State & Local Politics: Institutions & Reform: The Essentials - Softcover

Donovan, Todd; Smith, Daniel A.; Mooney, Christopher Z.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0495567892 ISBN 13: 9780495567899

Publisher: Cengage Learning, 2009

Synopsis

In STATE AND LOCAL POLITICS: Institutions & Reform: THE ESSENTIALS--a concise version of their acclaimed new text--Donovan, Mooney, and Smith intrigue students by going beyond the purely descriptive treatment usually found in state and local texts. STATE AND LOCAL POLITICS: THE ESSENTIALS offers an engaging comparative approach, showing students how politics and government differ between states and communities, as well as the causes and effects of those variations, all within a manageable 10 chapters. An abbreviated, cost-effective text, STATE AND LOCAL POLITICS: THE ESSENTIALS covers the core concepts that students need for a solid understanding of state and local government. Written by three young, high-profile specialists who have contributed significantly to the field in the last decade, STATE AND LOCAL POLITICS: THE ESSENTIALS incorporates the most recent scholarship available, giving students access to perspectives that no other textbook on the market currently provides. In addition, the text goes above and beyond the traditional approach by focusing on what social scientists know about the effects of rules and institutions on politics and policy. This comparative, institutional framework enables students to think more analytically about the impact of institutions on policy outcomes, asks them to evaluate the effectiveness of one institutional approach over another, and encourages them to consider more sophisticated solutions.

About this title

About the Author

Todd Donovan (Ph.D., University of California, Riverside) is a professor of Political Science at Western Washington University. He teaches state and local politics; American politics, parties, campaigns, and elections; comparative electoral systems; and introductory research methods and statistics. His research interests include direct democracy, election systems and representation, political behavior, subnational politics, and the political economy of local development. He has been published extensively in academic journals; written a number of books on direct democracy, elections, institutions, and reform; and has received numerous grants and awards for his work. He is coauthor (with Ken Hoover) of THE ELEMENTS OF SOCIAL SCIENTIFIC THINKING, also published by Cengage Learning.

Review

"A good survey text with a bit more of a conceptual approach than is typical. . . . A text with current student-oriented examples, but a solid overview of the research."

"It provides the most comprehensive coverage of scholarship on state government and politics that I have ever encountered, along with very useful vignettes and examples and outstanding historical perspective on almost every subject covered."

"I was impressed with the coverage of important issues and the superb incorporation of recent scholarship. It has been a while since a textbook made me this excited about the prospect of teaching a course. The result is a textbook that enlivens the area of state and local politics and makes it more relevant for students."

"The writing style is engaging and often witty, making the material accessible to perhaps even the most apathetic undergraduate."

"Rather than settling for a lifeless walk through the mechanics of government, the authors have written a theoretically informed, up-to-date treatment of state and local politics. Including references to the latest research on state politics is not only long overdue but it makes the text relevant by demonstrating that the rules of the game matter."

About this edition

• Publisher: Cengage Learning
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 0495567892
• ISBN 13: 9780495567899
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 352