This paper draws on both the bureaucratic and congressional literature to develop and test a model linking bureaucratic dissatisfaction with citizen- initiated contact with members of Congress. It has been argued by Fiorina and others that bureaucratic malfunctioning creates opportunities for congressional intervention which aids constituents and reaps electoral benefits for elected representatives. While this view has been widely accepted by scholars, empirical research has scarcely addressed the question, and evidence to support this conjecture has been scant. Using data gathered in a particular congressional district (both data on actual member-constituent contact and survey data), results confirm Fiorina's contention that those who are unhappy with bureaucracy are more likely to contact members of Congress.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Aldrich, John, and Forrest D. Nelson .1984. Linear Probability, Logit, and Probit Models. Beverly Hills: Sage.
2.
_. 1986. "Logit and Probit Models for Multivariate Analysis with Qualitative Dependent Variables." In William Berry and Michael S. Lewis-Beck, eds., New Tools For Social Scientists: Advances And Applications in Research Method. Beverly Hills: Sage.
3.
Arnold, R.D.1979. Congress and the Bureaucracy: A Theory of Influence . New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
4.
Brown, Steven D.1982. "The Explanation of Particularized Contacting." Urban Affairs Quarterly18: 217-34.
5.
Cain, Bruce, John Ferejohn, and Morris Fiorina.1987. The Personal Vote. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
6.
Fenno, Richard F.1978. Homestyle: House Members in Their Districts. Boston: Little, Brown.
7.
Fiorina, Morris P.1989. Congress-Keystone of the Washington Establishment , 2nd ed. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
8.
Grace, Peter.1984. Burning Money: The Waste of Your Tax Dollars. New York: Macmillan.
9.
Hanushek, Eric A., and John E. Jackson .1977. Statistical Methods for Social Scientists. New York: Academic Press .
10.
Hill, Larry B.1976. The Model Ombudsman in the United States. Berkeley: Institute of Government Studies, University of California.
11.
Johannes, John R.1984. To Serve the People. Lincoln and London: University of Nebraska Press .
12.
Johannes, John R., and John McAdams.1987. "Entrepreneur or Agent: Congressmen and the Distribution of Casework, 1977-1978." Western Political Quarterly40: 535-53.
13.
Jones, Bryan D., Saadia R. Greenberg, Clifford Kaufman, and Joseph Drew.1977. "Bureaucratic Response to Citizen-Initiated Contacts: Enviromental Enforcement in Detroit." American Political Science Review72: 148-65.
14.
Katz, Daniel, Barbara A. Gutek, Robert L. Kahn, and Eugenia Barton.1975. Bureaucratic Encounters. Ann Arbor, MI: Institute for Social Research.
15.
Lehnen, R.G.1976. American Institutions, Public Opinion and Public Policy. Hinsdate, IL: Dryden.
16.
Mayhew, D.R.1974. Congress: The Electoral Connection. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
17.
Meier, Kenneth J.1987. Politics and the Bureaucracy. Belmont, CA: Brooks Cole.
Osborne, David, and Ted Gaebler.1992. Reinventing Government. Reading, MA : Addison-Wesley.
20.
Peterson, Steven A.1986. "Close Encounters of the Bureaucratic Kind: Older Americans and Bureaucracy." American Journal of Political Science30: 347-56.
21.
_. 1988. "Sources of Citizens' Bureaucratic Contacts." Administration and Society2: 152-65.
22.
Serra, George.1992. "Reach Out and Help Someone: The Impact of Casework Solicitation and Word of Mouth Publicity on Member-Constituent Contact." Southeastern Political Review20: 231-44.
23.
Serra, George and Albert D. Cover .1992. "The Electoral Consequences of Perquisite use: The Casework Case." Legislative Studies Quarterly17: 233-246.
24.
Sharp, Elaine.1982. "Citizen-Initiated Contracting of Government Officials and Socio-Economic Status: Determining the Relationship and Accounting for It." American Political Science Review76: 109-115.
25.
_. 1984. "Citizen-Demand Making in the Urban Context." American Journal of Political Science28: 654-70.
26.
Thomas, John C.1982. "Citizen-Initiated Contacts with Government Agencies." American Joumal ofPolitical Science24: 50-67.
27.
Vedlitz, Arnold, James A. Dyer, and Roger Durand.1980. "Citizen Contacts with Local Governments." American Journal of Political Science24: 50-67.
28.
Vedlitz, Arnold, and Eric P. Veblen.1980. "Voting and Contacting: Two Forms of Political Participation in Suburban Community." Urban Affairs Quarterly16: 31-48.
29.
Verba, Sidney, and Norman H. Nie.1972. Participation in America. New York: Harper & Row.
30.
Verba, Sidney, Norman H. Nie, and J. Kim.1978. Participation and Political Equality . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
