''The Voter Decides'' is a 1954

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

book by Angus Campbell, Gerald Gurin, and

Warren E. Miller Warren E. Miller (born October 5, 1964) was a member of the Maryland House of Delegates. Miller represented District 9A, which includes parts of Howard and Carroll counties. Miller was appointed by Governor Bob Ehrlich on March 7, 2003 to repl ...

. It first developed the notion of "

party identification Party identification refers to the political party with which an individual is affiliated with. Party identification is typically determined by the political party that an individual most commonly supports (by voting or other means). Some research ...

" or, in abbreviated form, "Party ID." Party ID is the sense of personal attachment the individual feels toward the political group or party of his or her choice.

Synopsis

''The Voter Decides'' developed three theories as to how a person acquires Party ID. # Party attachment, like church preference, may be passed down from parent to child. # People may remain in the same class, ethnic and religious groups as their parents and are subject to the same group influences as their parents. # People may tend to consciously or otherwise make the memory of their parents' partisanship conform to their attachments. In short, once a Party ID is acquired from a person's parents (through unknowing absorption from a very young age) the person spends the rest of his or her life adopting views and positions that create a reason for their party affiliation.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Voter Decides, The 1954 non-fiction books Books about democracy Political science books