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Explores whether African Americans exaggerate their portion of the US population to the same degree whites do, & the effect of personal experiences on estimates of the black share of the population. It was hypothesized that persons who have the most contact with African Americans were most likely to perceive them as occupying a larger portion of the population. Data were drawn from telephone interviews conducted in 1997 with 3,036 adults as part of the Gallup Poll Social Audit on Black/White Relations in the US. The focus was on the 1,243 self-identified African Americans & 1,639 non-Hispanic whites who offered an estimate of the African-American percentage of the population. The results showed that both whites & African Americans exaggerated the African American population but African Americans were considerably more likely than whites to suggest that 50+% of the population was black. Those who interacted more with African Americans were more likely to overestimate the size of the black population, & the estimates of both African-Americans & whites were likely to be gleaned from personal experiences. The implications are discussed. 3 Tables, 7 References. J. Lindroth

The authors look at the historical trends in teaching American government in high schools & then discuss the current status of citizenship & political science education at the secondary level. They find that enrollment in government courses has increased substantially since the early 1980s; in the mid-1990s, three-fourths of all high school graduates had taken a government course; & few students choose AP or honors government courses. 5 Tables, 41 References. A. Funderburg

The annual budget presentation is one of the most important forms of public, partisan behaviour in a parliamentary democracy. As such, it should share many features with the addresses of US presidents, including their presumed efficacy. Yet public reactions to budget presentations have been studied only indirectly, and a link between these reactions and government standing has not been established. We use Gallup data over four decades to investigate how voters assess Chancellors of the Exchequer and their budgets. We find that voters' assessments are a product of the performance of the economy, the content of the budget, the media's reaction to the budget and political factors, and are not simply derivative of general feelings about the government in power or intended vote. While developed independently, evaluations of the Chancellor and the budget affect short-term voting intentions of the public. Thus, in unitary, parliamentary governments, as in federal and presidential systems, voters use more than one focal point (in a single party) to evaluate the government and its actions.

THE AUTHORS OF THIS ARTICLE STUDY THE PARTISAN EFFECTS OF STATE LEGISLATIVE DISTRICTING IN THE 1970S AND 1980S FOR THE LOWER HOUSES OF 47 STATES. THEY CONSIDER BOTH PARTISAN CONTROL OF THE STATE GOVERNMENT AND OF THE DISTRICTING PROCESS ITSELF, EXAMINING THE SEAT PROPORTIONS IMMEDIATELY BEFORE AND AFTER REDISTRICTING AS WELL AS ESTIMATES OF BIAS AND RESPONSIVENESS. THE RESULTS INDICATE MODERATE BUT INCONSISTENT EFFECTS OF PARTISAN CONTROL ON BOTH SEAT GAINS AND BIAS. FINDINGS ARE MORE UNIFORM WITH RESPECT TO RESPONSIVENESS: UNDER ALL CONDITIONS OF PARTISAN CONTROL, SEAT CHANGES ARE RELATIVELY UNRESPONSIVE TO VOTE CHANGES. THE RESULTS ARE CONSISTENT WITH RECENT FINDINGS ABOUT THE EFFECTS OF CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTING AND SUGGEST THAT, IN STATE LEGISLATURES AS WELL AS CONGRESS, BIPARTISAN EFFORTS TO MINIMIZE RESPONSIVENESS MAY NOW BE A GREATER CONCERN THAN PARTISAN GERRYMANDERING.