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Depression and Political Participation

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  • Christopher Ojeda

Abstract

type="main"> I hypothesize that individuals with depression lack the motivation and physical capacity required to participate in politics due to somatic problems and feelings of hopelessness and apathy. Furthermore, I hypothesize that depression in adolescence can have negative downstream consequences for participation in young adulthood. Using the 1998 General Social Survey and the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, I employ logistic regression and mediation analysis to test the relationship between depression and voting as well as adolescent depression and political participation. The results show that both depression and adolescent depression reduce the probability of political participation. The effect of adolescent depression on political participation is mediated by educational attainment and partisan affiliation. Depression reduces participation and merits further attention as a political phenomenon. The possibility of depression as a disability is discussed, including potential efforts to boost participation among this group.

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  • Christopher Ojeda, 2015. "Depression and Political Participation," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 96(5), pages 1226-1243, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:socsci:v:96:y:2015:i:5:p:1226-1243
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1111/ssqu.12173
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    2. Aaron R Kaufman & Eitan D Hersh, 2020. "The political consequences of opioid overdoses," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(8), pages 1-10, August.
    3. De Luca, Giacomo Davide & Lin, Xi, 2024. "The role of health and health systems in promoting social capital, political participation and peace: A narrative review," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    4. Sleeper, Colin & Cartwright, Kate & van der Goes, David N., 2023. "The relationship between mental health and public attention to the Brett Kavanaugh hearings and confirmation," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 335(C).
    5. Jason H Wasfy & Charles Stewart III & Vijeta Bhambhani, 2017. "County community health associations of net voting shift in the 2016 U.S. presidential election," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(10), pages 1-11, October.
    6. Nelson, Micah H., 2023. "Explaining socioeconomic disparities in electoral participation: The role of health in the SES-voting relationship," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 320(C).

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