A. Vatter et R. Nabholz, THE VOTER AS HOMO-OECONOMICUS - AN EMPIRI CAL-TEST OF VOTER BEHAVIOR REGARDING SWISS CANTON CREDIT BILLS, Politische Vierteljahresschrift, 36(3), 1995, pp. 484
Switzerland with its elaborate direct democracy offers one of the worl
ds' vastest empirical field for analysis of the political behaviour. T
he real political behaviour is easier to be judged at votes on single
subjects than at the occasion of elections, as it allows an analysis o
n a much more detailed level. The following article intends to contrib
ute to the overcoming of previously one-sided concepts of Swiss voting
analysis according to aggregate data. At the occasion of six cantonal
votes on credits the rational choice and structural hypothesis are be
ing tested. The results will be put in the context of previous voting
analysis and confirm the influence of the distance-, income- and tax-s
train-thesis as well as socio-cultural factors. Occupational category
or socio-structural variables, however, proved to be insignificant. Fi
nally eight thesis on the use of the economical model of the voter wil
l be listed.