Advanced Introduction to Public Choice
Published on 28. October 2016
Book
Hardback
168 pages
978-1-78536-204-0 (ISBN)
Description
Elgar Advanced Introductions are stimulating and thoughtful introductions to major fields in the social sciences and law, expertly written by the world's leading scholars. This Advanced Introduction presents a focused narrative about political decision-making based on the work that has defined public choice as a discipline. Randall G. Holcombe emphasizes the theoretical foundations of Public Choice, examining the way that voter preferences are aggregated through democratic decision-making, the way that political exchange leads to the production of public policy, and the way that the constitutional framework within which political activity takes place is designed. He provides a concise discussion of the main models of Public Choice in an engaging manner, giving readers a foundation for understanding the theoretical and empirical work in the field. Each chapter ends with a Notes section that discusses the research on which the chapter is based, with an emphasis on the pioneering work that has shaped the development of Public Choice.
Undergraduate and graduate level students in economics, political science and public administration will find this introduction an essential resource for understanding political decision making. Instructors in those fields will find this book a useful and affordable text and an indispensable resource for teaching Public Choice.
Undergraduate and graduate level students in economics, political science and public administration will find this introduction an essential resource for understanding political decision making. Instructors in those fields will find this book a useful and affordable text and an indispensable resource for teaching Public Choice.
Reviews / Votes
'In this slim volume, Randall Holcombe takes the reader masterfully on an informative journey through the main regions of public choice theory. Among the topics this fine volume covers are voting theory, presidential vs. parliamentary systems, interest groups, bureaucracy, political entrepreneurship, and constitutional political economy. Someone who works through this book will be solidly prepared to venture into the higher reaches of public choice theory.' -- Richard E. Wagner, George Mason University 'Robert Kennedy said that ''Some men see things as they are, and ask why. I dream of things that never were, and ask why not.'' This is a book for both kinds of people. Holcombe provides a hard-headed analysis of how government and politics actually works, and careful analysis of why the dreams for optimal outcomes, whether coming from the formal models of supposedly sophisticated economists, (based on ''as if'' assumptions that exclude politics), or those coming from idealist ''reformers'' (stemming from their utopian visions), end up shattered by harsh behavioral and institutional realities. Written in a completely non-technical fashion, and covering topics like rational ignorance, rent-seeking and regulatory capture, this book works beautifully either as a complement to traditional introductory economics courses, or to introductory courses in political science.' -- Bernard Grofman, University of California, Irvine 'The author has extensive personal connections to all the aspects of public choice, and has produced a masterful volume. The insights of public choice are varied, but its explanatory power is consistent. Holcombe manages to weave together an interesting and informed commentary on the many strands of public choice scholarship in a way that will be useful even to experts, while providing an overview that a determined newcomer will be able to pick up immediately.' -- Michael Munger, Duke UniversityMore details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Cheltenham
United Kingdom
Target group
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 216 mm
Width: 138 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-78536-204-0 (9781785362040)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Randall G. Holcombe, DeVoe Moore Professor of Economics, Florida State University, US
Content
Contents: Part I: Introduction 1. Public Choice and Public Policy Part II: Aggregating Voter Preferences 2. The Politics of Left and Right 3. Institutions: Proportional vs. Plurality; Parliamentary vs. Presidential 4. Political Strategy: Turnout and the Distribution of Preferences 5. Multidimensional Issue Space 6. Why Do People Vote? Rational Ignorance, Expressive Voting, Rational Irrationality Part III: Designing Public Policy 7. Transaction Costs and Political Exchange 8. Political Markets: Interest Groups, Rent-Seeking, and Regulatory Capture 9. Bureaucracy 10. Political Organization: Districts, Committees, and Institutional Design 11. Political Entrepreneurship Part IV: Constitutional Design 12. Constitutional and Post-Constitutional Decision-Making 13. Interest Groups and Constitutional Evolution 14. Checks and Balances: Elites and Masses Index