Political Elites

Informationen zum Autor By Geraint Parry Klappentext Elites have been described both as the bulwarks of democracy and its very antithesis. 'Political Elites'! first published in 1969! reviews the literature on the role of elites in politics. It deals with both the 'classic' elite theorists - Mosca! Pareto! Michels! Burnham and C. Wright Mills - and with many of the empirical and theoretical works on elites by modern political scientists and sociologists. It seeks to clarify the central terms of elite discourse! some of which have entered the everyday political vocabulary - 'elitism'! 'power elite'! 'establishment'! 'elite consensus'' ! 'iron law of oligarchy' and 'mass'. It explores the ways in which the descriptions of power relationships can subtly be infiltrated by the values of the observers. For this ECPR Classics edition Professor Parry has added an introduction reviewing significant new developments in elite political science. Inhaltsverzeichnis New introduction by the author Introduction Chapter one: The context of elite theorising Elitism as a science and as ideology Marxism and elitism Chapter two: The classical elitist thesis Mosca and Michels: an organisational approach Pareto: A psychological approach Burnham: An economic approach C. Wright Mills: An institutional approach The concept of the mass Ideology and social control The perpetuation and replacement of elites Chapter three: Elitism and pluralism Types of elite Military elites Business elites Bureaucratic elites Education and elite formation The 'Establishment' Elite consensus Chapter four: Empirical tests of elitist theories Elite background and recruitment Community power studies The 'reputational' approach The 'decision-making' approach Works of synthesis Conclusion Chapter five: Criticisms of the elite concept The scope of influence Political influence: Appearance and reality The nature of decision-making 'Boundary' problems The 'costs' of influence Concluding injunctions Chapter six: Elites and democratic theory 'Pluralism' or 'democratic elitism'? Classical democracy The radical alternative Degrees of democracy? Bibliography Index ...

Product details

• Authors: Parry Geraint, Geraint Parry
• Publisher: Columbia University Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 01.03.2008
• EAN: 9780954796600
• ISBN: 978-0-9547966-0-0
• No. of pages: 152
• Dimensions: 146 mm x 229 mm x 13 mm
• Series: Ecpr Press Classics
• Subject: Social sciences, law, business > Political science > Political science and political education