Gerald C. Wright

Keeping the Republic, Brief Eleventh Edition draws students into the study of American politics, showing them how to think critically about "who gets what, and how" while exploring the twin themes of power and citizenship. With students living through one of the most challenging periods in American life, this text is a much-needed resource to help them make sense of politics in America today and become savvy consumers of political information. Carefully condensed from the Full Edition by authors Christine Barbour and Gerald C. Wright, Keeping the Republic, Brief Eleventh Edition gives your students the same continuity and crucial content in a more concise, value-oriented package.

Keeping the Republic draws students into the study of American politics, showing them how to think critically about "who gets what, and how" while exploring the twin themes of power and citizenship. Throughout the text and its features, authors Christine Barbour and Gerald C. Wright reveal how to effectively apply critical thinking skills to the political information encountered every day. With students living through one of the most challenging periods in American life, the Twelfth Edition is a much-needed resource to help them make sense of politics in America today and become savvy consumers of political information. This text is offered in Sage Vantage, an intuitive learning platform that integrates quality Sage textbook content with assignable multimedia activities and auto-graded assessments to drive student engagement and ensure accountability. Unparalleled in its ease of use and built for dynamic teaching and learning, Vantage offers customizable LMS integration and best-in-class support. Instructors, see how Vantage works Take a brief self-guided tour with our interactive demo

Keeping the Republic, Eleventh Edition gives students the power to examine the narrative of what′s going on in American politics, distinguish fact from fiction and balance from bias, and influence the message through informed citizenship. Christine Barbour and Gerald C. Wright draw students into the study of American politics, showing them how to think critically about "who gets what, and how" while exploring the twin themes of power and citizenship. With students living through one of the most challenging periods in American life, this text is a much-needed resource to help them make sense of politics in America today and become savvy consumers of political information.

The importance of public opinion in the determination of public policy is the subject of considerable debate. Whether discussion centres on local, state or national affairs, the influence of the opinions of ordinary citizens is often assumed yet rarely demonstrated. Other factors such as interest group lobbying, party politics and developmental, or environmental, constraints have been thought to have the greater influence over policy decisions. Professors Erikson, Wright and McIver make the argument that state policies are highly responsive to public opinion, and they show how the institutions of state politics work to achieve this high level of responsiveness. They analyse state policies from the 1930s to the present, drawing from, and contributing to, major lines of research on American politics. Their conclusions are applied to central questions of democratic theory and affirm the robust character of the state institution.

The importance of public opinion in the determination of public policy is the subject of considerable debate. Whether discussion centres on local, state or national affairs, the influence of the opinions of ordinary citizens is often assumed yet rarely demonstrated. Other factors such as interest group lobbying, party politics and developmental, or environmental, constraints have been thought to have the greater influence over policy decisions. Professors Erikson, Wright and McIver make the argument that state policies are highly responsive to public opinion, and they show how the institutions of state politics work to achieve this high level of responsiveness. They analyse state policies from the 1930s to the present, drawing from, and contributing to, major lines of research on American politics. Their conclusions are applied to central questions of democratic theory and affirm the robust character of the state institution.