Term paper 1
Using what you’ve learned about public opinion in the course so far, make the case for or against citizens’ competence in a democracy.
Whatever side you take in this debate, present the best evidence for your argument, consider the strongest objections to that argument, and reassure us that your claims stand inspite of these arguments.
Along the way, you may want to offer some discussion of what you mean by competence, and the various roles that citizens and their opinions might play in a democracy. You should conclude by discussing the implications of your argument for democratic theory, politics, and policy.
You may structure your paper how you please, but something like:
- Introduction
- Argument
- Critique
- Response
- Conclusion
will make it easier for your reader (and grader) to follow along.
You must cite readings from the course, and you should offer some detailed discussion of the actual arguments these authors make, the larger theoretical literature they speak to, and the specific evidence they use to make their case. Don’t just say “So and so says citizens lack coherent belief systems” and move on. Describe succinctly what they mean by beleif systems, why such a concept matters for your larger argument, and the main evidence the author puts forward in support of their claim. Similarly, simply listing a bunch of studies and tagging each as evidence for or against citizen competence, will be a less effective strategy presenting works in dialogue with each other. You may bring in readings from outside the course but must cite them, and more importantly, use them correctly.
You have 10-pages double-spaced (not including references) to accomplish this task. You will need to make tradeoffs between the breadth and depth of your discussion. You may include tables and figures (these will not count toward your final page count) from referenced articles, but should only do so if it is vital to making your argument (I am fairly certain it is not).
I will gladly answer clarifying questions about specific readings from the course. We will not answer questions that begin or end with “is this right?” That said, if you walk us through your interpretation of a passage or result and explain your reasoning for reaching a conclusion, we will happily discuss that process with you.
Grading Rubric
Here is a link to the grading rubric we will use to grade your term papers