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Race, Class, and Gender in America's Voluntary Organizations: Exacerbating the Participation Bias
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Race, Class & Gender in
America’s Voluntary Organizations:
Exacerbating the Participation Bias
By
Melissa K. Miller
## email not listed ##
Department of Political Science
Bowling Green State University
ABSTRACT: It is well established that individuals who belong to voluntary associations are more likely to participate in democratic politics. For this reason, scholars have urged the revitalization of voluntary organizations as a possible means of boosting political participation. This paper examines the possibility that the participation-promoting aspects of voluntary organizations are not enjoyed equally by group members. Using data from the 1990 American Citizen Participation Study, empirical tests reveal that the benefits of group membership are enjoyed disproportionately by individuals who are already over-represented among the ranks of political participants. Not only are voluntary organizations biased in terms of their composition – with privileged Americans more likely to join – they are biased in terms of their effects. The participation-promoting benefits of membership accrue disproportionately to joiners who are white, male, wealthy, and better educated, thus reinforcing biases in political participation.
Presented at the 2006 Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, August 31-September 3, 2006. As this is a work-in-progress, please do not cite without the permission of the author, who welcomes all comments and suggestions at
## email not listed ##
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| | Authors: Miller, Melissa. |
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|
Race, Class & Gender in
America’s Voluntary Organizations:
Exacerbating the Participation Bias
By
Melissa K. Miller
## email not listed ##
Department of Political Science
Bowling Green State University
ABSTRACT: It is well established that individuals who belong to voluntary associations
are more likely to participate in democratic politics. For this reason, scholars have urged
the revitalization of voluntary organizations as a possible means of boosting political
participation. This paper examines the possibility that the participation-promoting aspects
of voluntary organizations are not enjoyed equally by group members. Using data from
the 1990 American Citizen Participation Study, empirical tests reveal that the benefits of
group membership are enjoyed disproportionately by individuals who are already over-
represented among the ranks of political participants. Not only are voluntary
organizations biased in terms of their composition – with privileged Americans more
likely to join – they are biased in terms of their effects. The participation-promoting
benefits of membership accrue disproportionately to joiners who are white, male,
wealthy, and better educated, thus reinforcing biases in political participation.
Presented at the 2006 Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, August 31-September 3, 2006. As this is a work-in-progress, please do not cite without
the permission of the author, who welcomes all comments and suggestions at
## email not listed ##
.
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