18 March 2022

The Role of Cognitive Mobilisa

A Crucial Political Element in Contemporary Democracy

POLITICAL SCIENCE 212

Table of Contents
1. Introduction.......................................................................................................................1
2. Cognitively Mobilised and Politically Sophisticated Citizenry.....................................1
2.1. Information Overload and Processing.............................................................................1
2.2. Political Sophistication....................................................................................................2
2.2.1. The Ideal Citizen.........................................................................................................2
2.2.2. Reasonable Sophistication...........................................................................................2
3. Electoral Participation in Cognitively Mobilised Publics.............................................3
3.1. Changing Partisan Behaviour..........................................................................................3
4. Evidence of Cognitive Mobilisation in South Africa.....................................................4
4.1. Changing Political Culture..............................................................................................4
4.2. The Apathy of Youth......................................................................................................5
4.3. South African’s Un-Mobilised Citizenry........................................................................5
5. Conclusion.........................................................................................................................5
6. Bibliography......................................................................................................................7

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1. Introduction
Cognitive mobilisation is a crucial tool for ensuring that a democratic electorate has the skills
to process the mass of available political information and subsequently influence the
incumbent government. Though it is unclear whether cognitive mobilisation has positively
impacted South African politics, this tool generally cultivates high levels of political
sophistication and non-conventional forms of political expression, and an analysis of the
process itself indicates that it has altered the field of electoral participation drastically.

2. Cognitively Mobilised and Politically Sophisticated Citizenry

Cognitive mobilisation is a process present in many advanced industrialist societies which
enables citizens to navigate abstract political life. Dalton (2020: 22) is a seminal scholar on
cognitive mobilisation, which he defines as people having the requisite resources and skills to
navigate the complexities of political life, and subsequently make their own political choices.
Alaminos and Penalva (2012: 1), drawing on Russel Dalton and Ronald Inglehart’s works,
explain cognitive mobilisation as the process through which citizens in post-industrial
societies develop skills to understand and thus participate in abstract political processes. In
his conceptualisation of cognitive mobilisation, Inglehart (1997) states that contemporary
publics’ political involvement is informed by improved education and greater access to
information. The process of cognitive mobilisation itself comprises two parts, namely, the
capacity to obtain political information, and having the skills and resources to process this
complexity of information (Dalton, 2020: 22). We can explore the development of these two
components separately.

2.1. Information Overload and Processing

The average citizen’s access to political information has drastically increased, providing them
with a much better base from which to engage politically. As Dalton (2022: 22) show,
information in the past was only available through newspapers or magazines, and was
daunting to sift through for a public with fairly limited education. Dalton (2022: 23) outlines
three ways in which the public now receives a higher quantity and quality of political news.
The rise in mass media has contributed significantly to this increase: people readily gain
knowledge through television, newspapers, magazines, radio, the internet, as well as
contemporaries. Another source of political information is the government, who now plays a

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substantial role in society and affect citizens’ day-to-day experiences; their performance
provides necessary evaluation material for the public (Dalton, 2020: 23). Furthermore, the
increase in accessibility and standard of schooling, where children often learn what is
politically relevant in their country, has risen dramatically in recent years (Dalton, 2020: 23).
Today’s societies are thus evidently exposed to an environment abundantly rich with political
information.

Dalton (2022: 24) explains that citizens furthermore need skills to process the information
they receive in vast amounts and at rapid rates. He proposes that societies now require an
“educated and technically sophisticated electorate,” and that “modern affluence has expanded
educational opportunities” (Dalton, 2020: 24). This societal shift explains the higher levels of
education that have contributed most visibly to the change in political skills. Though there is
not a direct relationship, research does indicate that cognitive mobilisation and political
sophistication are linked to schooling (Dalton, 2020: 25). In contemporary times, people are
socialised from a young age on how to understand and critically analyse political life.

2.2. Political Sophistication

2.2.1. The Ideal Citizen

Political theorists have set the bar for democratic participation very high, however, the
standard for political sophistication needs to be reconsidered in light of recent social and
academic developments. In determining what the ideal democratic electorate looks like,
Dalton (2020: 16-17) presents the models of the super-citizen and the unsophisticated citizen.
According to the super-citizen model, the public must consist of highly sophisticated voters
who regularly participate in conventional democratic processes. Conversely, unsophisticated
citizens display little understanding or rationale, and their minimal participation is driven by
heuristic cues such as group loyalties. The elitist theory further presents a different view,
whereby the political potential that all people possess is seldom realised so that the few elites
may drive political life (Dalton, 2020: 20).

