Mediating religion and government : political institutions and the policy process /

The empirical study of religion and politics emerged as a strongly behavioral sub-discipline within political science within the late 20th Century. Particularly in the American context, scholars have placed tremendous emphasis on religion's influence on political attitudes and behaviors. As a r...

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Bibliographic Details
Other Authors: Dulk, Kevin R. den (Editor), Oldmixon, Elizabeth Anne (Editor)
Format: Book
Language:English
Published: New York : Palgrave Macmillan, 2014.
Edition:First edition.
Series:Palgrave studies in religion, politics, and policy.
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Description
Summary:The empirical study of religion and politics emerged as a strongly behavioral sub-discipline within political science within the late 20th Century. Particularly in the American context, scholars have placed tremendous emphasis on religion's influence on political attitudes and behaviors. As a result, we have a much better understanding of the potency of religion in shaping voting patterns, party affiliation and views of public policy, among other behavioral aspects of American politics. In the context of a democracy, however, political institutions mediate the effect of religion on political attitudes and the policy process. In a Madisonian sense, institutions are at the fulcrum of mass politics and policy outputs. This volume investigates the influence of religion on and within political institutions. Each chapter provides a synthesis of the literature with respect to a particular institution and makes an original research contribution to the literature. By addressing the historical, contemporary, constitutional and policy-based elements of religious interactions within politics, the volume creates a wide-ranging assessment of the sometimes contentious relationship between these two pillars of American culture.
Physical Description:xi, 264 pages ; 23 cm.
Bibliography:Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN:9781137394408 (hardback)
1137394404 (hardback)