Collective preferences in democratic politics : opinion surveys and the will of the people / Scott L. Althaus.
Althaus, Scott L., 1966-| Call Number | 303.3/8/0973 |
| Author | Althaus, Scott L., 1966- author. |
| Title | Collective preferences in democratic politics : opinion surveys and the will of the people / Scott L. Althaus. |
| Physical Description | 1 online resource (xiii, 370 pages) : digital, PDF file(s). |
| Notes | Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015). |
| Summary | Since so few people appear knowledgeable about public affairs, one might question whether collective policy preferences revealed in opinion surveys accurately convey the distribution of voices and interests in a society. This study, the first comprehensive treatment of the relationship between knowledge, representation, and political equality in opinion surveys, suggests some surprising answers. Knowledge does matter, and the way it is distributed in society can cause collective preferences to reflect disproportionately the opinions of some groups more than others. Sometimes collective preferences seem to represent something like the will of the people, but frequently they do not. Sometimes they rigidly enforce political equality in the expression of political viewpoints, but often they do not. The primary culprit is not any inherent shortcoming in the methods of survey research. Rather, it is the limited degree of knowledge held by ordinary citizens about public affairs. Accounting for these factors can help better appreciate thepossibilities for using opinion polls to represent the people's voice. |
| Subject | Public opinion United States. PUBLIC OPINION. DEMOCRACY. POLITICAL PARTICIPATION. |
| Multimedia |
Total Ratings:
0
02489nam a22003978i 4500
001
vtls001585592
003
VRT
005
20200921122800.0
006
m|||||o||d||||||||
007
cr||||||||||||
008
200921s2003||||enk o ||1 0|eng|d
020
$a 9780511610042 (ebook)
020
$z 9780521820998 (hardback)
020
$z 9780521527873 (paperback)
035
$a (UkCbUP)CR9780511610042
039
9
$y 202009211228 $z santha
040
$a UkCbUP $b eng $e rda $c UkCbUP
043
$a n-us---
050
0
0
$a HN90.P8 $b A47 2003
082
0
0
$a 303.3/8/0973 $2 21
100
1
$a Althaus, Scott L., $d 1966- $e author.
245
1
0
$a Collective preferences in democratic politics : $b opinion surveys and the will of the people / $c Scott L. Althaus.
264
1
$a Cambridge : $b Cambridge University Press, $c 2003.
300
$a 1 online resource (xiii, 370 pages) : $b digital, PDF file(s).
336
$a text $b txt $2 rdacontent
337
$a computer $b c $2 rdamedia
338
$a online resource $b cr $2 rdacarrier
500
$a Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015).
520
$a Since so few people appear knowledgeable about public affairs, one might question whether collective policy preferences revealed in opinion surveys accurately convey the distribution of voices and interests in a society. This study, the first comprehensive treatment of the relationship between knowledge, representation, and political equality in opinion surveys, suggests some surprising answers. Knowledge does matter, and the way it is distributed in society can cause collective preferences to reflect disproportionately the opinions of some groups more than others. Sometimes collective preferences seem to represent something like the will of the people, but frequently they do not. Sometimes they rigidly enforce political equality in the expression of political viewpoints, but often they do not. The primary culprit is not any inherent shortcoming in the methods of survey research. Rather, it is the limited degree of knowledge held by ordinary citizens about public affairs. Accounting for these factors can help better appreciate thepossibilities for using opinion polls to represent the people's voice.
650
0
$a Public opinion $z United States.
650
0
$a PUBLIC OPINION.
650
0
$a DEMOCRACY.
650
0
$a POLITICAL PARTICIPATION.
776
0
8
$i Print version: $z 9780521820998
856
4
0
$u https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511610042
999
$a VIRTUA
No Reviews to Display
| Summary | Since so few people appear knowledgeable about public affairs, one might question whether collective policy preferences revealed in opinion surveys accurately convey the distribution of voices and interests in a society. This study, the first comprehensive treatment of the relationship between knowledge, representation, and political equality in opinion surveys, suggests some surprising answers. Knowledge does matter, and the way it is distributed in society can cause collective preferences to reflect disproportionately the opinions of some groups more than others. Sometimes collective preferences seem to represent something like the will of the people, but frequently they do not. Sometimes they rigidly enforce political equality in the expression of political viewpoints, but often they do not. The primary culprit is not any inherent shortcoming in the methods of survey research. Rather, it is the limited degree of knowledge held by ordinary citizens about public affairs. Accounting for these factors can help better appreciate thepossibilities for using opinion polls to represent the people's voice. |
| Notes | Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015). |
| Subject | Public opinion United States. PUBLIC OPINION. DEMOCRACY. POLITICAL PARTICIPATION. |
| Multimedia |