| Description |
xxii, 279 pages : illustrations, maps (black and white) ; 24 cm |
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text txt rdacontent |
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unmediated n rdamedia |
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volume nc rdacarrier |
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Men lcdgt |
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Americans lcdgt |
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University and college faculty members lcdgt |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 261-277) and index. |
| Summary |
"The Illusion of Accountability: Transparency and Representation in American Legislatures Does open governance strengthen democracy? In The Illusion of Accountability, Justin H. Kirkland and Jeffrey J. Harden contend that it does not. Leveraging a wealth of data from decades of legislative politics in the American states, Kirkland and Harden assess the causes and consequences of "open meetings laws," which require public access to meetings and proceedings in state legislatures. They trace the roots of these laws back to the founding constitutions of some states and analyze the waves of adoptions and legislative exemptions to open meetings that occurred in the latter half of the twentieth century. They explain that these shifting positions on the reforms reflected the tension between legislators' ability to negotiate with one another in the pursuit of policymaking goals and their accountability to constituents as elected representatives. Kirkland and Harden then investigate the effects of these transparency laws on a host of politically consequential outcomes both inside and outside the legislature, such as policy productivity, responsiveness to public opinion, and citizen approval of the legislature. They consistently find that, contrary to what their theory of accountability would expect, open meetings do not influence legislators' behavior or citizens' capacity to alter that behavior. Instead, the authors uncover a link between transparent legislatures and an expanded system of organized interests. Ultimately, Kirkland and Harden conclude that transparency reform only creates the illusion of accountability in state government. It exists in principle with the stated goal of bringing citizens closer to their representatives. But the public does not sufficiently fulfill its democratic obligation to capitalize on this improved access, permitting unrepresentative interests to fill the void"-- Provided by publisher. |
| Contents |
Sunshine in the statehouse -- Part I. Transparency and state legislatures. The open meetings movement -- Measuring legislative transparency -- Compromise -- Representation -- Part II. Transparency and the mass public. Public demand -- Attitudinal consequences -- The electoral connection -- Does Democracy require transparency? |
| Subject |
Legislative bodies -- United States.
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Legislative bodies -- United States -- States.
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Transparency in government -- United States.
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Transparency in government -- United States -- States.
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Government accountability -- United States.
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Government accountability -- United States -- States.
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Representative government and representation -- United States.
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Representative government and representation -- United States -- States.
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Government accountability (OCoLC)fst01746414
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Legislative bodies (OCoLC)fst00995690
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Legislative bodies -- U.S. states
(OCoLC)fst00995757
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Representative government and representation (OCoLC)fst01094941
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Representative government and representation -- U.S. states
(OCoLC)fst01094960
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Transparency in government (OCoLC)fst01154902
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United States (OCoLC)fst01204155
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| Genre/Form |
Informational works.
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| Added Author |
Harden, Jeffrey J., author. Author.
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| Added Title |
Transparency and representation in American legislatures |
| ISBN |
9781009219631 hardcover |
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1009219634 hardcover |
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9781009219624 electronic book |
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9781009219655 electronic book |
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