Showing papers in "PS Political Science & Politics in 1995"
TL;DR: The Pool Lecture as mentioned in this paper was founded by Ithiel de Sola Pool, a brilliant, broad-gauged scholar whose interests ranged from the Nazi elite to direct satellite broadcasting, from the first rigorous computer simulation of electoral behavior to the development of network theory.
Abstract: It is a daunting honor to deliver the inaugural Pool Lecture. Ithiel de Sola Pool was a brilliant, broad-gauged scholar whose interests ranged from the Nazi elite to direct satellite broadcasting, from the first rigorous computer simulation of electoral behavior to the development of network theory, from which he invented "small world" research. He helped found the field of political communications. A graduate of the University of Chicago's political science department during its classic golden age, and first chair of the MIT political science department, Pool must also have been a remarkable teacher, for his students continue to contribute to our understanding of technology, communications, and political behavior. When I accepted this honor, I did not guess how close my own inquiry would lead me to Pool's own professional turf. I shall return to the contemporary relevance of Pool's insights at the conclusion of this talk.
3,554 citations
TL;DR: The analysis of mass attitudes toward environmental problems as mentioned in this paper uses evidence from representative national surveys of countries representing the entire developmental spectrum, from rich to poor nations, including not only Western democracies but authoritarian regimes and recently emerging democracies from the former communist bloc.
Abstract: Policies designed to solve environmental problems are unlikely to succeed unless they have broad public support, but the motives for mass support are poorly understood. The problem is global in scope, but most of the relevant public opinion research done so far has been carried out in advanced industrial societies, usually Western democracies. Moreover, much of this research is limited to the tip of the iceberg, focusing on what people think about environmental problems without probing into why they think it or how deeply they are committed.The analysis of mass attitudes toward environmental problems in this article uses evidence from representative national surveys of countries representing the entire developmental spectrum, from rich to poor nations, including not only Western democracies but authoritarian regimes and recently emerging democracies from the former communist bloc. The data come from the 1990–93 World Values survey, carried out in 43 countries containing 70% of the world's population. Our goal is to determine why given publics are—or are not—sufficiently concerned about environmental problems that they are willing to make financial sacrifices and undertake other actions in order to help protect the environment.
875 citations
TL;DR: Rorty as discussed by the authors argued that analytic skills gained by mastering this methodology can be valuable not as ends in themselves, but as means to other, more illuminating, intellectual projects to which the problems approach may be irrelevant.
Abstract: 1. Much of my discussion here follows Ian Hacking's "Five Parables," in Philosophy in History, ed. Richard Rorty, J. B. Schneewind, and Quentin Skinner (Cambridge, England; Cambridge University Press, 1984), pp. 103-125, esp. 110-114. While, like Hacking, I am deeply suspicious of a problems approach to the study of philosophy, I also agree that the analytic skills gained by mastering this methodology can be valuable not as ends in themselves, but as means to other, more illuminating, intellectual projects to which the problems approach may be irrelevant.
60 citations
53 citations
TL;DR: The authors argue that these goals can be achieved by requiring researchers who collect data to surrender the products of their labor to others without compensation, which is the position taken in "Replication, Replication" (King 1995).
Abstract: Political scientists believe they ought to promote research as a social enterprise and develop a stronger sense of community within the discipline. They disagree on how to foster community and on the best way to promote research. The position taken in “Replication, Replication” (King 1995) is that these goals can be achieved by requiring researchers who collect data to surrender the products of their labor to others without compensation.
50 citations
TL;DR: For instance, women held only 5.5% of all political science faculty positions in the 1960s, but that percentage rose to almost 15% by the late 1980s.
Abstract: every 4 political science doctoral degrees, 20 years ago they received only 1 in 10 (Sarkees and McGlen 1992, 50-52). As with academic degrees, faculty positions also show an increase in female participation in political science. Women held only 5.5% of all political science faculty positions in the 1960s. That percentage rose to almost 15% by the late 1980s (Sarkees and McGlen 1992, 54). However, female representation in political science faculties has not been equally distributed across academic tiers. While women hold 34% of all full-time
48 citations
TL;DR: The authors proposed a model for forecasting U.S. presidential elections that has two simple but compelling advantages: it is long-range, permitting a forecast four years ahead of time; and it is cheap, requiring no information on variables influencing electoral choices.
