In a series of scholarly articles in the 1990s, Radcliff attempted a radical reinterpretation of the implications for democratic thought of social theory in general, and Arrow's impossibility theorem in particular.
In a 2001 article in the American Political Science Review he provided extensive econometric evidence in support of the contention that social democracy in general, and an expansive, universalistic welfare state in particular, contributed to greater levels of life satisfaction across the Western world.
His empirical analyses suggested that two fundamental conclusions: (1) individuals who belong to (or are represented by) labor unions have higher levels of life satisfaction that others of similar income, education, age, gender, marital status, physical health, and other similar factors, and, more importantly (2) that the aggregate level of labor organization—the "density" of organization, meaning the percentage of the work force organized—appears to increase subjective appraisal of life for everyone, whether members of unions or not.
[9] Radcliff's research program culminated in the publication of his book The Political Economy of Human Happiness: How Voters' Choices Determine the Quality of Life.
[10][11] Radcliff's contention that there is a positive connection between the extent of electoral participation (turnout) and the share of the vote received by the Democratic Party in U.S. elections[12] has been criticized, in separate analyses, by political scientists Robert Erikson and Jack Nagel.
[16] Radcliff gives several arguments against this 'reverse casualty' hypothesis in his book The Political Economy of Human Happiness: How Voters' Choices Determine the Quality of Life.
ISBN 3-451-04396-3 The Department of Political Science at the University of Notre Dame announced that Radcliff passed away on June 11, 2024, honoring him as “an outstanding scholar, but an even better mentor, colleague, and friend.