Approaches to Studying Policy Representation

摘要: Some studies of policy representation test hypotheses about the relationship between citizens' views and elites' positions on multiple issues by proceeding one issue at a time. Others summarize preferences with “ideology scores” these. I show that approach is flawed. It misinterprets ideology scores as summaries preferences, but these actually measure ideological consistency across areas: how often ideal policies are liberal or conservative. Examples attending to this distinction overturns conventional wisdom: legislators appear similarly moderate citizens, not more extreme; however, politically engaged citizens especially moderate.