Researchers at the University of Colorado have learned in a new study that smokers are about 60 percent less likely to vote than non-smokers do. It may be due to smokers feeling isolated from political systems.
Published in Oxford Journals, this was the first study study to show a connection between smoking and less political participation. Karen Albright, the smoking study's lead author, said that the result was more complex than it seemed.
Researchers gathered and evaluated data from the Colorado Tobacco Attitudes and Behaviors Study (C-TABS). C-TABS was a questionnaire that the senior author of the study administered by questioning over 11,600 people by phone.
A total of 17 percent of the participants declared that they were smokers. This figure was near the 42.1 million, or 18 percent of United States adults over 18 years old, which define themselves as smokers.
Albright explained that previous studies have verified that smokers are becoming more isolated, and feeling less important in society. However, this was the first one that linked it to voter participation.
The study does not reveal precisely why smokers are less likely to vote. However, the researchers have various theories.
One possible explanation is that smokers might feel oppressed by political institutions. This could be due to the passing of various clean indoor air laws and tobacco taxes.
Another possible explanation is that the smoking stigma could create depression, hopelessness, or social withdrawal. This could result in smokers not wanting to vote.
Smokers are participating in fewer social activities and organizations than non-smokers are. They also have more distrust in humanity than non-smokers do.
However, the study shows that smokers' feelings of isolation and insignificance might not just be on an "interpersonal level," according to Science World Report. It could also include political institutions and systems.