key exam revision cards (Second half)

Question 1

What is Arrow’s impossibility theorem and what are its conditions?

Answer 1

Arrow’s impossibility theorem: when choosing among more than two options, there exists no collective decision making process that satisfies the conditions I, N, P, U, T.

• Independence of irrelevant alternatives
• Non- Dictatorship
• Pareto criterion
• Unrestricted Domain
• Transitivity

Question 2

What is May’s theorem? What are the conditions that must be met for it?

Answer 2

May’s Theorem: When choosing among two options, there is only one collective decision-making process satisfying the four conditions:

• Anonymity
• Neutrality
• Decisiveness
• Positive Responsiveness

—–> Majority Rule

Question 3

Define Condorcet winner. What is the Condorcet paradox?

Answer 3

• Complete each round of majority votes: each option against all other options
• the option that defeats all others in pairwise majority voting is called a Condorcet winner

inconsistency of group preferences can arise even when individual preferences are decisive –> Condorcet Paradox

Question 4

What is the classical interpretation of the Paradox of not Voting?

Answer 4

1) Voters do not act strategically
- decide from viable options (so it is strategic)
2) Decision to vote is independent of other strategic actions
- voter turnout is inversely related to cost of voting
(decision is dependent on other strategic action)

Question 5

What are the assumptions and processes of Mobilization models?

Answer 5

Assumption: Groups of ideologically similar voters are coordinated by leaders who share their policy preferences

Process: Leader determines the level of turnout within her group by allocating costly resources to voters. Almost as if leaders buy the votes of followers.

Question 6

How to leaders motivate their followers to vote?
What is the conceptual difficulty with mobilization models?

Answer 6

Actually paying followers can be problematic and often illegal. Not sufficient to explain large-scale turnout.

Proponents suggest that leader modulate social pressure between followers.
–> if exerting social pressure among followers is costly, they have an incentive to avoid this.

Question 7

Is the mobilization model useful to model voting turnout?

Answer 7

Yes, it can contribute at explaining why efforts by elites can actually increase turnout.

Question 8

What is a Pay as you go scheme in pension economics?

Answer 8

Pension benefits to current retirees are financed by contributions levied from current workers.