most seem argue. Many academics have researched the reasons for young voters apathetic view of voting. They have been described as “uninterested’ youths (Henn 2005) ‘politically apathetic’ (Kimberlee, 1998) and as a ‘disengaged generation’ (Jowell and Park, 1998) (Mycock and Tonge). However there is little on why turnout varies on different elections there is also no age breakdown on local council elections so for this I will have to use my own data and produce my