Reconsidering the Party Distances and Dimensionality of the Danish Folketing

Dados Bibliográficos

ID7316004
AutoresMartin Ejnar Hansen (0000-0002-3621-1809), Steven David Pickering (0000-0002-3637-208X, autor correspondente)
Ano2008
Volume14
Fascículo3
Páginas264-278
Data de publicação2008-08-15
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessNão
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoJournal of Legislative Studies (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 1357-2334 • E-ISSN: 1743-9337
EditoraTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/13572330802259442
OpenAlexW2062641695
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas16
Referências citadas9

Using the index of distances and the Optimal Classification method, the party positions and the dimensionality of the Danish Folketing is calculated from 1920 to 2005. The empirical results suggest that a one-dimensional model explains around 85 per cent of the legislative dimensionality in Denmark over time with only a modest presence of two or more dimensions in the 1970s. The rank order of party positions derived through the index of distance has higher face validity than the rankings derived through the Optimal Classification method. The Optimal Classification method produces a dimensionality measure which, when analysed, can be used to explain most of the events in Danish politics over the last 80 years. It is further argued that the shifts in the dimensionality can be explained by the number of parties in parliament and by historical incidents. Notes O. Borre, 'Old and New Politics in Denmark', Scandinavian Political Studies, 18/3 (1995). See for instance M.N. Pedersen, E. Damgaard and P.N. Olsen, 'Party Distances in the Danish Folketing', Scandinavian Political Studies, 6 (1971), pp.87–106 for an analysis of the dimensionality from 1945 to 1970, and A. Skjæveland, 'Dimensionaliteten i Folketinget: Er der en ny politisk dimension?', Politica, 37 (2005), pp.411–22 for an analysis of the dimensionality from 1981 to 2001. See M. Holmstedt and T.-L. Schou, 'Sweden and Denmark 1945–1982: election programmes in the Scandinavian setting', in I. Budge et al. (eds.), Ideology, Strategy and Party Change: Spatial Analyses of Post-War Election Programmes in 19 Democracies (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987); as well as M.E. Hansen, 'Er dårlige data bedre end ingen data? En discussion af brugbarheden af de danske valgprogramdata', Politica, 38/2 (2006), pp.210–23, and M.E. Hansen, 'Økonomi eller Velfærd? Dimensionalitet i Folketinget', Økonomi & Politik, 77/4 (2004), pp.71–82. It should be noted that when the term 'roll call' is used in this paper, it is to be understood as a common denominator of all forms of parliamentary votes by legislative actors. A. Skjæveland, Government Formation in Denmark 1953–1998 (Aarhus: Politica, 2003). J. Elklit and M.N. Pedersen, 'Decembervalget 1973: 30 år efter', Politica, 35/4 (2003), pp.365–76. Pedersen, Damgaard and Olsen, 'Party Distances in the Danish Folketing', p.102. M.N. Pedersen, 'Consensus and Conflict in the Danish Folketing, 1945–1966', Scandinavian Political Studies, 2 (1967), pp.143–66. For an introduction to this method see K. Poole, 'Nonparametric Unfolding of Binary Choice Data', Political Analysis, 8/2 (2000), pp.211–37, as well as K. Poole, Spatial Models of Parliamentary Voting (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005); for an empirical example on the use of optimal classification, see H. Rosenthal and E. Voeten, 'Analyzing Roll Calls with Perfect Spatial Voting', American Journal of Political Science, 48/3 (2004), pp.620–32. Beginning with A. Downs, An Economy Theory of Democracy (New York: Harper and Row, 1957). Gary Cox describes the spatial theory as the workhorse of modern legislative studies in G.W. Cox, 'Introduction to Special Issue', Political Analysis, 9 (2001), pp.189–91. M. Laver and K. Shepsle, Making and Breaking Governments (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996). M. Laver, 'Why should we Estimate the Policy Positions of Political Actors?', in M. Laver (ed.), Estimating the Policy Position of Political Actors (London: Routledge, 2001), and M. Laver, 'How should we Estimate the Policy Positions of Political Actors?' in Laver (ed.), Estimating the Policy Position of Political Actors. C.R. Plott, 'A Notion of Equilibrium under Majority Rule', American Economic Review, 57 (1967), pp.787–806; R. McKelvey, 'Intransitivities in Multidimensional Voting Models and Some Implications for Agenda Control', Econometrica, 47 (1976), pp.1085–1112. K. Shepsle, 'Institutional Arrangements and Equilibrium in Multidimensional Voting Models', American Journal of Political Science, 23/1 (1979), pp.27–59. For example, S. Morgenstern, Patterns of Legislative Politics: Roll Call Voting in the United States and Latin America's Southern Cone (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004); S. Hix, 'Legislative Behaviour and Party Competition in the European Parliament: An Application of Nominate to the EU', Journal