Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-x5gtn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-05-30T01:28:14.966Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Modeling the Outcomes of State Abortion Funding Referenda: Morality or Redistributive Policy, or Both?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 January 2021

Jongho Roh  and
Frances S. Berry
Jongho Roh
Affiliation:
Florida State University
Frances S. Berry
Affiliation:
Florida State University
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

While Lowi (1964) claims that policies can be classified as one of three types, distributive, redistributive, or regulatory, his work has been criticized as incomplete. Policies are frequently multidimensional, and his categories are neither comprehensive nor mutually exclusive. A fourth policy type, morality policy, has now been well-established as distinct from the other three types (e.g., Meier 1994; Mooney 2001). Evidence suggests that some policies can be framed as multidimensional policy types. Abortion funding is one such policy issue that has aspects of both morality policy and redistributive policy in its politics. In this study, we develop models of government abortion funding based on abortion as a morality and a redistributive policy. We estimate these models using weighted least squares to explain the voting outcomes of county-level votes in six state referenda elections for government funding of abortions. Then, we test a combined model and find clear evidence that the combined model, and variables from both perspectives, provide a stronger case than a single policy typology model alone. A practical implication is that policy advocates may purposely emphasize different values and results of the policies. Thus, testing policy theories may need to include more complex views of policies based on policy types.

Type
Research Article
Information
State Politics & Policy Quarterly , Volume 8 , Issue 1 , Spring 2008 , pp. 66 - 87
Copyright
Copyright © 2008 by the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Adams, Greg D. 1997. “Abortion: Evidence of an Issue Evolution.” American Journal of Political Science 41:718–37.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Aistrup, Joseph A. 1993. “State Legislative Party Competition: A County-Level Measure.” Political Research Quarterly 46:433–46.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Arnold, R. Douglas. 1990. The Logic of Congressional Action. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.Google Scholar
Bibby, John F., Cotter, Cornelius P., Gibson, James L., and Huckshorn, Robert J.. 1990. “Parties in State Politics.” In Politics in American States: A Comparative Analysis, 5th ed., eds. Gray, Virginia, Jacobs, Herbert, and Albritton, Robert B.. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman.Google Scholar
Carmines, Edward G., and Stimson, James A.. 1980. “The Two Faces of Issue Voting.” American Political Science Review 74:78–91.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carmines, Edward G., and Stimson, James A.. 1989. Issue Evolution: Race and Transformation of American Politics. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.Google Scholar
Cohen, Jeffrey E., and Barrilleaux, Charles. 1993. “Public Opinion, Interest Groups, and Public Policy Making: Abortion Policy in the American States.” In Understanding the New Politics of Abortion, ed. Goggin, Malcolm L.. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.Google Scholar
Cook, Elizabeth Adell, Jelen, Ted G., and Wilcox, Clyde. 1993a. “Catholicism and Abortion Attitudes in the American States: A Contextual Analysis.” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 32:223–30.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cook, Elizabeth Adell, Jelen, Ted G., and Wilcox, Clyde. 1993b. “State Political Cultures and Public Opinion About Abortion.” Political Research Quarterly 46:771–81.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cook, Elizabeth Adell, Jelen, Ted G., and Wilcox, Clyde. 1994. “Issue Voting in Gubernatorial Elections: Abortion and Post-Webster Politics.” The Journal of Politics 56:187–99.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Donovan, Patricia. 1985. “The People Vote on Abortion Funding: Colorado and Washington.” Family Planning Perspectives 17:155–9.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Donovan, Patricia. 1989. “The 1988 Abortion Referenda: Lessons for the Future.” Family Planning Perspectives 21:218–23.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dye, Thomas R. 1984. “Party and Policy in the States.” The Journal of Politics 46:1097–116.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fairbanks, David. 1977. “Religious Forces and Morality Policies in the American States.” Western Political Quarterly 30:411–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Geer, John G. 1996. From Tea Leaves to Opinion Polls: A Theory of Democratic Leadership. New York, NY: Columbia University Press.Google Scholar
Gerber, Elisabeth R. 1996. “Legislative Response to the Threat of Popular Initiatives.” American Journal of Political Science 40:99–128.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gormley, William T. 1986. “Regulatory Issue Networks in a Federal System.” Polity 18:595–620.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Greenberg, George D., Miller, Jeffery A., Mohr, Lawrence B., and Vladeck, Bruce C.. 1977. “Developing Public Policy Theory: Perspectives from Empirical Research.” American Political Science Review 71:1532–43.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Haider-Markel, Donald P. 1999a. “AIDS and Gay Civil Rights: Politics and Policy at the Ballot Box.” American Review of Politics 20:349–75.Google Scholar
