How Political Parties Work - (Political Parties in Context) by Kay Lawson (Hardcover)

About the Book

This important volume examines the inner dynamics of political parties with the intention of finding out how parties really work. Specialists on Germany, France, New Zealand, Norway, Japan, India, Belgium, Israel, Poland, Britain, and the United States provide analyses of the ways in which power is developed and exercised in those countries--who is trying to do what, within the party and by means of the party, and how successful they are. Political parties are not monoliths, as they have tended to be treated in party system research; rather, they have differentiated internal structures, layers, and levels, and on each of these the motivations and objectives of the participants may be very different. By looking within, these authors provide an understanding of the internal play of party power and why parties function as they do within the broader political arena.

Book Synopsis

This important volume examines the inner dynamics of political parties with the intention of finding out how parties really work. Specialists on Germany, France, New Zealand, Norway, Japan, India, Belgium, Israel, Poland, Britain, and the United States provide analyses of the ways in which power is developed and exercised in those countries--who is trying to do what, within the party and by means of the party, and how successful they are. Political parties are not monoliths, as they have tended to be treated in party system research; rather, they have differentiated internal structures, layers, and levels, and on each of these the motivations and objectives of the participants may be very different. By looking within, these authors provide an understanding of the internal play of party power and why parties function as they do within the broader political arena.

Review Quotes

?This is an excellent source for students of comparative politics and political parties. Insightful and refreshing ideas combined with revealing information. Upper division undergraduate through faculty.?-Choice

"This is an excellent source for students of comparative politics and political parties. Insightful and refreshing ideas combined with revealing information. Upper division undergraduate through faculty."-Choice

About the Author

KAY LAWSON is Professor of Political Science at San Francisco State University. She is the author of several books, including Political Parties and Democracy in the United States (1968) and The Human Polity: An Introduction to Political Science (1984).