Stealth Democracy: Americans' Beliefs About How Government Should Work - Brossura

Hibbing, John R.

Brossura

ISBN 10: 0521009863 ISBN 13: 9780521009867

Casa editrice: Cambridge University Press, 1998

Americans often complain about the operation of their government, but scholars have never developed a complete picture of people's preferred type of government. In this provocative and timely book, Hibbing and Theiss-Morse, employing an original national survey and focus groups, report the governmental procedures Americans desire. Contrary to the prevailing view that people want greater involvement in politics, most citizens do not care about most policies and therefore are content to turn over decision-making authority to someone else. People's wish for the political system is that decision makers be empathetic and, especially, non-self-interested, not that they be responsive and accountable to the people's largely nonexistent policy preferences or, even worse, that the people be obligated to participate directly in decision making. Hibbing and Theiss-Morse conclude by cautioning communitarians, direct democrats, social capitalists, deliberation theorists, and all those who think that greater citizen involvement is the solution to society's problems.

Recensione:

"A compelling challenge to the prominent view that government participation leads to better government." The Futurist

"This wonderfully provocative book uses survey data and interviews to support hypotheses that run against the conventional scholarly wisdom about what is wrong with the US political system.... This excellent contribution to the sociological and political science literature on participation is written in a clear, occasionally witty, and understandable prose that all will appreciate. Essential." Choice

Descrizione del libro:

Stealth Democracy examines how people want their democratic government to work. Americans don't like many of the practices associated with democracy - conflict, debates, compromises. If they had their way, political decisions would be made by unselfish decision makers because people would be free from having to monitor government.