Long-Term Factors Influencing Voting Behaviour: Class, Age and Region

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• defines class dealignment as the weakening of the traditional link between social class and party support.1 mark
• explains the traditional pattern it replaced, e.g. working-class voters leaning Labour and middle-class voters leaning Conservative.1 mark
• explains a consequence of dealignment, e.g. that class has become a weaker predictor of how someone will vote than it was in the mid-20th century.1 mark
• links dealignment to another factor gaining relative importance, e.g. age or region.1 mark
• uses accurate terminology, e.g. 'alignment', 'dealignment', correctly.1 mark
• expresses the explanation clearly and in a logical order.1 mark

Nothing ticked yet - 6 available

Tick each line you got. Your score builds from the marks on the scheme.

• The introduction sets out a clear thesis that directly answers the question, and this thesis is sustained throughout. Each of the three main paragraphs presents a genuine two-sided debate, a point and a counterpoint, with accurate and detailed knowledge, and reaches a supported judgement. The conclusion follows logically from the three paragraph judgements rather than simply restating them. Analysis and evaluation are consistently strong throughout.3 marks
• A clear thesis is stated in the introduction and mostly sustained. Most paragraphs present both sides of the debate with generally accurate, relevant knowledge, though depth or balance may be uneven in one paragraph. Judgements are present in most paragraphs and the conclusion broadly follows from them.3 marks
• A thesis is attempted but may be unclear or only partly sustained across the essay. At least one paragraph is one-sided rather than presenting a genuine debate, which limits the level the answer can reach even where the knowledge shown is accurate. Judgements are inconsistent between paragraphs.3 marks
• Limited or generalised knowledge with little clear structure. Paragraphs tend to describe rather than debate the question, with few or no explicit judgements, and the response may drift away from the question set.3 marks
• Very limited, largely inaccurate or irrelevant knowledge. No clear thesis, paragraph structure or judgement is offered.2 marks
• No relevant content, or the response does not engage with the question.2 marks
• Case for class remaining important: class-based patterns have not disappeared entirely, and occupation, income and housing tenure, e.g. homeowner versus renter, still correlate with party choice, even if the link is weaker than in the mid-20th century.2 marks
• Case for class remaining important: some analysts argue apparent age or regional effects partly reflect underlying class differences, since younger voters and voters in some regions are, on average, less likely to be homeowners or higher earners.2 marks
• Case against class remaining most important: class dealignment means the traditional working-class-Labour, middle-class-Conservative link has weakened substantially since the mid-20th century, reducing class's predictive power.2 marks
• Case against class remaining most important: age has become a strong, consistent predictor of party choice in recent elections, arguably a clearer dividing line than class in some contests.2 marks
• Case against class remaining most important: region has become a powerful factor in its own right, most visibly in Scotland's shift towards the SNP, a pattern that cuts across class lines rather than following them.2 marks
• Balanced content: long-term factors interact rather than operating in isolation, so isolating class's precise contribution from age, region and partisan dealignment is genuinely difficult using election-level data alone.2 marks
• A supported conclusion that weighs the continuing but weakened role of class against the rise of age and regional factors, using named patterns, class dealignment, the SNP's rise in Scotland, the age gap, rather than asserting one side without reference to both.2 marks

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