Representation from Above: Members of Parliament and Representative Democracy in SwedenThis book uses Sweden as a test case to analyze how parliament and elected representatives function in a representative democracy. Despite the status of Scandinavian countries as perhaps the world's most egalitarian societies, the book argues that the best summary characterization of Swedish representative democracy is an elitist system run from above. The book also argues that an individualist representational model is relevant to the Swedish setting and most likely, to other settings as well. Representative democracy is not just party-based democracy - not even in a country with strong and disciplined parties. The book takes a broad approach to the study of political representation. It integrates into a single analytical framework concepts and theories from neighbouring traditions such as legislative behaviour, opinion formation and interest organizations. The study is based on a comprehensive set of data, including three surveys of the Members of the Swedish Parliament, corresponding voter surveys and content analysis of mass media and parliamentary records. |
Contents
Looking for Political Representation | 3 |
Who Gets There | 19 |
Follow the Party | 49 |
Copyright | |
8 other sections not shown
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Representation from Above: Members of Parliament and Representative ... Peter Esaiasson,Sören Holmberg No preview available - 2017 |
Common terms and phrases
activities agenda analysis average behavior blue-collar blue-collar workers cabinet ministers candidates career politicians Center Party Centrists Chapter committees Conservative parties Conservatives contacts Converse and Pierce corporatist correlation decision-making dependent variable district electorate elite actors Esaiasson factors farmers Göteborg University Holmberg important influence interest categories interest organizations internal issue areas issue questions job definition knowledge of voters Left Party left-right less Liberals long-term issue priorities majority mass media members and voters Members of Parliament non-socialist normative Number of Respondents occupational opinion congruence parlia Parliamentary Party Group Parliamentary Session parliamentary systems Party Affiliation party leaders party organization pattern perceived percent policy congruence political position private business private member bills proportion public sector R-square repre representation representative democracy Responsible Party Model Riks Riksdag members Riksdag Study role significant Social Democrats Swedish MPs Swedish Riksdag Table tasks tion variables views voter opinion voters and representatives white-collar employees