Abstract: curiosity value. This paper proposes a model for forecasting U.S. presidential elections that has two simple, but compelling advantages: it is long-range, permitting a forecast four years ahead of time; and it is cheap, requiring no information on variables influencing electoral choices. What is the magic formula that everyone has been looking for? Ruling out the help of astrology, this effort relies on the power of autoregressive models. The basic premise is that the outcomes of presidential elections are not independent random events, like successive coin flips. Instead, they exhibit regularities useful for forecasting. To give away the plot, the forecast of the model developed below is for the Democrats to retain control of the
31 citations
26 citations
TL;DR: This article found that religious beliefs, practices, and identifications are a potent source of political behavior, both for activists and voters, and that these effects have been particularly strong among Evangelicals, where a combination of close-knit church com-
Abstract: (Wald 1992). Innovations in survey research, including those by the National Election Studies, have shown that religious beliefs, practices, and identifications are a potent source of political behavior, both for activists (see Guth and Green 1992) and voters (see Leege and Kellstedt 1993). These effects have been particularly strong among Evangelicals, where a combination of close-knit church com-
24 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe basic good computing practices and offer advice for writing clear code that facilitates the task of replicating the research, which is a common problem in scholarly analysis.
Abstract: Replication of scholarly analysis depends on individual researchers being able to explain exactly what they have done. And being able to explain exactly what one has done requires keeping good records of it. This article describes basic good computing practices and offers advice for writing clear code that facilitates the task of replicating the research. The goals are simple. First, the researcher should be able to replicate his or her own work six hours later, six months later, and even six years later.
23 citations
TL;DR: I support a replication policy because it would require political scientists to document carefully how they have generated their findings, and the study has greater credibility simply because the author is willing to release the data and documentation to others.
Abstract: I support a replication policy because it would require political scientists to document carefully how they have generated their findings. Yes, creating a replication data set is a little extra work, but it is work researchers should be doing in the first place. Compensating for this cost are two benefits: The author is more sure that the results are valid, and the study has greater credibility simply because the author is willing to release the data and documentation to others. In two cases
TL;DR: The debate among political scientists over replication is comparable in many respects to controversy among policy analysts about the ends and means of regulation as discussed by the authors, and the fundamental sticking point is whether the benefits of mandatory replication to the community of political scientists outweigh the costs of compliance to individuals.
Abstract: Debate among political scientists over replication is comparable in many respects to controversy among policy analysts about the ends and means of regulation. Proponents of replication seek to provide the collective good of freeflowing information and to sanction the negative externality of sloppy scholarship. Similarly, opponents of replication claim property rights in the data and variables they have created through hard work and ingenuity. As with disputes over regulatory policy, the fundamental sticking point is whether the benefits of mandatory replication to the community of political scientists outweigh the costs of compliance to individuals. Pervasive evidence
TL;DR: The 10th annual John Gaus Distinguished Lecturer was presented to Charles E. Lindblom of Yale University at the 1995 Association's 1995 Annual Meeting in Chicago as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Editor's Note: Charles E. Lindblom of Yale University was designated the 10th Annual John Gaus Distinguished Lecturer at the Association's 1995 Annual Meeting in Chicago. Lindblom joined the company of previous winners: Herbert Kaufman [1986], C. Dwight Waldo [1987], James W. Fesler [1988], Aaron Wildavsky [1989], Frederick C. Mosher [1990], Norton E. Long [1991], Martha Derthick [1992], Francis E. Rourke [1993], and James Q. Wilson [1994]. The Gaus Award honors Lind-
TL;DR: For 40 years now, political scientists have grumbled about the lack of availability of major data sets (with the McClosky (1960) data being perhaps the most prominent example), so it is high time that the profession as a whole adopts some guidelines and standards as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: rent practices on archiving data sets. For 40 years now, political scientists have grumbled about the lack of availability of major data sets (with the McClosky (1960) data being perhaps the most prominent example), so it is high time that the profession as a whole adopts some guidelines and standards. King's article in this journal is an important way to start the discussion. Yet King's position should stand as only the beginning of the debate, not the conclusion. Consensus has not been reached on the issues
TL;DR: The authors in this symposium have demonstrated strong agreement on some fundamental principles, such as Walter Stone and Jim Gibson as discussed by the authors, as well as the importance of data replication in political science.
