Voting behavior refers to how people decide how to vote.[1] This decision is shaped by a complex interplay between an individual voter's attitudes as well as social factors.[1] Voter attitudes include characteristics such as ideological predisposition, party identity, degree of satisfaction with the existing government, public policy leanings, and feelings about a candidate's personality traits.[1] Social factors include race, religion and degree of religiosity, social and economic class, educational level, regional characteristics, and gender.[1] The degree to which a person identifies with a political party influences voting behavior,[2] as does social identity.[3] Voter decision-making is not a purely rational endeavor but rather is profoundly influenced by personal and social biases and deeply held beliefs[4] as well as characteristics such as personality, memory, emotions, and other psychological factors.[5][6]Voting advice applications[7] and avoidance of wasted votes through strategic voting[8] can impact voting behavior.
^Caplan, B. (2007). The Myth of the Rational Voter: Why Democracies Choose Bad Policies - New Edition (REV-Revised). Princeton University Press. doi:10.2307/j.ctvcm4gf2
^Beck, PA, et al. (2002). The social calculus of voting: Interpersonal, media, and organizational influences on presidential choices. Am Polit Sci Rev 96 (1): 57–73.