of Common Market Studies, 39/4 (2001), pp.663–88; S. Hix, A. Noury and G. Roland, 'Power to the Parties: Cohesion and Competition in the European Parliament 1979–2001', British Journal of Political Science, 34/4 (2004), pp.767–93. Pedersen, 'Consensus and Conflict in the Danish Folketing, 1945–1966'. See S. Hug and T. Schulz, 'Selection Effects in Roll Call Votes', Paper presented at the ECPR Joint Sessions, Granada, Spain; 14–19 April 2005, for an interesting discussion of this. A. Skjæveland, 'Party Cohesion in the Danish Parliament', Journal of Legislative Studies, 7/2 (2001), pp.35–56. Pedersen, 'Consensus and Conflict in the Danish Folketing, 1945–1966'; Pedersen, Damgaard and Olsen, 'Party Distances in the Danish Folketing'; E. Damgaard and J. Rusk, 'Cleavage Structures and Representational Linkages: A Longitudinal Analysis of Danish Legislative Behavior', American Journal of Political Science, 20/2 (1976), pp.179–205. Skjæveland, Government Formation in Denmark 1953–2001. For an introduction to the NOMINATE approach see K. Poole and H. Rosenthal, Congress (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997); for applications in other institutional settings see for example: E. Voeten, 'Clashes in the Assembly', International Organization, 54/2 (2000), pp.185–215; C. Schoenhardt-Bailey, 'Ideology, Party and Interests in the British Parliament of 1841–1847', British Journal of Political Science, 33 (2003), pp.581–605; Morgenstern, Patterns of Legislative Politics. J.D. Clinton, S. Jackman and D. Rivers, 'The Statistical Analysis of Roll Call Voting: A Unified Approach', American Political Science Review, 98/2 (2004), pp.355–70; S. Jackman, 'Bayesian Analysis for Political Research', Annual Review of Political Science, 7 (2004), pp.483–505. Pedersen, 'Consensus and Conflict in the Danish Folketing, 1945–1966'. P.E. Grib, Partisystemet under forandring (Copenhagen: Forlaget Politiske Studier, 2000). Rosenthal and Voeten, 'Analyzing Roll Calls with Perfect Spatial Voting'. For a thorough and formal discussion of the Optimal Classification procedure as well as the differences between this and the Nominate procedure, see Poole, 'Nonparametric Unfolding of Binary Choice Data', pp.211–37, and Poole, Spatial Models of Parliamentary Voting. Rosenthal and Voeten, 'Analyzing Roll Calls with Perfect Spatial Voting'. The data excludes the representatives for Greenland and the Faroe Islands, since it is often unclear when they voted on a bill and what they voted. Also excluded are minor parties where the information is incomplete such as the party of the German minority (Slesvigsk Parti) and the Liberal Party of the Capitol (Hovedstadens Venstre). A very small number of votes have not been included in the dataset, as the information on the behaviour of the parties was not available from the Parliamentary Yearbooks on which the dataset is build. See M.E. Hansen, R. Klemmensen and P. Kurrild-Klitgaard, 'PAPPA: Parties and Policies in Parliaments', version 1.0, data description, working paper, Department of Political Science, University of Southern Denmark, Odense. The collaborative project is entitled Parties and Policies in Parliament (PAPPA). See Hansen, Klemmensen and Kurrild-Klitgaard, 'PAPPA: Parties and Policies in Parliaments', version 1.0, data description for a list of the existing datasets. Pedersen, 'Consensus and Conflict in the Danish Folketing 1945–1966'. See F.G. Castles and P. Mair, 'Left–right political scales: Some "expert" judgements', European Journal of Political Research, 12/1 (1984), pp.73–88, and M. Laver and W.B. Hunt, Policy and Party Competition (New York: Routledge, 1992), as well as C. Green-Pedersen, 'Det Radikale Venstres betydning i dansk politik. Er den så stor, som vi går og tror?', Politica, 35/3, pp.274–86. Skjæveland, Government Formation in Denmark 1953–2001, p. 114. P. Nannestad, Reactive Voting in Danish General Elections 1971–1979 (Aarhus: Politica, 1989). C. Green-Pedersen and L.H. Thomsen, 'Bloc Politics vs. Broad Cooperation? The Functioning of Danish Minority Parliamentarism', Journal of Legislative Studies, 11/2, pp.153–69. The Justice Party participated in the 1957–60 government with the Social Democrats and the Social Liberals, however they were allowed to abstain on a few votes without influencing their government participation directly. See I. Budge, H.D. Klingemann, A. Volkens, J. Bara and E. Tanenbaum, Mapping Policy Preferences (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001). See Hansen, 'Er dårlige data bedre end ingen data? En diskussion af brugbarheden af de danske valgprogramdata'. Poole, Spatial Models of Parliamentary Voting, p.83. Pedersen, Damgaard and Olsen, 'Party Distances in the Danish Folketing', p.102. Elklit and Pedersen, 'Decembervalget 1973: 30 år efter', pp.373–4. Elklit and Pedersen, 'Decembervalget 1973: 30 år efter', p.373. Additional informationNotes on contributorsMartin Ejnar Hansen Martin Ejnar Hansen is with the Department of Methods in the Social Sciences, University of Vienna

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