Suchergebnisse

Emphasis is on knowledge gained during political campaigns with the increase of the electorate's political attention. Campaigns offer voters a chance to make decisions about the public interest, with candidates voicing their positions on the pertinent issues. Explored here is the matter of how questions measuring citizens' knowledge of candidates' issue positions ought to be posed. Findings indicate that researchers can inquire about two candidates within one question rather than seeking separate answers for single candidates. Drawing on survey data from the 2000 US presidential election, two strategies for posing questions are evaluated: the separated format & the combined format. 2 Tables, 1 Figure, 8 References. K. Coddon

After exploring Frederick A. Hayek's (1945) "knowledge problem" & its effects on efforts to coordinate social activities, ways that this problem impedes the management of natural disasters are examined. It is suggested that effective disaster management requires efficient information generation at three stages: (1) recognition, (2) needs assessment & resource allocation, & (3) feedback & evaluation. Hayek's contention that decentralized, private decision making is more effective than centralized, politicized decision making in generating knowledge at each state is supported with the example of the US government's failure at disaster relief in response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005. References. K. Hyatt Stewart

Recent studies have found mass political sophistication to be increasing throughout United States society. Mass media are typically hypothesized to play a central part in this development. To test this assumption, telephone interviews were conducted at 2 times during the elections in 1976, with a total sample of 160 adults for the preelection interviews & 126 adults still present in the postelection interviews, after attrition. Path models are used to estimate causal processes. Results show that interpersonal discussion leads to newspaper use; there is no reverse causation. Television is not significantly related to either of these. Interpersonal discussion causes, but does not derive from, media use; it may be hypothesized to derive from political participation resulting from structural factors in the voter's environment. 3 Figures. W. H. Stoddard.