2.2.2. Reasonable Sophistication

However, academic analyses of the way in which people process and use political
information has changed vastly in recent decades. Converse (1964) sets out criteria for

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measuring political sophistication that Dalton utilises, including having a basic underlying
structure to political beliefs, such as an ideology, and consensus between this basic structure
and issue positions. A few decades ago, many people did not meet these criteria for
sophistication, which linked to low levels of electoral turnout and political participation
(Dalton, 2020: 18). Dalton (2020: 22) shows that contemporary citizenries are different to
those of the 1950s and before. He argues that now, the process of cognitive mobilisation, as
well as significant social and political changes, has led to a growth in the public’s political
sophistication. Thus, our understanding of political sophistication must be reconsidered in
contemporary terms.

Because few fulfil the ideal democratic standard of fully and rationally processing all
available information, most people make regular political choices on reasonable grounds
(Dalton, 2020: 26). Dalton (2020: 27-32) explains three ways in which cognitively mobilised
citizens make these choices: through political cognition, people selectively retrieve
knowledge; with overlapping issue publics, people rationally engage with only a few issues
that are important to them; and through heuristics such as ideology or social media, voters
simplify decision making. These methods indicate a sophisticated engagement with political
life.

3. Electoral Participation in Cognitively Mobilised Publics

Dalton (2020: 37) highlights some concerns that democracy is at risk: citizens are apathetic
about their democratic rights in a globalised world, election turnout is decreasing, civic
engagement is low, and partisanship is weakening, all in the face of socio-economic growth
and higher cognitive mobilisation. Others point out that non-electoral modes of participation
are increasingly employed as citizens challenge elitist, oligarchical political structures
(Dalton, 2020: 37).

Alaminos and Penalva (2012: 3) show that the greater availability of information, detachment
from parties, and shifting value systems, especially amongst the youth, in favour of post
materialism mean that electoral involvement as a popular means of political expression is
receding. According to Dalton (1984), voting behaviour overall is more volatile and giving
way to more direct means of political action. An increase in issue voting is indicative of a
sophisticated, rational electorate, as issue voting is more likely to impact policy outcomes of

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elections; in light of this, politicians are encouraged to be more responsive to the demands of
the electorate (Dalton, 2020: 227). Thus, there may be less cause for concern than what may
initially appear.

3.1. Changing Partisan Behaviour

Partisanship, being the long-standing attachment to a political party, has always been a
significant form of traditional political expression and mobilisation (Dalton, 1984: 265). It
guides voters in their political decisions, acting as a heuristic in the face of an overwhelming
supply of electoral information. However, data indicates that partisanship is decidedly on the
decline. As cognitive mobilisation gives citizens the skills to navigate political complexities
and make their own choices, the practical need for such electoral cues is shrinking (Dalton,
1984: 265). Dalton (2020: 199) also raises the role of youth in changing electoral patterns: the
more informed and educated youth show higher levels of cognitive mobilisation (Inglehart,
1997), and their expectations about parties and politics have changed due to growing
disenchantment and scepticism of bureaucratic organisations of government.

Dalton (2020: 200-201) defines apartisans, a growing sector of cognitively mobilised publics,
as highly educated citizens who are politically active but not attached to any party. Apartisans
have changed the nature of electoral participation in that they advocate for involvement
beyond traditional, party-related activities such as voting (Dalton. 2020: 202). A 2016
American National Election Studies survey found that partisan voter turnout was 10% higher
than that of apartisans (Dalton, 2020: 186). Cognitive mobilisation is also changing the
political nature of partisans, who now rely less on party cues and loyalty and rather support
parties due to a sophisticated understanding of their values and issue stances. Thus, it is
evident that the way in which citizens view politics is changing, and their engagement in
elections, regardless of their partisanship, is becoming more critical.

