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Replication Data for: Unresponsive and Unpersuaded: The Unintended Effects of Voter Persuasion Efforts

Harvard Dataverse (Africa Rice Center, Bioversity International, CCAFS, CIAT, IFPRI, IRRI and WorldFish)

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Title Replication Data for: Unresponsive and Unpersuaded: The Unintended Effects of Voter Persuasion Efforts
 
Identifier https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/FRWBPJ
 
Creator Hopkins, Daniel
 
Publisher Harvard Dataverse
 
Description Can randomized experiments at the individual level help assess the persuasive effects of campaign tactics? To answer that question, we analyze a field experiment conducted during the 2008 presidential election in which 56,000 registered voters in Wisconsin were assigned to persuasive canvassing, phone calls, and/or mail. We find that persuasive appeals by canvassers had two unintended consequences. First, they reduced responsiveness to a follow-up survey among infrequent voters, a substantively interesting behavioral response that has implications for the statistical analysis of persuasion experiments. Second, the persuasive appeals possibly reduced candidate support and certainly did not increase it. This counter-intuitive finding is reinforced by multiple statistical methods and suggests that contact by a political campaign can engender a backlash.
 
Subject Social Sciences
Persuasion, Field Experiments, Vote Choice, Campaigns
 
Language English
 
Date 2016-11-08
 
Contributor Hopkins, Daniel
 
Type voter registration data with survey responses, experimental assignment appended