Political Science Commons^™

Judicial Decision Making In The Supreme Court Of Canada: Updating The Personal Attribute Model, Donald R. Songer, Susan W. Johnson

Faculty Publications

This study seeks to add to the current understanding of the political nature of the Supreme Court of Canada. We analyze a data set consisting of all nonunanimous published Supreme Court decisions for the period 1949 to 2000. A prior study by Tate and Sittiwong (1989) suggested a model of judge attributes for the period 1949 to 1985. We build on that analysis by extending the time period to 2000, which allows the impact of gender also to be assessed. We find that since the Court gained substantial docket control, the types of cases the Court hears has changed from …

Th Politics Of Hate: Ultranationalist And Fundamentalist Tactics And Goals, Joan Davison

Faculty Publications

Ultranationalist and religious fundamentalist movements frequently use hate to mobilize people. These groups possess a sophisticated understanding of the importance of appealing to the emotions. Leaders often employ xenophobic language intended to inspire fear and justify a defensive reaction. The movements also rely heavily upon symbols, myths, and public events to simplify and communicate the "truths" of their ideologies. The leaders convey messages with tremendous affective appeal. Yet, measures exist to counter and contain the politics of hate. The development of civil society, group rights, a free media, and integrated institutions can contribute to a durable solution in cases of …

India: Grassroots Hiv/Aids Activism Growing, Manju Parikh

Political Science Faculty Publications

In the last ten years, we have seen frequent news reports on the spread of the HIV/AIDS virus in the Indian subcontinent, each one stressing the dire economic and social consequences if urgent attention is not paid to the problem. Although the Indian government has responded by adopting many policies and by establishing an organization — the National Aids Control Organization (NACO) — to deal specifically with HIV awareness, treatment for HIV infected individuals, and prevention of further spread of HIV/AIDS, many critics do not find these measures adequate.

The campaign to create awareness and check the spread of AIDS …

Rethinking Symbolic Racism: Evidence Of Attribution Bias, Brad T. Gomez, J. Matthew Wilson

Political Science Research

This paper demonstrates that cognitive tendencies related to political sophistication produce an attribution bias in the widely accepted symbolic racism scale. When this bias is controlled statistically, the effect of symbolic racism on racial policy attitudes is greatly diminished. Our theory posits that high sophisticates tend to make global/distal attributions, allowing them to associate racial inequality with broader sociopolitical causes. Less sophisticated individuals, conversely, tend to make local/proximal attributions, thus biasing them against ascribing responsibility systemically. Consequently, less sophisticated individuals tend to be classified as intolerant by the symbolic racism scale, even when controlling for factors such as ideology and …

2006 Apsa Teaching And Learning Conference Track Summaries, Gordon Babst, Denise Degarmo, Chris Harth, Bob Reinalda, Amy Cabrera Rasmussen, Reilly Hirst, Anas Malik, Ange-Marie Hancock

Political Science Faculty Articles and Research

The 3rd Annual APSA Conference on Teaching and Learning in Political Science hosted over 300 participants in lively discussions of trends, techniques, and models in teaching in political science. Held in downtown Washington, D.C. on February 18-20, the Conference was organized as a workshop-based forum to develop models of teaching and learning as well as to discuss broad themes affecting political science education today. Joining the discussion, APSA President Ira Katznelson (Columbia University) and keynote speaker Thomas E. Cronin (Colorado College) shared their thoughts on teaching and learning in the discipline.

Creating An Interactive Classroom: Enhancing Student Engagement And Learning In Political Science Courses, Jonathan D. Mott, Danny Damron

Faculty Publications

Students of the pedagogy of teaching have found that cooperative/problem-based learning activities engage the learner, promote ownership of the material, advance the development of higher-level cognitive skills and increase retention better than more passive learning activities. Despite broad recognition within the political science discipline that classroom activities can and should facilitate better student learning outcomes, political science classes (both large and small) frequently have characteristics that make cooperative/problem-based learning activities more difficult to employ and less likely to succeed. Anonymity in large sections, a steep learning curve of complex concepts, and students who see passivity as the least costly approach …

Elicited Priors For Bayesian Model Specifications In Political Science Research, Jeff Gill, Lee D. Walker

Faculty Publications

We explain how to use elicited priors in Bayesian political science research. These are a form of prior information produced by previous knowledge from structured interviews with subjective area experts who have little or no concern for the statistical aspects of the project. The purpose is to introduce qualitative and area-specific information into an empirical model in a systematic and organized manner in order to produce parsimonious yet realistic implications. Currently, there is no work in political science that articulates elicited priors in a Bayesian specification. We demonstrate the value of the approach by applying elicited priors to a problem …

The Spouse In The House: What Explains The Marriage Gap In Canada?, J. Matthew Wilson, Michael Lusztig