Abstract: This symposium reveals widely differing views about specific data replication policies. The proposals represent, according to Kenneth Meier, "the single most significant contribution in turning political science into a rigorous discipline in my professional lifetime." According to Paul Herrnson, they "would harm researchers, journals, the discipline, and the acquisition of knowledge about politics." Much of the diversity of views across other disciplines reported by the Lineberrys is well reflected within political science. Yet, despite the wide range of opinion as to how or whether to set specific replication policies in practice, I am encouraged that the authors in this symposium have demonstrated strong agreement on some fundamental principles, as Walter Stone and Jim Gibson em-
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors of works relying upon qualitative data are encouraged (but not required) to submit a comparable footnote that would facilitate replication where feasible, and the policy statement that he suggests editors and reviewers of books and journals endorse exclusively imposes standards on studies based on quantitative research.
Abstract: In “Replication, Replication,” Gary King convincingly argues that publications by political scientists should adhere to what he calls a replication standard. Although King's article explicitly embraces qualitative as well as quantitative research, the policy statement that he suggests editors and reviewers of books and journals endorse exclusively imposes standards on studies based on quantitative research. Qualitative work is treated in a simple sentence and one that enforces no standards: “Authors of works relying upon qualitative data are encouraged (but not required) to submit a comparable footnote that would facilitate replication where feasible.”
TL;DR: Most college teachers probably would say that they want students to think for themselves. If so, we can progress by using the growing research into teaching and learning in higher education as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Most college teachers probably would say that they want students to think for themselves. If so, we can progress by using the growing research into teaching and learning in higher education. Approaching teaching as a scholarly activity parallels our approach to research. As researchers, we learn to be methodologically self-conscious. We learn to trust neither intuitions nor instincts, but to seek and respect data, confounding though they often are. Equally, as teachers, we must be conscious of the processes of teaching and learning, as well as the content. We must
TL;DR: In a traditional political science class, students are taught to participate in the political process by voting, joining interest groups, and protesting as discussed by the authors, but according to focus group discussions with students on ten college campuses, many students are now rejecting these forms of participation.
Abstract: Democracy requires a deliberating citizenry, and college is the best place to teach the practice of public deliberation. From this perspective we will describe how you can teach this democratic practice in your political science classroom. In a traditional political science class, students are taught to participate in the political process by voting, joining interest groups, and protesting. According to focus group discussions with students on ten college campuses, many students are now rejecting these forms of participation (Harwood Group, 1993). The good news is that students are able to envision alterna-
TL;DR: David Beasley, a born-again Southern Baptist converted in an independent Fundamentalist church, received strong backing from Pentecostal and Charismatic activists and votes from conservative Protestants of all stripes, first winning the GOP gubernatorial nomination and then defeating a popular Democratic lieutenant governor for the state's top post as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Early in the 1994 campaign, South Carolina Democratic humorists quipped that only two skills were required to win a Republican gubernatorial nomination—speaking in tongues and handling snakes (Carney 1994). The reference, of course, was to the expanding role of conservative Protestants in the state's Republican Party. Unfortunately, Democratic strategists understood the dynamics of conservative Protestantism no better in South Carolina than elsewhere, and on November 8, the joke was on them.David Beasley, a born-again Southern Baptist (but converted in an independent Fundamentalist church), received strong backing from Pentecostal and Charismatic activists and votes from conservative Protestants of all stripes, first winning the GOP gubernatorial nomination and then defeating a popular Democratic lieutenant governor for the state's top post. Beasley's success proves that identifying with a Christian Right movement organization is not an insuperable barrier to political success. His victory also brings into focus the broader role of conservative Protestants in South Carolina's continuing development into one of the nation's most Republican states.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors demonstrate how the Internet can be used to enhance the teaching of political science in a wide variety of ways, including e-mail, discussion lists, and remote access to other computers.
