Sources of Change in Congressional District Attentiveness

Abstract

The purpose of this analysis is to examine the impact of congressional longevity, travel allocations, and membership turnover on increases in the amount of time that House members spend within their districts. Each of these influences provides a different explanation for the growth in district attentiveness: the emphasis of less senior members on district service (seniority effects), the continuous infusion of more home-oriented House members (replacement effects), and the increase in travel allocations (conversion effects). The study is based upon the travel vouchers filed by House incumbents between 1971 and 1976. The analysis reveals that both replacement and conversion effects have increased district attentiveness among cohorts but congressional longevity (seniority) does not appear to reduce attentiveness.

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