Haider-Markel, Donald P. 1999b. “Morality Policy and Individual-Level Political Behavior: The Case of Legislative Voting on Lesbian and Gay Issues.” Policy Studies Journal 27:735–49.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Haider-Markel, Donald P., and Meier, Kenneth J.. 1996. “The Politics of Gay and Lesbian Rights: Expanding the Scope of the Conflict.” The Journal of Politics 58:332–49.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Haider-Markel, Donald P., and Meier, Kenneth J.. 2003. “Legislative Victory, Electoral Uncertainty: Explaining Outcomes in the Battles over Lesbian and Gay Civil Rights.” Review of Policy Research 20:671–90.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hwang, Sung-Don and Gray, Virginia. 1991. “External Limits and Internal Determinants of State Public Policy.” Western Political Quarterly 44:277–98.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hill, Kim Q., and Leighley, Jan E.. 1992. “The Policy Consequences of Class Bias in State Electorates.” American Journal of Political Science 36:351–65.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holbrook, Thomas M., and Dunk, Emily Van. 1993. “Electoral Competition in the American States.” American Political Science Review 87:955–62.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Joslyn, Mark R., and Haider-Markel, Donald P.. 2000. “Guns in the Ballot Box: Information, Groups, and Opinion in Ballot Initiative Campaigns.” American Politics Quarterly 28:355–78.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Key, V. O. 1964. Politics, Parties and Pressure Groups, 5th ed. New York, NY: Thomas Y. Crowell.Google Scholar
Legge, Jerome S. Jr. 1983. “The Determinants of Attitudes toward Abortion in the American Electorate.” Western Political Quarterly 36:479–90.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Legge, Jerome S. Jr. 1987. “Abortion as a Policy Issue: Attitudes of the Mass Public.” Women and Politics 7:63–82.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lindaman, Kara, and Haider-Markel, Donald P.. 2002. “Issue Evolution, Political Parties, and the Culture Wars.” Political Research Quarterly 55:91–110.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lowery, David. 1987. “The Distribution of Tax Burdens in the American States: The Determinants of Fiscal Incidence.” Western Political Quarterly 40:137–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lowi, Theodore J. 1964. “American Business, Public Policy, Case Studies, and Political Theories.” World Politics 16:677–715.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lowi, Theodore J. 1969. The End of Liberalism. New York: Norton.Google Scholar
Lowi, Theodore J. 1972. “Four Systems of Policy, Politics, and Choice.” Public Administration Review 32:298–310.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lowi, Theodore J. 1988. “An Assessment of Kellow's Promoting Elegance in Policy Theory.” Policy Studies Journal 16:725–8.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Medoff, Marshall H. 1997. “The Political Implications of State Political Ideology: A Measure Tested.” American Journal of Economics and Sociology 56:145–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Medoff, Marshall H. 2002. “The Determinants and Impact of State Abortion Restrictions.” American Journal of Economics and Sociology 61:481–93.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Meier, Kenneth J. 1992. “The Politics of Drug Abuse: Laws, Implementation, and Consequences.” Western Political Quarterly 45:41–69.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Meier, Kenneth J. 1994. The Politics of Sin: Drugs, Alcohol, and Public Policy. Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe.Google Scholar
Meier, Kenneth J. 2001. “Drugs, Sex, and Rock and Roll: A Theory of Morality Politics.” In The Public Clash of Private Values: The Politics of Morality Policy, ed. Mooney, Christopher Z.. New York, NY: Chatham House Publishers.Google Scholar
Meier, Kenneth J., and McFarlane, Deborah R.. 1993. “The Politics of Funding Abortion: State Response to the Political Environment.” American Politics Quarterly 21:81–101.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Merton, Andrew H. 1981. Enemies of Choice: The Right-to-Life Movement and Its Threat to Abortion. Boston, MA: Beacon Press.Google Scholar
Mooney, Christopher Z. 1999. “The Politics of Morality Policy: Symposium Editor's Introduction.” Policy Studies Journal 27:675–80.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mooney, Christopher Z. 2000. “The Decline of Federalism and the Rise of Morality Policy Conflict in the United States.” Publius: Journal of Federalism 30:171–88.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mooney, Christopher Z., ed. 2001. The Public Clash of Private Values: The Politics of Morality Policy. New York, NY: Chatham House Publishers.Google Scholar
Mooney, Christopher Z., and Lee, Mei-Hsien. 1995. “Legislating Morality in the American States: The Case of Pre-Roe Abortion Regulation Reform.” American Journal of Political Science 39:599–627.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mooney, Christopher Z., and Lee, Mei-Hsien. 1999. “Morality Policy Reinvention: State Death Penalties.” Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 566:80–92.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mooney, Christopher Z., and Lee, Mei-Hsien. 2000. “The Influence of Values on Consensus and Contentious Morality Policy: U.S. Death Penalty Reform, 1956–82.” The Journal of Politics 62:223–39.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Morgan, David R. 1980. “Politics and Morality: The Effect of Religion on Referenda Voting.” Social Science Quarterly 61:144–8.Google Scholar