4. Evidence of Cognitive Mobilisation in South Africa

4.1. Changing Political Culture

Though declining electoral turnout and partisan dealignment have been connected to
cognitive mobilisation in many democratic societies, it is unclear whether these changes in
the political culture of South Africa are linked to this process. Schulz-Herzenberg (2009: 2-4)

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outlines the overall downturn in voter participation: though election results since 1994 seem
relatively stable, studies indicate that turnout and registration in the democratic decades have
significantly declined. This is supported electoral data which indicates that many have
retracted their support of political parties. For example, the ANC’s share of the national vote
has shrunk in recent elections, prompting Schulz-Herzenberg to state that “the magnitude of
the ANC’s election victories shrinks under scrutiny” (Schulz-Herzenberg, 2009: 4). This
partisan dealignment is combined with an increase in floating voters, who do not attach
strong loyalty to any party (Schulz-Herzenberg, 2009: 5).

However, there are still concerns regarding the predictability of voting outcomes in South
African elections and emergence of a system of one-party dominance. As Schulz-Herzenberg
(2009: 2) shows, virtually unchallenged power can lead to complacency among the electorate
and an unresponsive government. Though the decline in partisanship shows that citizens are
not unquestionably loyal to the ANC, the party’s performance seems to have little effect on
many of their supporters, and those that do withdraw support due to poor performance are
unlikely to align with a different party. This may be due to the historical inclination towards
group politics and racial alignments in such a divided society (Schulz-Herzenberg, 2009: 2).

4.2. The Apathy of Youth

Adu and Badaru (2020: 24) raise concerns regarding the participation of South African youth:
while university students have been known for great political involvement and consciousness,
levels of political apathy are evident even in the country’s educated youth today.
Furthermore, while access to information and mobilisation through social media should make
it easy and appealing for young people to engage in democratic processes, studies have
shown that the proportion of youth interested and involved in politics is relatively small (Adu
& Badaru, 2020: 31).

4.3. South African’s Un-Mobilised Citizenry

Cognitive mobilisation in South Africa has remained very low since the start of the
democracy: its presence in less than 10% of the population can be expected given the
disparities in access to improved socioeconomic conditions, education and political news
(Schulz-Herzenberg, 2009: 12). The generally small proportion of cognitively mobilised

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citizens means that many voters likely still turn to partisan cues and other political heuristics
in their political engagement or, alternatively, choose not to engage at all (Schulz-
Herzenberg, 2009: 12). Schulz-Herzenberg (2009: 14) concludes that independents in South
Africa are largely inactive and show low levels of political sophistication; thus, changes in
partisanship and electoral participation are due to a rise of non-mobilised voters rather than
cognitively mobilised ones.

5. Conclusion
Ultimately, evidence indicates that cognitive mobilisation is vital in post-industrial
democratic societies for a sophisticated engagement in political life. It increases the
unpredictability of elections and accountability of parties by encouraging disengagement
from conventional political participation such as voting, as well as a more critical evaluation
of partisan values and issue positions. However, changes in electoral participation in
democratic South Africa are due to other factors, and there is little evidence of a cognitively
mobilised public.

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6. Bibliography
Adu, E.O. & Badaru, K.A. 2020. University students’ media use and political participation in
South Africa. South African Journal of Higher Education, 34(1): 18-33, doi: 0.20853/34-1-
3382

Alaminos, A. & Penalva, C. 2012. The cognitive mobilisation index: Crises and political
generations. SAGE Open: 1-5, doi: 10.1177/2158244012440437

Converse, P. 1964. The nature of belief systems in mass publics, in D. Apter (ed.). In
Ideology and Discontent. New York: Free Press.

Dalton, R.J. 1984. Cognitive mobilization and partisan dealignment in advanced industrial
democracies. The Journal of Politics, 46(1): 264-287.

Dalton, R.J. 2020. Citizen politics: Public opinion and political parties in advanced
industrial democracies. 7th edition. California: CQ Press.

Inglehart, R. 1977. The silent revolution: Changing values and political styles among
Western publics. New Jersey: Princeton University Press.

Schulz-Herzenberg, C. 2009. Elections and accountability in South Africa. Institute for

Security Studies, Paper 188 [Online]. Available:
https://media.africaportal.org/documents/PAPER188.pdf [2022, March 12].