The Logic of American Politics

by Samuel Kernell, Gary C. Jacobson, Thad Kousser, et al.

Book Overview

Why does the American political system work the way it does? Find the answers in The Logic of American Politics. This bestselling text arms you with a "toolkit" of institutional design... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1506358667
• ISBN13: 9781506358666
• Release Date: April 2017
• Publisher: CQ Press
• Length: 744 Pages
• Weight: 2.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 7.4" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

Worth reading outside of class

As an undergraduate, I find newsman's assertion that I can't grasp free rider problems insulting. It's not rocket science. Anyway, the prose is amazing, the book is chock full of fascinating historical examples, and the exposition of ideas is logical and tidy. It doesn't even strike one as a textbook upon reading. The typical dry, textbook blandness can be found nowhere. After my class was over, we hadn't completed the book, but it was interesting enough for me to finish it on my own -- and I'm an engineering major!

Great book - one of the best in the area

I have used this textbook in my undergraduate course in American Politics for over 5 years because it is one that encourages students to use theoretical tools to think critically and to understand how government works as well as anticipate what will happen given a set of circumstances - that is what theory is all about. The rational choice perspective is presented very clearly and I have not had a student who has not gained some greater understanding of the governmental process through their reading of this textbook. Moreover, the book is rich in historical and contemporary examples. The book is not perfect, but few textbooks meet that criteria. And it is certainly not above the heads of college undergraduates, but rather interesting enough to get them engaged, and challenging enough so that their brains grow a bit rather than having material that is dummied down for them. It does have some big words in it, but students can look them up or the teacher can explain them to them... ; )