Suchergebnisse

We report the results of an experiment designed to replicate and extend recent findings on motivated political reasoning. In particular, we are interested in disconfirmation biases--the tendency to counter-argue or discount information with which one disagrees--in the processing of political arguments on policy issues. Our experiment examines 8 issues, including some of local relevance and some of national relevance, and manipulates the presentation format of the policy arguments. We find strong support for our basic disconfirmation hypothesis: people seem unable to ignore their prior beliefs when processing arguments or evidence. We also find that this bias is moderated by political sophistication and strength of prior attitude. We do not find, however, that argument type matters, suggesting that motivated biases are quite robust to changes in argument format. Finally, we find strong support for the polarization of attitudes as a consequence of biased processing. Adapted from the source document.

This article looks at the function of spiritual songs as a means for Protestants to ar- ticulate their religious identity. Two periods of Austrian history are examined: the 16th and early 17th centuries, and the 1930s, when the vicinity of Hitler's Third Reich placed Austria's national identity in a position of great uncertainty. Right from the beginnings of their movement in the 16' century, Protestants used German church songs in order to disseminate their ideas as rapidly as possible. Songs of this kind were also sung in Austria, where the Catholic Church initially showed a measure of tolerance rowards them, as a number of publications dernonstrate. Indeed, Catholics and Protestants often exchanged songs and sornetirnes even shared the same churches and cathedrals. In subsequent decades, however, differences emerged and conflicts grew, as it transpired that there was no chance of reuniting the two confessions. Eventually, nearly all Protestants were forced to leave the country, since when being a Protestant in Austria meant either forming part of a tiny, barely tolerated minority or going underground. In the 1930s, a Protestant clergyman picked up on this historical irnage when he described himself as being without a homeland in the so-called »Corporate Stare« (Ständestaat) established by the Catholic-authoritarian dictatorship. This clergyman longed to joining the National Socialist Third Reich, and expressed his sentiments in many Protestant songs. He also organised a series of large choral events aimed at young people, in order to spread his ideas of a strong German nation. ; This article looks at the function of spiritual songs as a means for Protestants to ar- ticulate their religious identity. Two periods of Austrian history are examined: the 16th and early 17th centuries, and the 1930s, when the vicinity of Hitler's Third Reich placed Austria's national identity in a position of great uncertainty. Right from the beginnings of their movement in the 16' century, Protestants used German church songs in order to disseminate their ideas as rapidly as possible. Songs of this kind were also sung in Austria, where the Catholic Church initially showed a measure of tolerance rowards them, as a number of publications dernonstrate. Indeed, Catholics and Protestants often exchanged songs and sornetirnes even shared the same churches and cathedrals. In subsequent decades, however, differences emerged and conflicts grew, as it transpired that there was no chance of reuniting the two confessions. Eventually, nearly all Protestants were forced to leave the country, since when being a Protestant in Austria meant either forming part of a tiny, barely tolerated minority or going underground. In the 1930s, a Protestant clergyman picked up on this historical irnage when he described himself as being without a homeland in the so-called »Corporate Stare« (Ständestaat) established by the Catholic-authoritarian dictatorship. This clergyman longed to joining the National Socialist Third Reich, and expressed his sentiments in many Protestant songs. He also organised a series of large choral events aimed at young people, in order to spread his ideas of a strong German nation.

SummaryGovernments typically apply several tax instruments. The tax choice literature sees the choice among these as depending on the political costs involved. One source of such costs is (horizontal) inequity in the distribution of the tax burden. In this article, we provide the first empirical test of the question whether and to what extent such inequity affects tax choices. Using data on housing sales and tax policy in Flemish municipalities, we create an indicator for the inequity of the local property tax. The latter is levied on the property's assessed rental value, and its inequity is a by‐product of the slow reassessment procedure, leading to a situation in which properties of identical value are taxed very differently. We find clear evidence that municipalities in which property taxation is more inequitable tend to rely less on this tax as a source of municipal revenue.

This book offers a detailed study of political argument in early eighteenth-century England, a time in which the politics of virtue were vigorously pursued - and just as vigorously challenged. In tracing the emergence of a privately orientated conception of civic virtue from the period's public discourse, this book not only challenges the received notions of the fortunes of virtue in the early modern era but provides a promising critical perspective on the question of what sort of politics of virtue is possible or desirable today

Central to the best-known classification of political arguments is a distinction between want-regarding & ideal-regarding principles. Alternative representations of the dynamics of political debate are presented here based on this classification. The possibility is entertained that want-regarding goals would be better served by British planning decisions if ideal-regarding arguments were permitted. The representations provide a limited explanation of how such a situation might be introduced & maintained. A. Downs' models of voting & party competition (An Economic Theory of Democracy, New York: Harger, 1957) are considered, but alternatives are explored also because of: (1) the possibility that some assumptions needed for a Downsian representation cannot realistically be made about political arguments; & (2) the probability that factors other than verbal arguments enter into planning decisions. 2 Tables, 3 Figures. Modified HA.