Direct Democracy Works
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4028896 |
|---|---|
| Authors | John G Matsusaka (0000-0002-1525-1764, Professor of Finance and Business Economics in the Marshall School of Business, Professor of Business and Law in the Law School, and President of the Initiative & Referendum Institute, all at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California., corresponding author) |
| Year | 2005 |
| Volume | 19 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 185-206 |
| Publication date | 2005-04-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The Journal of Economic Perspectives (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0895-3309 • E-ISSN: 1944-7965 |
| Publisher | American Economic Association (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1257/0895330054048713 |
| OpenAlex | W1979292417 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 113 |
| References cited | 42 |
The purpose of this essay is to describe the practice and theory of the increasingly important political phenomenon of direct democracy and the main lessons from the scholarly literature. Many questions remain to be answered, but the emerging view is that direct democracy works--allowing the general public to participate in lawmaking often seems to improve the performance of government
Democracy · Direct democracy · Epistemology · Law and economics · Lawmaking · Legislature · Phenomenon · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Representative democracy · Sociology · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Judicial and Constitutional Studies · Law · Philosophy · Public Administration · Social Policy and Reform Studies
From referendum to reconciliation
A Survey Experiment on Citizens’ Preferences for ‘Vote–Centric’ vs. ‘Talk–Centric’ Democratic Innovations with Advisory vs. Binding Outcomes
Direct Democracy - Empowerment of Citizens or Instrument of the Elites
A political economy perspective of direct democracy in ancient Athens
Citizenship and Contemporary Direct Democracy
Public Opinion, Public Policy, and Democracy
Philopoemen of Megalopolis
Introduction
The Political Institutions of the Achaean Sympolity
The Politician and the Judge
Do greens drive Hummers or hybrids? Environmental ideology as a determinant of consumer choice
Big Data and Big Cities
Does voting on tax fund destination imply a direct democracy effect
Populism’s original sin
Populism's Original Sin
Making direct democracy work
Direct democracy in the digital age
The role of planning and the role of planners
On the optimality of direct democracy
Does direct democracy increase civic virtues? A systematic literature review
How citizens evaluate the legitimacy of direct vote and representation-based decision-making
Interrogating the popularity of direct democracy among European national publics
Does direct democracy increase communicative responsiveness? A field experiment with Swiss politicians
Referendums and public policy
The effect of place on voting behavior
Citizens, Interest Groups, and Local Ballot Initiatives
Something for Something
Popular Control of Public Policy
Issue Unbundling via Citizens' Initiatives
Where Politicians Gave Power to the People
Explaining willingness to use the European Citizens’ Initiative
Referendums
Knowing and distrusting
Referendum and the choice between monarchy and republic in Greece
Spatial dependence in constitutional constraints
Some thoughts about referendums, representative democracy, and separation of powers
Constitutional choice in ancient Athens
Direct voting and proxy voting
Taking the initiative
Explaining the strictness of medical marijuanaregulations in states
Resolving the reality gap in farm regulation voting models
Direct democracy and resource allocation
Informing and inquiring
Local Evidence and Diversity in Minipublics
Rules alone won't do
Is voting skin-deep? Estimating the effect of candidate ballot photographs on election outcomes
Direct or representative democracy? Co-Voting
Pandora's ballot box
Public policy and the initiative and referendum
Do direct-democratic procedures lead to higher acceptance than political representation
Signature requirements and citizen initiatives
Participation quorums in costly meetings
Positive constitutional economics II—a survey of recent developments
The economic effects of direct democracy—a first global assessment
Disentangling the direct and indirect effects of the initiative process
The influence of direct democracy on the shadow economy
Empowering the principal
The impact of voter turnout on referendum outcomes
Voter information and electoral outcomes
Supersized votes
Ballot order effects in direct democracy elections
Fiscal Effects of Reforming Local Constitutions
The Color of Electoral Success
Economic Analysis of a Referendum
The people's will”
The Impact of Simple Institutions in Experimental Economies with Poverty Traps
Rejecting representation? Party systems and popular support for referendums in Europe
Can't buy me votes? Campaign spending and the outcome of direct democratic votes
Power to the People? The Initiative Process and Fiscal Discipline in City Governments
Musings About the EU's Constitutional Future
Direct Democracy and Fiscal Gridlock
You Want to Spend My Money How? Framing Effects on Tax Increases via Ballot Propositions
The Instrumental and Educative Effects of Ballot Measures
Familiar Choices
Representation and Direct Democracy in the United States
Disentangling Referendums and Direct Democracy
Are Referendums Necessarily Populist? Countering the Populist Interpretation of Referendums Through Institutional Design
Zero-Sum Democracy? The Effects of Direct Democracy on Representative Participation
Direct democracy and government size
Just How Pluralist Is Direct Democracy? The Structure of Interest Group Participation in Ballot Proposition Elections
Inequality, Self-Interest, and Public Support for “Robin Hood” Tax Policies
The Effect of Direct Democracy on Turnout
Inequality Federalism and Economic Self-Interest in Subnational Progressive Tax Politics
When Does Ballot Language Influence Voter Choices? Evidence from a Survey Experiment
Do Ballot Initiatives Increase General Political Knowledge
When Ballot Issues Matter
Direct Democracy and Political Efficacy Reconsidered
Who talks and who listens? A qualitative analysis of citizen dialogues in rural Sweden
The hidden cost of direct democracy
Integrating participatory institutions into the traditional representative and bureaucratic model of public governance
Signature requirements for initiatives
The Effect of Initiatives on Local Government Spending
Civic initiatives in the context of legal uncertainty
Sex and the ballot box
Satisfaction With Democracy
Does Direct Democracy Hurt Immigrant Minorities? Evidence from Naturalization Decisions in Switzerland
Direct Democracy and Women's Political Engagement
Maximising Direct Democracy – by Popular Assemblies or by Ballot Votes
Damoklesschwert Referendum? Die indirekte Wirkung ausgebauter Volksrechte auf die Rechte religiöser Minderheiten
The Impact of Municipality Mergers on Political Participation
The tax revolt
The Use of Knowledge in Society
Budget referendums and government spending
Constituent Interest and Congressional Voting
Self-Interest, Ideology, and Logrolling in Congressional Voting
The Politician and the Judge
Demand for Environmental Goods
Political Resource Allocation
Fiscal Policy, Legislature Size, and Political Parties
Deviations From Constituent Interests
Legislative organization and government spending
Bureaucrats Versus Voters
An economic theory of democracy
The Calculus of Consent
The eclipse of legislatures
Demographic change and the demand for environmental regulation
Does Direct Democracy Reduce Public Debt Evidence from Swiss Municipalities
Fiscal Effects of the Voter Initiative
Districting and Government Overspending
Stability in Competition
Happiness, Economy and Institutions
Legislative Response to the Threat of Popular Initiatives
Musings About the EU's Constitutional Future
Direct Democracy and Fiscal Gridlock
Measuring the Effect of Direct Democracy on State Policy
Representation and Direct Democracy in the United States
Campaign competition and policy responsiveness in direct legislation elections
A Theory of Competition Among Pressure Groups for Political Influence
Shortcuts Versus Encyclopedias
Consequences of the Condorcet Jury Theorem for Beneficial Information Aggregation by Rational Agents
| Unique citing works | 113 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 4,35 |
| Citation span | 2000 - 2026 (27) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | Yes |
| Citation types | Neutral: 110 |