social deprivation, political alienation and community empowerment.

583 Pages·2014·12.85 MB·English

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NUI MAYNOOTH
Diaceli ni ritirami) W4 Hu-ad
SOCIAL DEPRIVATION, POLITICAL ALIENATION
AND COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT.
The geography of voter tu rno u t in Ireland , 1997-2002, an d
ITS ASSOCIATION WITH SOCIAL DEPRIVATION.
Adrian Patrick Kavanagh MA
Supervisor: Dr. Dennis G. Pringle
Thesis submitted for the degree of Ph.D.
Faculty of Arts
Department of Geography
National University of Ireland, Maynooth
November 2002
This thesis was funded by the Government of Ireland post-graduate research
scheme, being awarded under the auspices of the Irish Research Council for the
Humanities and Social Sciences.
An Chomhairie um Thaighde sna Dana agus sna hEolaiochtai Soisialta
Irish Research Council for the Humanities and Social Sciences
A bstract
The Irish political system has become increasingly characterised by declining turnout rates in
the past few decades, with this accompanied by very low turnouts in a number of areas and
for certain elections types. This thesis addresses this context through analysing turnout
variations in recent election using a spatial framework and focussing particularly on how
these spatial patterns in turnout are associated with levels of social well being. Other factors
were also analysed in terms of their impacts on turnout variations, namely a range of social
and political factors. Constituency level and sub-constituency level analyses are used to
analyse the extent to which deprivation may influence turnout levels and to determine whether
this relationship is stronger in urban or rural areas or for different types of elections. The use
of marked register turnout data allows this relationship to be tested using very detailed data
for small geographical areas. The ecological modelling of turnout variance is upheld by the
use of individual level analyses (through the use of questionnaires and interviews).
Strong associations between turnout and social well-being for urban areas were uncovered in
the Dublin study area, with turnouts generally lower in the more deprived areas. There was no
evidence of such a relationship in the rural areas for local elections, although there was a
pattern in which turnouts were lower in the more deprived areas in general elections and,
especially, referenda. Election-specific influences on the relationship between turnout and
deprivation were uncovered, with class influences being more pertinent in relation to
referendum turnouts. Other socio-economic and demographic influences were shown to have
a bearing on spatial variations in Irish turnouts, such as age and residential mobility, with the
effect of such influences being particularly pronounced in certain geographical contexts.
Political mobilisation factors were also shown to have a bearing on Irish turnout variations,
with local election turnouts in areas being especially determined by the presence, or non­
presence, of candidates local to the area in the contest.
A cknow ledgem ents
Like as the waves make towards the pebbled shores, so doth this thesis hasten towards its end.
Well actually it’s at its end, otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this now! So, just as you’d get
in an Oscars style ceremony.. .or even a Golden Turkeys ceremony.. .this is the point in which
I would like to say a few thank yous.
First of all, I’d like to acknowledge the support given to me by my family during the three
years of the PhD research; thanks to Tony Kavanagh, Anne Kavanagh, Leo Kavanagh,
Martina Nathan, Majella Kavanagh and Max Nathan!
I’d like to say thanks also to all the Salesians who have been in Sean McDermott Street and
57 Lower Drumcondra Road during this time of the research, in particular Val Colier, John
Quinn, Eunan McDonell, Tom Clowe, Padraig McDonald, Charlie Cunningham, Joe Lucey
and Michael Casey. Thanks also to Catriona, Don, Ed, Lisa, Noreen, Martina, Gary, Dave,
Declan, Ann Marie, Joan and everyone else in Don Bosco House.
There is a wide range of people that I would like to thank, who were also of assistance to me
in terms of providing me with tally figures or other forms of data during the research, or in
terms of making themselves available for interviews, or for other reasons. Of these I would
especially like to thank Tony Gregory TD, as without his advice I would have been unaware
of the existence of the marked register data and much of the analysis in this PhD research
would not have been possible! I’d also like to thank Frank Houghton, as well as Alan Kelly of
the Small Areas Health Research Unit of Trinity College, for the provision of the SAHRU
deprivation index data. Thanks also to James Barry of the Dublin City Sheriffs office and to
the Laois County Sheriff, James Cahill, for the provision of ballot reconciliation data
throughout the three years of this work.
