bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The State, Business, and Training
Authors: Heyes Jason , Rainbird Helen 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
The first section of this article discusses why training and skill formation are considered to be central to economic competitiveness and company performance and the ways in which business interests may be involved in social institutions and policy-making in this arena. The second section explores the political economy of training and skill formation, identifying the strengths and limitations of different approaches and typologies. The third section extends the analysis of business and social institutions by examining the emerging supranational level for economic and employment policy. Here, the principal focus is on the European Union as a regional bloc in which training policy has played a significant role as an arena of social dialogue between organized interest groups at the European level. The fourth section examines the training and human resource management practices of multinational companies, exploring the extent to which they intersect with national institutional arenas in which business interest groups operate. The conclusion assesses continuity and change in the relationships between the state and business interests in the field of vocational training.
Entrepreneurship and Small Business Policy
Authors: Greene Francis J. , Storey David J. 
Published: May 2010

AbstractThis article aims to review the extent to which public policy can enhance entrepreneurship and so garner the economic benefits identified by van Praag and Versloot. To achieve this aim the article has four sections. It begins by addressing the conceptual confusion caused by the different definitions of “entrepreneurship and small business (public) policy.” Following Hart, it takes “public policy” to be the intended use of powers by government to impact on societal outcomes. It then follows Lundstrom and Stevenson and suggests that entrepreneurship policies focus upon individuals who are not yet business owners; here the policy objective is to shift them into becoming business owners. In contrast, small business or “small and medium sized enterprise” (SME) policies focus upon existing businesses.
Media Economics and the Political Economy of Information
Authors: McCluskey Jill J. , Swinnen Johan 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
The supply of information through commercial media has increased rapidly over the past decades. Commercial mass media has become the key information broker in our society, and it is where most people obtain their information. Mass media has become an important factor in influencing public opinion. Yet the media is criticized as being sensationalistic and biased in its reporting, giving demonstrators prime time coverage and ignoring careful analyses. This article reviews the emerging literature on the economics of the media and its implications for business and government.
Competition Policy
Authors: Wilks Stephen 
Published: May 2010

AbstractCompetition policy is a complex policy field which requires knowledge of competition law and economics as well as familiarity with the framework of policy and the agencies of enforcement. There is a large amount of literature dealing with the law and economics but surprisingly little work which provides an overall assessment of policy. Unfortunately, discussion of competition policy is therefore segregated into rather insular sub-specialisms. This article presents an outline of the main elements of policy but also seeks to cover new ground by presenting a distinctively “political economy” analysis of competition policy. It argues that competition policy is simultaneously a growing area of legal regulation, a core component of economic policy, and a mode of balancing public and private power in contemporary liberal democracy.
Introduction
Authors: Leighley Jan E. 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This text evaluates the intellectual developments and challenges in the field of American elections and political behavior. The organization of the volume was guided by two observations. First, that the study of American elections and political behavior reflects both the advances and challenges of seeking to understand the political world through empirical scientific approaches. Second, that the realities of American elections and political behavior have changed over the past fifty years. This book discusses the issues in research design, primarily highlighting the varied approaches that mark the field today. It also concentrates on laboratory and field experiments, along with formal modeling. It then shifts to the more ‘substantive’ topics of political participation, vote choice, and interests in American electoral politics. The non-presidential elections are also described. Furthermore, overviews and critical analyses of the study of individuals, elections, and representation are presented.
Optimizing Survey Questionnaire Design in Political Science
Authors: Pasek Josh , Krosnick Jon A. 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article provides a summary of the literature's suggestions on survey design research. In doing so, it points researchers toward question formats that appear to yield the highest measurement reliability and validity. Using the American National Election Studies as a starting point, it shows the general principles of good questionnaire design, desirable choices to make when designing new questions, biases in some question formats and ways to avoid them, and strategies for reporting survey results. Finally, it offers a discussion of strategies for measuring voter turnout in particular, as a case study that poses special challenges. Scholars designing their own surveys should not presume that previously written questions are the best ones to use. Applying best practices in questionnaire design will yield more accurate data and more accurate substantive findings about the nature and origins of mass political behavior.
