Institutions shape every dimension of politics. This volume collects original essays on how such institutions are formed, operated, and changed, both in theory and in practice. Ranging across formal institutions of government such as legislatures, courts, and bureaucracies and intermediary institutions such as labor unions and party systems, the contributors show how these instruments of control give shape to the state, articulate its relationships, and express its legitimacy. Rethinking Political Institutions captures the state of the art in the study of the art of the state.Drawing on some of the leading scholars in the field, this volume includes essays on issues of social power, public policy and programs, judicial review, and cross-national institutions. Rethinking Political Institutions is an essential addition to the debate on the significance of political institutions, in light of democracy, social change and power.Contributors: Elisabeth S. Clemens, Jon Elster, John Ferejohn, Terry M. Moe, Claus Offe, Paul Pierson, Ulrich K. Preuss, Rogers M. Smith, Kathleen Thelen, Mark Tushnet, R. Kent Weaver, Margaret Weir, Keith E. Whittington
Introduction Part I: Institutional Study and Its Boundaries1 Political Institutions and Social Power: Conceptual Explorations Claus O?e2 Power and Political Institutions Terry M. Moe3 Practical Institutionalism John Ferejohn4 Which Comes First, the Ideas or the Institutions? Rogers M. Smith5 Public Policies as Institutions Paul PiersonPart II: Institutional Structure and Political Change6 Institutions and Social Change:The Evolution of Vocational Training in Germany Kathleen Thelen7 When Does Politics Create Policy? The Organizational Politics of Change Margaret Weir8 Lineages of the Rube Goldberg State: Building and Blurring Public Programs,1900-1940 Elisabeth S. Clemens9 Government Institutions, Policy Cartels, and Policy Change R. Kent WeaverPart III: Institutions and Democracy10 Institutions for Implementing Constitutional Law Mark Tushnet11 Beyond Rational Self-interest: Authors and Actors in French Constitution-Making Jon Elster12 Preserving the "Dignity and In?uence of the Court": Political Supports for Judicial Review in the United States Keith E. Whittington13 The Signi?cance of Cognitive and Moral Learning for Democratic Institutions Ulrich K. PreussAbout the Contributors About the Editors Index
