Gregory E. McAvoy is Associate Professor at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He has published articles in the fields of public policy, American political institutions, and research methods, and his work has appeared in Public Opinion Quarterly, Political Behavior, Political Research Quarterly, Journal of Politics, and Political Analysis. He served as co-editor of the book review section of the American Political Science Review (2001-2003) and Perspectives on Politics (2004). He teaches courses in public policy, interest groups, research methods, and program evaluation.

"Theoretically rich and full of innovative data, Collective Political Rationality offers a major advance to the study of public opinion. By combining partisanship, political knowledge, issue salience, news, and elections into a single theoretical framework, Gregory McAvoy provides the most comprehensive picture of aggregate opinion ever."—Peter K. Enns, Cornell University"McAvoy provides a stunning advance to the study of the dynamics of public opinion by melding the factors of information, partisanship and salience with the precise components of Bayesian analysis needed for a new path-breaking perspective."—Janet M. Box-Steffensmeier, Ohio State UniversityThe central argument of Gregory McAvoy's fine book -- that the partisan loyalties that are often derided in popular commentary and academic writing actually provide the structure that makes collective public opinion sensible and rational -- is both theoretically novel, meticulously supported through careful analysis, and, I am convinced, spot on.—Paul Kellstedt, Texas A&M University

• Selected Contents: 1. Introduction 2. Public Opinion: Signal or Noise? 3. The Partisan Signal 4. Information Processing and Attention 5. Shifting Regimes 6. The Good-Enough Public

Gregory E. McAvoy is Associate Professor at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He has published articles in the fields of public policy, American political institutions, and research methods, and his work has appeared in Public Opinion Quarterly, Political Behavior, Political Research Quarterly, Journal of Politics, and Political Analysis. He served as co-editor of the book review section of the American Political Science Review (2001-2003) and Perspectives on Politics (2004). He teaches courses in public policy, interest groups, research methods, and program evaluation.

"Theoretically rich and full of innovative data, Collective Political Rationality offers a major advance to the study of public opinion. By combining partisanship, political knowledge, issue salience, news, and elections into a single theoretical framework, Gregory McAvoy provides the most comprehensive picture of aggregate opinion ever."—Peter K. Enns, Cornell University"McAvoy provides a stunning advance to the study of the dynamics of public opinion by melding the factors of information, partisanship and salience with the precise components of Bayesian analysis needed for a new path-breaking perspective."—Janet M. Box-Steffensmeier, Ohio State UniversityThe central argument of Gregory McAvoy's fine book -- that the partisan loyalties that are often derided in popular commentary and academic writing actually provide the structure that makes collective public opinion sensible and rational -- is both theoretically novel, meticulously supported through careful analysis, and, I am convinced, spot on.—Paul Kellstedt, Texas A&M University

• Selected Contents: 1. Introduction 2. Public Opinion: Signal or Noise? 3. The Partisan Signal 4. Information Processing and Attention 5. Shifting Regimes 6. The Good-Enough Public

Gregory E. McAvoy is Associate Professor at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He has published articles in the fields of public policy, American political institutions, and research methods, and his work has appeared in Public Opinion Quarterly, Political Behavior, Political Research Quarterly, Journal of Politics, and Political Analysis. He served as co-editor of the book review section of the American Political Science Review (2001-2003) and Perspectives on Politics (2004). He teaches courses in public policy, interest groups, research methods, and program evaluation.

"Theoretically rich and full of innovative data, Collective Political Rationality offers a major advance to the study of public opinion. By combining partisanship, political knowledge, issue salience, news, and elections into a single theoretical framework, Gregory McAvoy provides the most comprehensive picture of aggregate opinion ever."—Peter K. Enns, Cornell University"McAvoy provides a stunning advance to the study of the dynamics of public opinion by melding the factors of information, partisanship and salience with the precise components of Bayesian analysis needed for a new path-breaking perspective."—Janet M. Box-Steffensmeier, Ohio State UniversityThe central argument of Gregory McAvoy's fine book -- that the partisan loyalties that are often derided in popular commentary and academic writing actually provide the structure that makes collective public opinion sensible and rational -- is both theoretically novel, meticulously supported through careful analysis, and, I am convinced, spot on.—Paul Kellstedt, Texas A&M University

• Selected Contents: 1. Introduction 2. Public Opinion: Signal or Noise? 3. The Partisan Signal 4. Information Processing and Attention 5. Shifting Regimes 6. The Good-Enough Public