Why do young people join parties? The influence of individual resources on motivation

Party membership is usually explained either by resource-based models such as the socioeconomic standard model or with the incentives that a membership can provide. The former approach stresses the role of skills, availability, and social position, while the latter explains membership as an individual cost-benefit calculation. These two aspects are likely interlinked, but so far no empirical combination of both explanations exists. This analysis conventionalizes a typology of young party members that links incentives and resources. A survey among young party members of the German Social Democratic Party (N= 4006) shows that three different types of members can be identified combining incentives and resources. I present a membership typology where the basic conflict between members is whether they seek professional benefits.