Why is American Turnout so Low, and Why Should We Care?
Authors: Martinez Michael D. 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
The vast literature on voter turnout in the United States addresses a variety of theoretical perspectives with a range of methodological tools, but students often return to three basic questions: Why is American voter turnout so low? Why is American voter turnout declining? And does low turnout really matter? This article specifically deals with these questions. It also explores American voter participation with both comparative and longitudinal perspectives. In addition to the changes in the social and partisan landscapes, changes in mobilization patterns also accounted for a portion of the change in turnout. It shows the conflicting incentives felt by elites, who shape the environment in which Americans vote. Election officials and candidates may value higher voter turnout in the abstract, but not to the exclusion of other political concerns and motivations.
American Voter Turnout in Historical Perspective
Authors: McDonald Michael P. 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article tries to understand American voter turnout rates in a historical perspective. In order to do this, the pool of eligible voters, the voting procedures, and the political circumstances surrounding the elections in a given period should be addressed. The article discusses the four eras in American participation: Founding Era, Party Machine Era, Segregation Era, and Nationalization Era. The Founding Era witnessed the lowest voter turnout rates in American history due to measurement error. The Party Machine Era serves as an indicator of the important role political parties played in organizing American society. The Segregation Era marks a period of retrenchment in voter turnout. The overwhelming voting trend during the Nationalization Era has been a tearing down of walls, not building them. An active area of research is how procedural changes affect voter turnout, from how people are registered to when and how they cast their ballots.
Expanding the Possibilities
Authors: Harris Fredrick C. , Gillion Daniel 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article tries to incorporate the perspectives on both conventional and so-called unconventional tactics into a toolbox theory of participation in which individuals employ a variety and a combination of participatory acts to achieve desired political and social goals. It also argues that individuals will choose actions that are selected less for their acceptability in the political culture than for their perceived effectiveness in obtaining desired political goals. But before this alternative perspective is considered, the article first outlines how political scientists and sociologists have conceptualized political activism. A toolbox framework of political behavior can be incorporated into a new research agenda by asking innovative questions, as well as through the data collection process and methodological approaches. From a toolbox perspective, there is the possibility that individuals are engaged as voters and boycotters, as political campaigners and demonstrators rather than as actors in two different sets of participatory worlds.
Voter Registration
Authors: Brown Robert D. 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article investigates the most prominent themes in voter registration. It also describes an important limitation in the work on voter registration: research on voter registration has focused primarily on voter registration as a determinant of political behavior, to the detriment of the understanding of actual behavior of registering itself. It then provides some concluding observations on how addressing this limitation may offer insight into an important paradox in the voter registration and participation literatures: how it is possible that registration laws have become significantly liberalized over the years, yet with relatively little payoff in terms of voter turnout and increased representativeness of those who vote? It first deals with the influence of the registration requirement on voter turnout. Additionally, the resulting implications for the composition of the active electorate are explained. The impacts of election reforms designed to reduce the impact of this institutional barrier to voting are shown.
Early, Absentee, and Mail‐in Voting
Authors: Stein Robert M. , Vonnahme Greg 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article describes what is known and what is not known about voting early. It specifically refers to absentee voting, mail-in voting, and in-person early voting generally as ‘early voting’. Moreover, it determines what is believed to be a fruitful research agenda on early voting, as well as the methodological challenges that scholars will likely confront. A brief history of early voting is first presented. The turnout effect of early voting is wasted on early voters but has a significant and positive effect on the likelihood that infrequent voters will ballot on election day. It is shown that parties and candidates have an important role in catalyzing the effects of election reforms. The convenience and accessibility of a voter's election-day voting place is a significant incentive to voting. Future research on election reforms might pick up from more basic research on models of voter turnout.
