Local government, social programs, and political partcipation : A test of policy-centered theory
By: SHARP, Elaine B
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ArticlePublisher: Georgia : Carl Vinson Institute of Government of the University of Georgia, 2009State and Local Government Review 41, 3, p. 182-192Abstract: This article applies policy-centered theory to a study of the effect of county governments' social program activity on local political participation. The analysis shows that participants' exposure to heightened levels of means-tested and universal programs does have the contrasting consequences for local forms of civic engagement that have been found in studies of national-level participation. Moreover, the participation-dampening effect of means-tested programs trumps the mobilizing effects of universal programs. The analysis also extends policy-centered theory by showing that means-tested programs send demobilizing messages to a somewhat broader target population than policy-centered theory usually envisions.
This article applies policy-centered theory to a study of the effect of county governments' social program activity on local political participation. The analysis shows that participants' exposure to heightened levels of means-tested and universal programs does have the contrasting consequences for local forms of civic engagement that have been found in studies of national-level participation. Moreover, the participation-dampening effect of means-tested programs trumps the mobilizing effects of universal programs. The analysis also extends policy-centered theory by showing that means-tested programs send demobilizing messages to a somewhat broader target population than policy-centered theory usually envisions.
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