| The Logic Of American Politics |  | Authors: Samuel Kernell, Gary C. Jacobson
Publisher: CQ Press
Category: Book
List Price: $72.95
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Rating:  3 reviews
Sales Rank: 282021
Media: Paperback
Edition: 3
Pages: 671
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.7
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 7.4 x 1.4
ISBN: 1568028911
Dewey Decimal Number: 320.47301
EAN: 9781568028910
ASIN: 1568028911
Publication Date: July 15, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Conveying how the American political system is both extraordinary and complex, the authors explain in a simple and straightforward way that there is a rationale embedded in the U.S. political system. This underlying logic helps students see why political institutions are structured the way they are, and why the politicians who occupy them, and the citizens who monitor and respond to their actions, behave as they do. Kernell and Jacobson analyze political institutions and practices as imperfect solutions to problems facing people who need to act collectively. Throughout the text, the authors highlight these collective action problems, including the conflict over values and interests and the costs associated with finding and agreeing on a course of action. They describe how the choices made to resolve problems at one moment affect politics in the future, long after the original issues have faded. They emphasize the strategic nature of political action, from the Framers' careful drafting of the Constitution to contemporary politicians' strategic efforts to shape policy according to their own preferences.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Worth reading outside of class October 2, 2007
Skeptikos (Houston, TX)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
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 October 24, 2006
AAH (Georgia)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
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... ; )
 3 stars for effort, but not well-executed June 8, 2004
Newsman78 (New York, NY United States)
7 out of 13 found this review helpful
Kernell and Jacobson try to combine historical and rational-choice understandings of American government in this text, but not in a particularly successful manner. The issues of collective action and free rider problems are above the heads of most undergraduates, who care about what actually happens in politics, not what a game-theoretic model in a book thinks should happen. The writing style is also very dense. It's not particularly engaging for the reader, and the occasional cutesy attempt to insert cartoons or other stylistic improvements falls flat. The history is very interesting to someone who cares, but doesn't show the average student why history is important, why it matters that they know it in order to properly understand American politics today. For a slightly better take on an American government textbook with a historical focus, take a look at Landy and Milkis' new textbook.
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