Socialt ursprung och politiska preferenser - Hur föräldrars klasstillhörighet påverkar barns partisympatier

Sammanfattning: This thesis examines the effect of social origins (parents’ class) on left-right orientation. By examining the preferences of the socially mobile, the thesis estimates whether their preferences are more similiar to immobile members of the origin class, or to immobile members of the destination class. To estimate this correctly, the thesis utilizes the diagonal reference model developed by Sobel. This model also determines whether socialization or rationality is the prefered causal mechanism. The data being examined are the 1990 and 2014 national surveys from SOM-institutet. This allows comparisons over time. Left-right orientation is operationalized as a binary party identification variable. The thesis puts forth various models (hypotheses), all of which estimate under which circumstances social origins determine left-right orientation. The results are the following: socialization is the prefered causal mechanism determining left-right orientation. The prefered models are the ones which say that social origins are the determining factor when people are young, and even more so when they originate from classes at the top of the class scheme. The thesis also develops a general theory of when social origins are the determining factor in left-right orientation.