Styles of Political Representation: Does Context Make a Difference?

In the course of time research on the roles and behaviour of elected representatives has expanded in many directions, both substantively and geographically, and has provided insight across a broad range of topics. Despite this growth, there is to date relatively little systematic research devoted to how styles of representation among elected representatives may vary according to the contexts in which they are elected and operate. The paper we propose is intended to help fill this lacuna with special attention being paid to similarities or differences which may be identified across different political-administrative units and levels found within any given country. The paper will draw on two surveys of elected representatives in Norway – one at the municipal level, the other at the county or meso-level. The surveys cover elected representatives in all political-administrative units at both sub-national levels of government in Norway (430 municipalities and 19 counties) and contain parallel questions which allow for a comparison of representative styles found among councillors at both levels. In addition the paper will draw on other sources of data providing information about various characteristics of the political-administrative units themselves – not only such variables as the size and composition of the local electorate, council size, and partisan composition of the councils, but also organizational features of the local political-administrative units and other variables relating to the local electoral context. In combination these data sources will allow us to identify just how much contextual factors may impact on the representation styles found among council representatives.