Abstract: taken advantage of the traditional strengths of the Internet (e-mail, discussion lists, and remote access to other computers) to aid them in teaching and research. For example, the political science research and teaching list (PSRT-L), which Gary Klass and I moderate, has passed its fifth anniversary as an Internet discussion list serving the needs of political science.' Yet it is only in the last couple of years that the number of political scientists using the Internet as a teaching tool has really begun to grow. In the articles that follow, our intent is to demonstrate how the Internet can be used to enhance the teaching of political science in a wide variety of ways. Each author has been asked not only to explain how they incorporate the Internet into their teaching, but also to honestly assess the advantages and disadvantages of doing so. Martha Bailey discusses an accessible way to increase the impact of an existing course through the Internet: have students become
TL;DR: The teacher in me wants to despair when students associate words like these with politics as mentioned in this paper, because I know that it is politics that secures the basic freedoms that allow my students to say critical things about politics.
Abstract: Do psychiatrists still use word-association techniques with their patients? I sometimes do word association with my students, usually on the first day of my introductory American government classes at Rhodes College. The first word I say is “politics,” and here is what they come back with: corrupt, dirty, games-playing, ego trip, a waste. (The nicest thing I heard the last time I did this was “boring”.) Here is what they say in response to “politician”: selfish, ambitious, mediocre, unprincipled.The teacher in me wants to despair when students associate words like these with politics. I know, as did Aristotle, that politics is a vital and sometimes noble human activity. I know that politics was at the heart of our birth as a nation. (As John Roche [1961] has pointed out, the founding fathers may be described in many ways, but no description is accurate that leaves out the word “politician.”) I know that politics was the vehicle that integrated generations of our immigrant ancestors into the mainstream of American society—the job on the city road crew that my German grandfather got from the Frank Hague machine in Jersey City is the reason that my father and then I were later able to build careers of our own in the private sector. And I know that it is politics that secures the basic freedoms that allow my students to say critical things about politics.
TL;DR: In an informative account of different electoral systems and their effects on representation Joseph F. Zimmerman (1994, 674) recommended the single transferable vote (STV) system on the grounds that it provides broad representation with great accuracy.
Abstract: In an informative account of different electoral systems and their effects on representation Joseph F. Zimmerman (1994, 674) recommended the single transferable vote (STV) system on the grounds that it “provides […] broad representation with great accuracy.” Along with local jurisdictions in the United States the article mentions Ireland and Australia as countries that use STV, but fails to include Malta. This seemingly innocuous omission is not inconsequential; Malta squarely contradicts Zimmerman's conclusion that STV facilitates the “direct representation” of women. Unfortunately, Wilma Rule did not remedy the neglect of Malta in her comparative overview of women in parliaments, which appeared in the same feature on “Election Systems and Representative Democracy” (1994, 690). Inclusion in the cross-national comparison would have revealed that this small island nation carries a dubious distinction: the lowest percentage of women in its unicameral parliament. As a result of the last elections, held in 1992, there is currently only one female MP. Nor did Prime Minister Fenech Adami's cabinet include a single woman, even though the number of ministries was expanded from 10 to 13 (Fenech 1992b, 1993). In the preceding parliamentary term, 3% of the seats (2 of 69) were occupied by women. It may be argued that in social scientific inquiry and theory-building a single case does not warrant the rejection of a generalization that is otherwise sound.
TL;DR: In the 1990 Census, to comply with the requirements of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, state legislatures and federal and state courts adopted new redistricting plans that produced large increases in minority representation.
Abstract: panic, blacks made up only 4.9% of members of Congress and 5.4% of all state legislators, and Hispanics constituted only 2.5% of Congress and 1.7% of state legislators (Stanley and Niemi 1992, 395-97). In redistricting after the 1990 Census, to comply with the requirements of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, state legislatures and federal and state courts adopted new redistricting plans that produced large increases in minority representation.1 The number of majority-black and majority-Hispanic congressional districts was doubled between 1990 and 1993, from 29 to 52 (U.S. Bureau of the Census 1993), and this resulted in a 50% increase (from 26 to 39) in the number of black members of the U.S.