DEALIGNMENT AND DEMOBILIZATION - NONVOTING IN NEW-ZEALAND 1938-1990

New Zealand has had a reputation for high voting participation, but ag e-eligible turnout has declined since 1938 and, despite a brief recove ry between 1975 and 1984, continued to fall subsequently. By 1990 it w as far closer to the average turnout of Western democracies. Brief ana lysis of aggregate data since 1938 sets the scene for more specific st udy of individual-level data from the 1963, 1981, and 1990 elections, which indicates effects which are minimal for institutional factors, s mall for social and demographic variables, and substantial for changes in public attitudes. In particular, dealignment of the party system a nd voter demobilisation are associated with declining interest in poli tics, political efficacy, and party identification. While also associa ted with extra-parliamentary mass action to the partial detriment of v oting among the university-educated in 1981, a more general mobilisati on of postmaterialist issues was probably responsible for the post-197 5 turnout recovery. After 1984 the longer-term trend was reestablished .