Digital Democracy
Authors: Mossberger Karen , Tolbert Caroline J. 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article investigates the evidence and debates over the influences of the internet on how, and how much, citizens participate. It concentrates on the knowledge and involvement of individual citizens. In particular, it describes how online participation affects ‘offline’ participation, the nature of participation, and political representation more generally. A key consideration is how internet use for information or participation differs from alternatives ‘offline’, and whether citizens' use of the internet actually causes, or merely reflects, changes in civic engagement and participation. It argues that the internet has the potential to transform participation in several important ways. The extant evidence reveals more about links between internet use and voting than how online politics affects the decision to vote. The literature about the differences in networks and participation online strongly suggests the need for more social network analysis.
The Study of Electoral Behavior
Authors: Bartels Larry M. 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article discusses the developments of electoral behavior. It is shown that the political aspects of the Columbia studies are the ones that have turned out to have the most influence on subsequent voting research. This work demonstrated the rich potential of election surveys as data for understanding campaigns and elections. The next advance in election studies emerged in the following decade at the University of Michigan. The American Voter was the acknowledged foundation for the entire field of voting research in the decade following its publication. The theoretical account of voting behavior drew heavily upon the metaphor of a ‘funnel of causality’. The ‘funnel of causality’ provided a convenient framework within which to pursue both a comprehensive program of electoral accounting and a more selective strategy of explanation. Elections and the Political Order signaled a continuing interest in the relationship between electoral behavior and the broader workings of government.
Organizing American Politics, Organizing Gender
Authors: Sanbonmatsu Kira 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article describes the gender differences in mass behavior and candidacy. It also needs to ask: when does American politics organize gender? Perhaps the most common theoretical foundation underlying research on gender and behavior is the idea that gender differences in interests may lead to gender differences in voting behavior. The existence of gender differences depends on what aspect of behavior is examined, at what point in time, and whether men and women are compared at the individual or aggregate level. Gender differences are often small or non-existent, which would seem to suggest that gender is not a central dividing line in American politics. The mobilization studies that identify politics as a source of gender differences in political behavior are described. It then suggests new areas for research with two brief examples.
Local and National Forces in Congressional Elections
Authors: Burden Barry C. , Wichowsky Amber 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article provides a discussion on local and national forces in congressional elections. The tension between local and national forces is the most compelling feature of congressional elections. The wavering of congressional elections between local and national matters is a direct result of the institution's wavering between a national body of policy makers and a collection of local representatives. The central unit of analysis in the study of congressional elections has been the candidate. If challenger decisions are indeed the keys to understanding congressional elections, clearly more research is needed to understand how deterrence and strategic decisions operate. The growing sources of data on voters, candidates, and the campaign environment provide rich opportunities to develop middle-range theories examining systematic variations in the national-local divide.
Studying State Judicial Races in a Transformed Electoral Environment
Authors: Langer Laura , Leonard Meghan , Polk Andrea 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article provides a discussion on judicial politics — state court elections and campaigns. It also reviews some of the major trends in the existing scholarship and suggests which scholarly directions have advanced the understanding of judicial elections and campaigns, which debates are unresolved, and which lines of inquiry prompted new discoveries and suggested important avenues for future inquiry. It presents an overview of the past twenty years of scholarship on state court elections and campaigns. Some of the more recent and significant contributions have been made in the area of judicial campaigns and, in particular, the consequences of electioneering activities for electoral success, judicial voting behavior, and a court's legitimacy. Systematic examinations of state court elections and campaigns have advanced the science of politics both theoretically and methodologically and opened new paths of political inquiry about elections across all three branches of government.
Primary Elections
Authors: Norrander Barbara 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article focuses on publications of primary elections from the last ten years. The candidate field for primaries contains diversity in both the strength and number of contenders. The direct primary literature actually does a better job at explaining candidate entry. Political science research from the 1980s and 1990s pointed to two main actors in momentum: media and voters. Campaign strategies are more varied and perhaps more effective in primaries rather than general elections. The impact of electoral rules is reported. The 2008 presidential nominations at first glance would appear to break from the pattern of recent nominations. The close contest between Obama and Clinton refocuses attention on the rules: rules for delegate distribution, rules for caucuses, and rules for participation (i.e., open versus closed primaries).
