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Media type:
E-Article
Title:
Education, Family Background, and Political Knowledge: A Test of the Compensation Hypothesis with Identical Twins
Contributor:
Robinson, Darrel
Published:
SAGE Publications, 2020
Published in:
Political Studies, 68 (2020) 2, Seite 350-369
Language:
English
DOI:
10.1177/0032321719848901
ISSN:
1467-9248;
0032-3217
Origination:
Footnote:
Description:
<jats:p>Prior research has consistently identified education as an important correlate of political knowledge, which, many argue, reflects an underlying causal relationship. However, recent work has questioned this interpretation rather arguing that family background causes one to both obtain an education and to develop political knowledge. I argue that this causal-versus-proxy debate is too simplistic. Specifically, using a sample of identical twins, I test the interaction between education, political discussion in the home, and political knowledge. I find that education is positively associated with political knowledge independent of family background and genetics for those who discussed politics with family relatively little during upbringing. However, for those who discussed politics with family members more frequently, education has no association with political knowledge independent of pre-adult factors. Therefore, education compensates for a lack of exposure to political content in the home.</jats:p>