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  • CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF DEMOCRATIC POLITICS - CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS
    • WORKSHOPS AND CONFERENCES 2019-2020 >
      • Survey of the New American Electorate Workshop
      • Politics of Judicial Nominations conference
      • Interest Groups, Policy Outcomes, and Representation in U.S. Politics Workshop
    • Workshops and Conferences 2017-2018 >
      • US Presidency in Crisis?
      • Workshop on the Presidency and the Administrative State
      • 2017 PRINCETON CONFERENCE ON IDENTITY AND INEQUALITY
    • Workshops and Conferences 2016-2017 >
      • Real-World Impacts of Political and Legal Texts
      • Rethinking Ways to Increase Voter Turnout
      • Research Workshop: How Do Politicians Learn?
      • SSRC Anxieties of Democracy Institutions Working Group
      • 2016 PRINCETON CONFERENCE ON IDENTITY AND INEQUALITY
    • Workshops and Conferences 2015-2016 >
      • Bit by Bit: Social Research in the Digital Age -- Salganik Manuscript Workshop May 13, 2016
      • PRINCETON CONFERENCE ON IDENTITY AND INEQUALITY >
        • PAPERS 2015 Princeton Conference on Identity and Inequality
      • Conference on Experimental Approaches to the Study of Democratic Politics May 6, 2016
      • Conference on the Political Economy of Judicial Politics April 1, 2016
    • WORKSHOPS AND CONFERENCES 2018-2019 >
      • 2018 PRINCETON CONFERENCE ON IDENTITY AND INEQUALITY >
        • Papers 2018 Identity and Inequality conference
      • Workshop on Candidates and Competition in American Elections
      • Workshop on Democracy in the US States
      • Politics and YouTube: The Next Big Social Network
      • Workshop on Lobbying and Institutional Performance
      • Accountability and Public Policy: Festschrift in Honor of R. Douglas Arnold >
        • Papers: Accountability and Public Policy conference R. Douglas Arnold Festschrift
    • WORKSHOPS AND CONFERENCES 2014-2015 >
      • Workshop on Wealth, Inequality, and Representation May 18, 2015
      • Hirano/Snyder Manuscript Workshop October 24, 2014
      • Political Polarization: Media and Communication Influences May 1, 2015
      • The Political Economy of Bureaucrats: Careers, Incentives, Rules, and Behavior May 8, 2015
    • WORKSHOPS and CONFERENCES 2013-2014 >
      • MONEY IN POLITIC$ Conference May 16, 2014
      • Political Impact of Media conference May 10-11, 2013
      • Historical Development of Modern Political Institutions March 1, 2013
      • Identifying and Addressing Challenges in Survey Research May 1-2, 2014
    • Workshops 2020-2021 >
      • Racial Attitudes in a Time of Growing Partisan Polarization
WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 2017
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How Do Politicians Learn?

This research workshop questions the extent to which politicians are informed, how they obtain information, and – importantly – how they process it. In particular, it will explore three important and interrelated questions:

  • How well informed about voters’ policy preferences are politicians in reality?
  • What are the sources of their information?
  • What explains bias in their estimations of citizens’ policy preferences? 

​One-day Visitor Parking
​
 

Visitors coming to campus on weekdays from 8 am to 5 pm may park in Lot 21, near Jadwin Gym or the visitor parking area in Lot 23, near the West Garage. TigerTransit operates frequently from both locations during weekdays until early evening.

There is 10 hour metered parking along (part of) Prospect Street and William Street on either side of Robertson Hall, but these spots are generally taken by early morning.​

Location

127 Corwin Hall
Princeton University


​For questions about accessibility or to request accommodations, please contact Michele Epstein at 609-258-6493. Two weeks advance notice will allow us to provide seamless access.


Getting here
​

Mass transit is a much preferred way to get to the Princeton University campus, as parking is extremely limited. NJ Transit (Northeast Corridor line from New York Penn Station) stops at Princeton Junction, allowing visitors to either grab a taxi to campus from there or to transfer to the "Dinky" to the Princeton station (about a 15-20 minute walk across campus to Robertson Hall).



Preliminary Agenda

​  8:45-9:15     Breakfast

  9.15-9.45     Welcome and Introductions

Learning and accuracy

  9.45-10.45     
David Nickerson, Temple University
How Candidates Learn from Campaign Data
Discussant: Nolan McCarty, Princeton University

  10.45-11.45    Stefaan Walgrave, University of Antwerp
The Accuracy of Elites’ Public Priority Perceptions

Discussant:
Pia Raffler, Princeton/CSDP/Niehaus


11.45-1.30     Lunch   Prospect House Library


Responsiveness to constituents vs. party discipline

  1.30-2.30     Dan Butler, Washington University St Louis
Party Representatives’ Adaptation to Election Results: Dyadic Responsiveness Revisited

Discussant:
Devin Caughey, Princeton/CSDP and MIT

  2.30-3.30     Peter Loewen, Princeton/CSDP and University of Toronto
Can public opinion change the votes of Members of Parliament?
Discussant: Martin Gilens, Princeton University


  3.30-3:45     Break

Dynamic responsiveness

  3:45-4:45     Devin Caughey,  Princeton/CSDP and MIT

Policy Preferences and Policy Change: Dynamic Responsiveness in the American States, 1936–2014
Discussant: Kevin (Vin) Arceneaux, Temple University


  4:45-5:30     Conclusion

  6:30             Dinner (panelists)


Contact Us

​Peter Loewen, co-organizer
Pia Raffler, co-organizer
Martin Gilens, co-organizer

​
Michele Demak Epstein, assistant director, CSDP