Direct Democracy in the United States
Authors: Bowler Shaun , Donovan Todd 
Published: May 2010

AbstractThis article provides an argument that other questions arise from the study of voting on ballot propositions that relate to the variety of voter preferences, how voter opinions are formed, and how voters think about democratic institutions. Although voting on some proposals may well be quite difficult and voting on many proposals may well tax the patience of most voters, it is all too easy to overstate the difficulties voters have in understanding what is going on with a given proposition. The study of ballot propositions can advance the study of voting behavior, especially in the areas of framing effects, the dynamics of choice, and questions about how voters reason and about how democratic institutions and processes should function. Each of these points is discussed in turn. It is shown that there is a complex relationship between mass preferences, institutions, and policy.
Voters in Context
Authors: Stone Walter J. , Buttice Matthew K. 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
Political behavior is a function of individual characteristics, the political and social contexts in which they are embedded, and interactions between context and individual variables. The studies and hypotheses organized on one dimension by two types of citizen response are addressed, these are: engagement and choice. The article also defines the strategic decisions of candidates and others who define the political context. The two aspects of this dimension are candidate investment and differentials. It is imperative to take full account of how competition between leaders stimulates citizen response. The study of how citizens react to the context facing them must also include theory and evidence about how that context gets defined. Formal theoretical work on candidate strategic choices, especially with respect to position-taking on the issues, has advanced, but research on many of the other choices that shape the political context is less developed.
Parties, Elections, and Democratic Politics
Authors: Aldrich John H. , Griffin John D. 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
The claim of this article that party competition is a necessary precondition for democracy may not strike all readers as particularly innovative. It starts by defining what is meant by a political party, by a party system, and by a competitive party system. Then, it describes how both citizens and politicians benefit from the construction of and adherence to clear party labels in a self-enforcing equilibrium. Meaningful party labels allow voters to play a substantial role in selecting the direction of policy and holding politicians accountable; ambitious politicians affiliate with parties that create meaningful and popular labels; a party will be competitive when its label attracts a sufficient number of voters and ambitious candidates; and a competitive party system consists of two or more parties each of which is in equilibrium.
Organized Interests: Evolution and Influence
Authors: Francia Peter L. 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article shows that interest groups make use of different strategies and have had to adapt to evolving legal and political environments. First, it provides an overview of what interest groups want and the activities that interest groups have pursued historically to achieve their goals. Next, it explores the effect of organized interests in American elections, with a specific focus on the effects of financial contributions, voter mobilization efforts, and efforts to set the campaign agenda. Furthermore, the article presents a discussion on the state of the academic research on interest groups, and offers some suggestions for researchers to pursue in the future. It is shown that laws that regulate interest group activities are not a trivial matter. In particular, campaign finance laws have played a significant role in affecting the strategies, tactics, and the influence of interest groups in American politics.
Redistricting
Authors: Grofman Bernard , Brunell Thomas L. 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article shows how districting practices in the US differ from those in other countries. It specifically addresses the following questions: ‘Who gets to make decisions about redistricting?’; ‘What are the types of criteria by which redistricting plans might be evaluated?’; and ‘Who benefits from a given plan?’ It is thought that these three questions may deal with institutions, ideas, and interests, respectively. A useful way to think about redistricting criteria is in terms of a fivefold division of criteria into ones based, respectively, on person, place, race, political party, and candidate status. In addition, the effect of redistricting is described. It is generally showed that if a person is not interested in redistricting, that person must not be interested in politics, or in democratic theory.
On Participation
Authors: Junn Jane 
Published: May 2010

Abstract
This article provides an argument for the consideration of individuals in dynamic relationship to both categories and the context of power in the study of political behavior. It argues that contemporary scholars of US political behavior should consider more carefully two important assumptions when analyzing the relationship between political participation and democracy in the United States. The first is the assumption of individuals as a unit of analysis in stable and meaningful categories. A second assumption which suggests holding to greater scrutiny involves the uniformity of political agency. Education and other individual-level resources may work in different ways in influencing political participation among minority populations. Furthermore, if one assumes that individuals participate in politics partly as a reflection of their political needs or demands, and these vary across groups due to social and political structures, then the nature of political action is likely to vary across groups.