Democratic Phoenix: Reinventing Political Activism

ISBN-13: 9780521010535 / Angielski / Miękka / 2002 / 308 str.

Pippa Norris

Opis

Conventional wisdom suggests that citizens in many countries have become disengaged from traditional political participation. Commentators highlight warning signs of sagging electoral turnout, rising anti-party sentiment, and the decay of civic organizations. But are these concerns justified? This book compares systematic evidence in nearly two hundred countries worldwide and suggests reasons for questioning assumptions of decline. Not only is the obituary for older forms of political activism premature, but new forms of modern civic engagement may be emerging.

Recenzje

'… impressive in its interrogation of evidence comparing systematic data for electoral turnout, party membership and civic activism in countries around the word … a well-argued thesis that questions the popular decline of political activism … well executed, fascinating and extremely readable … it is delivered eloquently and engagingly … this is a brave, admirable and absorbing book that should be compulsory reading for anyone interested in political activism and citizen participation.' European Journal of Communication

Spis treści

List of tables; List of figures; Preface; Introduction: 1. The decline and fall of political activism?; 2. Theories of political activism; Part I. The Puzzle of Electoral Turnout: 3. Mapping turnout; 4. Do institutions matter?; 5. Who votes?; Part II. Political Parties: 6. Mapping party activism; 7. Who joins?; Part III. Social Capital and Civic Society: 8. Social capital and civic society; 9. Traditional mobilising agencies: unions and churches; 10. New social movements, protest politics and the internet; 11. Conclusions: the reinvention of political activism?; Appendix: comparative framework; Notes; Select bibliography; Index.