National Abortion Rights Action League. 1991. Who Decides? A State-By-State Review of Abortion Rights. Washington, DC: National Abortion Rights Action League.Google Scholar
Norrander, Barbara, and Wilcox, Clyde. 1999. “Public Opinion and Policymaking in the States: The Case of Post-Roe Abortion Policy.” Policy Studies Journal 27:707–22.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
O'Connor, Robert E., and Berkman, Michael B.. 1995. “Religious Determinants of State Abortion Policy.” Social Science Quarterly 76:447–59.Google Scholar
Oldmixon, Elizabeth A. 2002. “Culture Wars in the Congressional Theater: How the U.S. House of Representatives Legislates Morality, 1993–1998.” Social Science Quarterly 83:775–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Plotnick, Robert D., and Winters, Richard F.. 1985. “A Politico-Economic Theory of Income Redistribution.” American Political Science Review 79:458–73.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Quinn, Bernard, Anderson, Herman, Bradley, Martin, Goetting, Paul, and Shriver, Peggy. 1982. Churches and Church Membership in the United States 1980. Athens, GA: Glenmary Research Center.Google Scholar
Ripley, Randall B., and Franklin, Grace A.. 1991. Congress, the Bureaucracy, and Public Policy, 5th ed. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole Publishing Company.Google Scholar
Risen, James, and Thomas, Judy L. 1998. Wrath of Angels. New York, NY: Basic Books.Google Scholar
Roh, Jongho, and Haider-Markel, Donald P.. 2003. “All Politics is Not Local: National Forces in State Abortion Initiatives.” Social Science Quarterly 84:15–31.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sharp, Elaine B., ed. 1999. Culture Wars and Local Politics. Lawrence, KS: University of Kansas Press.Google Scholar
Sheeran, Patrick J. 1987. Women, Society, the State, and Abortion: A Structuralist Analysis. New York, NY: Praeger.Google Scholar
Smith, Kevin B. 1994. “Abortion Attitudes and Vote Choice in the 1984 and 1988 Presidential Elections.” American Politics Quarterly 22:354–69.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, Kevin B. 2001. “Clean Thoughts and Dirty Minds: The Politics of Porn.” In The Public Clash of Private Values: The Politics of Morality Policy, ed. Mooney, Christopher Z.. New York, NY: Chatham House Publishers.Google Scholar
Smith, Kevin B. 2002. “Typologies, Taxonomies, and the Benefits of Policy Classification.” Policy Studies Journal 30:379–95.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, T. Alexander. 1975. The Comparative Policy Process. Santa Barbara, CA: American Bibliographical Center-Clio Press.Google Scholar
Smith, T. Alexander, and Tatalovich, Raymond. 2003. Cultures at War: Moral Conflicts in Western Democracies. Peterborough, Ontario: Broadview Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spitzer, Robert J. 1987. “Promoting Policy Theory: Revising the Arenas of Power.” Policy Studies Journal 15:675–89.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spitzer, Robert J. 1995. The Politics of Gun Control. Chatham, NJ: Chatham House Publishers.Google Scholar
Steinberger, Peter J. 1980. “Typologies of Public Policy: Meaning Construction and the Policy Process.” Social Science Quarterly 61:185–97.Google Scholar
Strickland, Ruth A. 1998. “Abortion: Pro-Choice versus Pro-Life.” In Moral Controversies in American Politics: Cases in Social Regulatory Policy, 2nd ed., eds. Tatalovich, Raymond and Daynes, Byron W.. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe.Google Scholar
Studlar, Donley T. 2001. “What Constitutes Morality Policy? A Cross-National Analysis.” In The Public Clash of Private Values: The Politics of Morality Policy, ed. Mooney, Christopher Z.. New York, NY: Chatham House Publishers.Google Scholar
Tatalovich, Raymond. 1997. The Politics of Abortion in the United States and Canada: A Comparative Study. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe.Google Scholar
Tatalovich, Raymond, and Daynes, Byron W., eds. 1988. Social Regulatory Policy: Moral Controversies in American Politics. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.Google Scholar
Tatalovich, Raymond, and Daynes, Byron W., eds. 2005. Moral Controversies in American Politics: Cases in Social Regulatory Policy, 3rd ed. Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe.Google Scholar
Tatalovich, Raymond, Alexander Smith, T., and Bobic, Michael P.. 1994. “Moral Conflict and the Policy Process.” Policy Currents 4:1–7.Google Scholar
Wald, Kenneth D., Button, James W., and Rienzo, Barbara A.. 2001. “Morality Politics vs. Political Economy: The Case of School-Based Health Centers.” Social Science Quarterly 82:221–34.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wilcox, Clyde. 1989. “The Fundamentalist Voter: Politicized Religious Identity and Political Attitudes and Behavior.” Review of Religious Research 31:54–67.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wright, Gerald C., Erickson, Robert S., and McIver, John P.. 1985. “Measuring State Partisanship and Ideology with Survey Data.” The Journal of Politics 47:469–89.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wright, Gerald C., Erickson, Robert S., and McIver, John P.. 1987. “Public Opinion and Policy Liberalism in the American States.” American Journal of Political Science 31:980–1001.CrossRefGoogle Scholar