A Logic of Expressive Choice

Alexander Schuessler has done what many deemed impossible: he has wedded rational choice theory and the concerns of social theory and anthropology to explain why people vote. The “paradox of participation”—why individuals cast ballots when they have virtually no effect on electoral outcomes—has long puzzled social scientists. And it has particularly troubled rational choice theorists, who like to describe political activity in terms of incentives. Schuessler’s ingenious solution is a “logic of expressive choice.” He argues in incentive-based (or “economic”) terms that individuals vote not because of how they believe their vote matters in the final tally but rather to express their preferences, allegiances, and thus themselves