Normalization hypothesis
In political science , the normalization hypothesis relates to the phenomenon of falling voter turnout in the Federal Republic of Germany .
Although in the 1950s and 1960s almost 50 percent of Germans had little or no interest in politics, well over 80 percent of Germans voted. In an international comparison, this is a very high participation. Accordingly, the falling voter turnout according to Roth (1992: 61) is to be regarded as normalization. The election loses its compulsory character and the ballot is no longer a matter of course.