Aengus O’Snodaigh (Sinn Féin) TD
Agnes Scully, Portlaoise Community Action Project
Alan Dukes (Fine Gael)
Ben Briscoe (Fianna Fail)
Brendan O’Keefe, IRD Duhallow
Brian Hayes (Fine Gael), Senator
Brian Lenihan (Fianna Fáil) TD
Cathal Kelly (Labour), Clondalkin
Catherine Byrne (Fine Gael) MCC, Dublin City Council
Charlie Hammond, Maryland Residents Association
Charlie McCreevy (Fianna Fáil) TD
Chris Flood (Fianna Fail)
Ciarán Cuffe (Green Party) TD
Conor Lenihan (Fianna Fáil) TD
Conor O’Raghailaigh, Bills Office, Dáil Éireann
Cyprian Brady (Fianna Fáil), Senator
Dan Neville (Fine Gael) TD
Dublin City Sheriffs Office
Dublin County Sheriffs Office
Eamonn Walsh (Labour Party) MCC, South Dublin County Council
Eithne Fitzgerald (Labour Party)
Eric Byme (Labour) MCC, Crumlin-Kimmage
Fergal Conlon, Mountmellick Development Association
Fionnula McCarthy, Lucan 2000
Garry Keegan (Fianna Fail) MCC, South East Inner City
Gay Mitchell (Fine Gael) TD
Gay Murphy and Mary Weld, Geography Department, NUI Maynooth
Gemma McKenna, Fatima Groups United
Helen Mäher, Inner City Organisations Network
Laois County Sheriffs Office
Jeannette Cullen, Oliver Bond Residents Association
Jim Mitchell (Fine Gael)
Joanna Tuffy (Labour Party) MCC, South Dublin County Council
Joe Costello (Labour) TD
John Bennett, North Clondalkin Community Development Association
John Curran (Fianna Fail) TD
John Fennelly (Fianna Fail) MCC, Borris In Ossory
John Jeffries, Workers Party Head Office
John Moloney (Fianna Fail) TD
John Salts and the staff of the NUI Maynooth Post Office
Joseph McCormack (Independent), Portlaoise Town Commissioner
Julie Scully, Mountmellick Development Association
Kevin Griffin PhD
Kristina McElroy (Green Party), Dublin South Central
Limerick County Sheriffs Office
Lisa Cronin, IRD Duhallow
Mary Hamey (Progressive Democrats) TD
Maurice McQuillan and Dublin Fine Gael
Michael Creed (Fine Gael) MCC, Macroom
Michael Finucane (Fine Gael) MCC, Newcastlewest
Nicky Keogh (Sinn Fein) MCC, Cabra-Glasnevin
Nuala Talbot, An Tänaiste’s Office
Paul Gogarty (Green Party) TD
Philip Murphy, South Dublin County Council
Richard Bruton (Fine Gael) TD
Robert Dowds (Labour) MCC, Clondalkin
Rowan Fealy BA, Geography Department, NTJI Maynooth
Rüairi Quinn (Labour Party) TD
Sean Ardagh (Fianna Fäil) TD
Sean Fleming TD and Laois Fianna Fäil
Seanie Lambe, Inner City Renewal Group
Tom Brunkard (Fianna Fäil), South West Inner City
Tommy Broughan (Labour) TD
Vincent Ballyfermot Jackson (Independent) MCC, Ballyfermot
Before I conclude this, I would like to say an especial word of thanks to everyone in the South
West Inner City Network and the Dublin Inner City Partnership (with whom I worked as a
researcher on a voter turnout project during the Summer of 2001, which culminated in the
publication of Unequal Participation - Unequal Influence in March 2003). I’d like to
especially thank Therese, Kay, Charlie, John, Alan and everyone else in the Network as well
Pat, Emer and everyone in the DICP. Especial thanks are due to Bernadette McMahon and
Margot Delaney of the Vincentian Partnership for Justice, as well as to Paula Brudell of the
network, for their advice, insights and assistance during this research, which was also to prove
helpful later in the putting together of this PhD dissertation.
I’d like to thank the staff of the Geography Department in NUI Maynooth for all their
assistance during the three years, including Jim Walsh, Paddy Duffy, Mary Weld, Gay
Murphy, John Sweeney, Shelagh Waddington, Rob Kitchin, Proinnsias Breathnach, Paul
Gibson, Ro Charlton, Jim Keenan, Bridin Feeney, Catriona Ni Laoire and Brendan Bartley,
who had the ‘pleasure’ of acting as second supervisor for this research. I’d like to also
mention the different postgraduates, past and present, who were in the Department during my
period of PhD research: Denise, Nicola, Ann C., Frank, James, Kasey, Jim, Sonja, Therese,
Andy, Conor Me, Conor M., Shelagh, John P., Giovanni, Justin, Celine, Seamus, Karen,
Johann, Caroline, Brian, Tom, Matthias, Pat, Martin, Ann N., as well as Mary and Chris
(NIRSA) and those that I forgot to mention! Thanks also to the different MA in Geographical
Analysis students who were in the Department during the three years.
I’d like to especially thank Martina Roche, Laura McElwain and Una Crowley, three fellow
postgraduates, who were ‘next door’ to me during the final two years of the PhD. It was an
especially honour to be in the same Department as Una, as she is a double All Ireland winner!
Martina, in fairness, didn’t rub in the fact that Kilkenny were winning All Irelands, as if they
were freebies, and Laois...weren’t. And in particular, thanks to Rowan Fealy, who had the
dubious pleasure of sharing an office with me during the final two years of the research,
especially for his innate ability to show me ways of doing things on the computer in a few
minutes, when said activities had been taking me three weeks to do prior to this. He also had
to endure many a hissy-fit, especially as the end neared, although in fairness he caused most
of them himself. So thanks to Una, Martina, Laura and Rowan.
Finally, thanks to Dr. Dennis Pringle, who had the task of acting as supervisor for this
research thesis for his advice during the three years, which was always helpful, even at times
when he suggested editing out certain sections and it felt as if I was losing a kidney! Dennis’s
ability to tell me why my submitted work was rubbish in a clear, concise manner was always
appreciated! So thanks again Dennis and here’s hoping that the process of reading hundreds
of pages of work each night during October and November of 2002 was not overtly tiresome.
Adrian Kavanagh