Policy Congruence between Voters and Representatives

Abstract

Congruence between voters and representatives is a central yardstick for the quality of democracies. Therefore it is of core interest to political scientists to describe and explain the levels of congruence in democratic societies. To date numerous studies have contributed to the “congruence controversy” that predominantly focusses on the effect of electoral systems on median voter congruence on a left right scale (e. g. Blais and Bodet 2006; Golder and Stramski 2010). This panel welcomes innovating empirical and theoretical contributions to this debate. Papers may focus on specific institutional effects on congruence (e.g. electoral systems, system of government), on the level of congruence (e.g. voters and parties, voters and parliaments, voters and executives), on the specific type of congruence (e.g. one-to-one, one-to-many, many-to-many), on different objects of congruence (e.g. specific issues or more abstract dimensions in multi-dimensional issue spaces with varying saliences), as well as on conceptual and methodological challenges in the study of congruence.

Title	Details
In Search of Congruence: Different Measurements, Different Results	View Paper Details
Exploring representation from citizens’ perspective: Towards a typology of congruence on the micro-level	View Paper Details
Issue Salience, Multi-Dimensional Preference Congruence and Perceptions of Representation in Europe	View Paper Details
The Politics of Representation. The Role of Political Parties in Europe in an Age of Globalization and Liberalization	View Paper Details
What favors the congruence between citizens and their governments? Multi-dimensional ideological congruence and party systems	View Paper Details