Suchergebnisse

This article examines two rival explanations for knowledge gaps. One explanation relates to transsituational attributes that is, socioeconomic characteristics) while the second focuses upon situation-specific characteristics that is, policy-relevant personal motivations). Four measures of knowledge levels are employed—technical term familiarity, problem articulation, self-assessed level of informedness, and the ability to define key policy concepts. This study uses three SES measures (education, income, and occupational status) and five motivational measures (types of use of water, involvement in water politics, water policy satisfaction, water policy priority, and extremity of environmental attitudes). The results show that situation-specific factors are the more important influences on knowledge levels, casting doubt on theories suggesting that lower SES persons may be permanently relegated to a public affairs knowledge deficit.

ABSTRACTThe timely provision of information is crucial to the success of interest groups seeking to influence policymakers, the public and their own members. This paper examines the extent to which legislators, citizens, and policy area experts and activists trust the information provided by specific interests in the water resources managment area. It is shown that citizens and policy area activists are less trusting than are legislators and experts, and that they also discriminate more among information sources than either of those types of actors. On the individual level, multiple regression analysis is employed to investigate the extent to which partisanship, ideology, environmentalism and degree of informedness influence the level of trust accorded particular interest groups among citizens, legislators, activists, and experts.

The provision of information is crucial to the success of interest groups seeking to influence policymakers, the public, & their own members. The extent to which legislators, citizens, & policy area experts & activists trust the information provided by specific interests in the water resources management area is examined in an empirical investigation. Mailed questionnaire data were collected in Idaho in 1979 from 718 members of the general public, 78 legislators, 169 experts, & 70 activists. Multiple regression analyswas was employed to investigate the extent to which partisanship, ideology, environmentalism, & degree of informedness influence the level of trust accorded particular interest groups. It is shown that citizens & policy area activists are less trusting, & discriminate more among information sources than legislators & experts. 6 Tables, 14 References. Modified HA.

The validity of R reports concerning the signing of an initiative petition is explored through data from two sources, both relating to an Idaho ballot initiative of 1978. Questionnaire data were obtained in early 1979 from 196 randomly chosen petition signatories & from 718 randomly chosen state residents. In this case, self-reporting of political behavior seriously underestimates the true extent of the public's political involvement. Further, dependence on self-reported political participation distorts conclusions about both the sources & the consequences of participation. 3 Tables. Modified HA.

This mixed methods study of local pro- and anti-sanctuary actions taken in response to Latino in-migration features data for 3,000+ counties, a national survey, and two case studies in Twin Falls, ID and Hazleton, PA. Historical origins and contemporary circumstances combine to account for why localities are either welcoming or exclusionary.

Robert Putnam's celebrated book, Making Democracy Work, identified historical, "path-dependent" sources of differences in social capital in Italy's regions as an explanation for their variations in success at "overcoming dilemmas of collective action." This case study identifies some of the methodological challenges faced in extending to the contemporary period: (a) the relationships among Putnam's historical legacy-based levels of social capital, on one hand, and subsequent and current levels of social capital, on the other hand; and (b) the relationships among these sets of measures to variations in contemporary Italian regional institutional performance and sustainability indicators. The results reported indicate (a) that conceptually similar but methodologically dissimilar historic and contemporary social capital levels at the regional level are strongly linked and (b) that historic and contemporary social capital levels are strongly related to contemporary indicators of regional institutional performance and sustainability initiatives.