ABSTRACT
The relationship between birth certificates and ballot papers can be a surprisingly complex variable for understanding political behaviour. Age is simultaneously a fixed chronological value, a relative concept, a probability indicator of morbidity, and a shared as well as a highly individualised personal experience. Any given individual’s attitudes and behaviours are likely to be forged by the dominant influences in childhood, the main political cleavages experienced as a young adult, and the impact of social trends during the life span. The significance of age as a predictor of political behaviour has been raised in recent years by the pronounced declines in voting at elections by younger people. This decline in youth turnout has led to a renewed interest in understanding the civic attitudes of younger people and a new focus on exploring measures to increase their participation (Kimberlee 2002, Levine and Lopez 2002, Electoral Commission 2006, Henn and Foard 2011). As older people have tended to have been less susceptible to variables that depress turnout their growing numbers has been magnified in its potential significance.
