Collective Decision Making

In compact format, [Collective Decision Making] includes both a useful overview of the development and literature of public choice as well as several empirical applications and research reports... It is remarkable because unlike many proceedings, it is readable, its papers are concise and accessible, comments are clear and relate to the papers, and the volume as a whole has focus and direction. Assuming the reader has some knowledge of public choice theory, this volume offers an assessment of the state of the art in application of both positive and normative aspects of the theory regarding politics, rule-making, policies, and choice making. It deals with issues of theory construction, research methods, analytical methodology, experimentation, direct application, and areas of potential exploration... These research efforts begin to frame empirically what we mean by political rationality, a pressing problem for public officials, as well as for public choice theory.' Public Administration Review

• Introductory Remark; Applications of Public Choice Theory: An Introduction Public Choice in Practice; Super-Rationality and School Tax Voting; National Environmental Lobbies and the Apparent Illogic of Collective Action; Uphill and Downhill Battles and Contributions to Collective Action; The Application of Laboratory Experimental Methods to Public Choice; Practical Aspects of the Construction of Decentralized Decision-Making Systems for Public Goods; The Resource Allocation Role of Reviewing Courts: Common Law Functions in a Regulatory Era; International Resource Regimes; Political Applications of Social Choice Theory; Future Directions for Work in Public Choice