Political Science Research

A literature has emerged in American voting studies noting a “marriage gap”—the propensity for married voters to support the Republican party. Using Canadian Election Study data, we establish the existence of a significant marriage gap in Canada. We also seek to determine if the marriage gap is driven by socio-demographic factors or attitudinal ones. We find that while socio-demographic factors contribute to the marriage gap, they explain relatively little variance. In probing the attitudinal basis of the marriage gap further, we find that married Canadians differ from the unwed very strongly on issues of moral traditionalism, but much less so …

The Constitutionality Of The Filibuster, Michael J. Gerhardt

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Follow The Leader? Presidential Approval, Presidential Support, And Representatives' Electoral Fortunes, Paul Gronke, Jeffrey Koch, J. Matthew Wilson

Political Science Research

While the link between presidential approval and congressional election outcomes is long established, scholars have generally ignored the role of a member’s own voting record in mediating these effects. If voters truly use the congressional ballot to express support or opposition toward the President, then they should not reward or punish all of his fellow partisans equally. Instead, the degree of reward or punishment meted out by voters ought to depend on the member’s level of support for the president’s legislative initiatives. Using data from the 1993, 1994, and 1996 National Election Studies, we demonstrate two key points: that representatives’ …

Making Law In The United States Courts Of Appeals., Donald R. Songer

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Teaching Green: Experimenting With Green Values In The Classroom, David Whiteman

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Judicial Review In State Supreme Courts: A Comparative Study By Laura Langer, Donald R. Songer

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Radical Possibility Of Limited Community-Based Interpretation Of The Constitution, Mark D. Rosen

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Is There An Arab State?, Jeneen Hazem Ezzat

Theses and Dissertations

The nature of the Arab state has been one that has perplexed many scholars.

Power, Politics And Organisational Change By Dave Buchanan And Richard Badham, Sage Publications, Price: £ 17.99., C N Kumar

IIMB Management Review

Power, Politics, and Organisational Change are focused on the manager who wants to be effective in the role of an internal change agent through an understanding of power and politics.

Islamic Political Culture, Democracy, And Human Rights, By Daniel E. Price, Shahrough Akhavi

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Ethics For Adversaries: The Morality Of Roles In Public And Professional Life By Arthur Isak Applbaum, Daniel R. Sabia

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Strategic Auditing In A Political Hierarchy: An Informational Model Of The Supreme Court's Certiorari Decisions, Charles M. Cameron, Jeffrey A. Segal, Donald Songer

Faculty Publications

We examine how the Supreme Court uses signals and indices from lower courts to determine which cases to review. In our game theoretic model, a higher court cues from publicly observable case facts, the known preferences of a lower court and its derision. The lower court attempts to enforce its own preferences, exploiting ambiguity in cases' fact patterns. In equilibrium, a conservative higher court declines to review conservative decisions from lower courts regardless of the facts of die case or the relative ideology of the judges. But a conservative higher court probabilistically reviews liberal decisions, with the "audit rate" tied …

Majority Rule Or Minority Will: Adherence To Precedent On The Us Supreme Court By Harold J. Spaeth And Jeffrey A. Segal, Donald R. Songer

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Coercing Privacy, Anita L. Allen

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Oppression, Lies, And The Dream Of Autonomy, Judy Scales-Trent

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Crimes Against Autonomy: Gerald Dworkin On The Enforcement Of Morality, Lawrence C. Becker

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Autonomy And Agency, Thomas E. Hill Jr.

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

From Autonomy To Agency: Feminist Perspectives On Self-Direction, Kathryn Abrams

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Verboden: The Private Letters Of Ed Edson: An American Pioneer In A Dutch Community 1880-1944, Mollie Edson

All Graduate Projects

This is a senior project in History, English, and Political Science about the letters and correspondence of Ed Edson from 1880-1944. It includes letters, photos and scans of correspondence.

Call Screening - Is It Really A Problem For Survey Research?, Michael W. Link, Robert W. Oldendick

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Equal Justice Volume 2 No. 1, Political Science/Pre-Law Association Of Touro College

Yearbooks and Newsletters

"News as it was meant to be." A Publication of the Political Science/Pre-Law Association of Touro College.

Internet Politics And Cyberparties: Revolutionizing American Democracy, Kelly Prince

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The American political system is characterized by its two-party structure. However, apparently American faith in the status-quo democracy is faltering. With advancing technology, Americans are gaining greater access to political information, and tools such as the Internet are proving to be useful and versatile in the political arena. The elections of this decade have already been touched by the effects of the Internet, and groups such as the revolutionary cyberparties show promise of reshaping the party politics in this country. The current two-party system is in jeopardy of being replaced by one that is more democratic.

On Difference And Equality, Cynthia V. Ward

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.