1 Participation and Voting Behaviour Total for this topic: 40 marks
(01) Explain the term turnout used in the extract. (5 marks)
It is likely that the majority of candidates will define turnout as a measure of the number or proportion of people who vote at an election. Higher-level responses are likely to provide a more authoritative definition: ie the proportion of registered voters who cast a ballot at a given election, expressed as a percentage. Candidates may pick up on the reference in the extract
(ie by identifying electoral turnout as one measure of political participation).
At the higher levels of response, it is likely that candidates will look to develop their answers by introducing material from their own knowledge. Some may refer to varying levels of turnout witnessed at different types of elections or introduce the notion of differential turnout in a single electoral cycle, with top-level responses supporting such points with statistical evidence.
It is likely that many candidates will also make reference to the relatively low levels of electoral turnout witnessed at some recent general elections (most famously in 2001) and such knowledge is obviously creditable here.
(02) Using your own knowledge as well as the extract, consider why some commentators have spoken of a ‘participation crisis’ in recent years. (10 marks)
The focus here is the issue of why commentators have spoken of a participation crisis, as opposed to the question of why people are not participating. It is likely that many candidates will start by offering an overview of non-electoral participation, using some of the material provided in the extract. Candidates may simply repeat the figures quoted or draw conclusions from it, with the latter scoring more highly on AO2. Candidates may comment on the fact that the material presented, though included