Understanding Vote Buying in India: A Behavioral Economics Perspective
As India gears up for its 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the issue of vote buying continues to cast a shadow over the electoral process, with instances of cash seizures during various electoral events often making headlines. For example, in the 2014 parliamentary election, amounts seized ranged from 19.5 million INR in Assam to a staggering 155 million INR in Tamil Nadu. Despite these alarming figures, concrete evidence regarding the extent and forms of vote-buying remains elusive, largely due to the lack of incentives for political parties and voters to disclose such transactions. Vote buying is a pervasive issue in Indian elections, rooted in a complex interplay of psychological biases and systemic vulnerabilities. The core of this phenomenon can be understood through the concept of hyperbolic discounting, a cognitive bias explored in behavioral economics. Hyperbolic discounting refers to the tendency of individuals to prioritize immediate rewards ov...