The past two decades of politics in Washington have seen increased partisanship, prolonged stalemates, and numerous scandals. For today's teenagers and young adults, years of ineffective and inefficient political leadership have completely eroded any sense that politicians or government have the ability to do good or effect positive change. Worse, the mean-spirited, dysfunctional political system that has come to characterize American politics has turned young people off to the idea of running for office. With more than 500,000 elected positions in the United States, what will happen when this generation is expected to take the reins of political power? Through an original, national survey of more than 4,000 high school and college students, as well as more than 100 in-depth interviews, Jennifer L. Lawless and Richard L. Fox find that young Americans feel completely alienated from contemporary politics and express little ambition or aspiration to run for office in the future. The overwhelming majority see nothing particularly noble about those currently in office, viewing most as dishonest, self-interested, and disinterested in helping their constituents. These young people want to improve their communities and enact change in the world; but they don't think politics is the way to achieve these goals. In fact, they look disdainfully upon the prospects of growing up to be a mayor, governor, senator, or even president of the United States. Running from Office explores young people's opinions about contemporary politics and their political ambition (or lack of it). The book paints a political profile of the next generation that should sound alarm bells about the long-term, deeply embedded damage contemporary politics has wrought on U.S. democracy and its youngest citizens. As disheartening as their conclusions sound, Lawless and Fox end with practical suggestions for how new technologies, national service programs, and well-strategized public service campaigns could generate political ambition in young people. Today's high school and college students care deeply about improving the future, and it's not too late to ensure that they view running for office as an effective way to do so.

Running from Office: Why Young Americans are Turned Off to Politics

Lawless, Jennifer L.

Fox, Richard L.

Teen & Young Adult

Oxford University Press

Years of teaching and participating in politics have shown Jennifer Lawless and Richard Fox that students learn more if they're engaged by what they're learning, and they can put what they're learning into practice by understanding how to participate. These principles come together in American Politics: A Field Guide. This unique text captivates students with provocative questions while helping to build the skills necessary for effective citizen engagement and political participation.

American Politics: A Field Guide

Politics & Social Sciences

Politics & Government

W.W.Norton&Company

Challenging the conventional wisdom about gender and U.S. politics. Renowned researchers and writers Jen Lawless and Richard Fox bring groundbreaking research on gender and politics into the undergraduate classroom. In this brief, accessibly written text, the authors focus on the big empirical questions that animate the study of gender and politics and ask students to think critically and analytically about these often surprising findings.

Women, Men & US Politics: 10 Big Questions

Social Sciences

It Still Takes a Candidate: Why Women Don't Run for Office, Revised and Expanded Edition

It Still Takes A Candidate serves as the only systematic, nationwide empirical account of the manner in which gender affects political ambition. Based on data from the Citizen Political Ambition Panel Study, a national survey conducted of almost 3,800 "potential candidates" in 2001 and a second survey of more than 2,000 of these same individuals in 2008, Jennifer L. Lawless and Richard L. Fox find that women, even in the highest tiers of professional accomplishment, are substantially less likely than men to demonstrate ambition to seek elective office. Women are less likely than men to be recruited to run for office. They are less likely than men to think they are qualified to run for office. And they are less likely than men to express a willingness to run for office in the future. This gender gap in political ambition persists across generations and over time. Despite cultural evolution and society's changing attitudes toward women in politics, running for public office remains a much less attractive and feasible endeavor for women than men.

Women's Studies

Cambridge University Press

It Takes a Candidate: Why Women Don't Run for Office

This important work constitutes a systematic, nationwide empirical account of the effects of gender on political ambition. Based on data from the Citizen Political Ambition Study, a national survey of 3,800 "potential candidates" conducted by the authors, it relates these findings: --Women, even at the highest levels of professional accomplishment, are significantly less likely than men to demonstrate ambition to run for elective office. --Women are less likely than men to be recruited to run for office. --Women are less likely than men to consider themselves "qualified" to run for office. --Women are less likely than men to express a willingness to run for a future office. According to the authors, this gender gap in political ambition persists across generations, despite contemporary society's changing attitudes towards female candidates. While other treatments of gender in the electoral process focus on candidates and office holders, It Takes a Candidate makes a unique contribution to political studies by focusing on the earlier stages of the candidate emergence process and on how gender affects the decision to seek elective office.

Becoming a Candidate: Political Ambition and the Decision to Run for Office

Becoming a Candidate: Political Ambition and the Decision to Run for Office explores the factors that drive political ambition at the earliest stages. Using data from a comprehensive survey of thousands of eligible candidates, Jennifer L. Lawless systematically investigates what compels certain citizens to pursue elective positions and others to recoil at the notion. Lawless assesses personal factors, such as race, gender, and family dynamics, that affect an eligible candidate's likelihood of considering a run for office. She also focuses on eligible candidates' professional lives and attitudes toward the political system.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Lawless, Jennifer L.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Lawless, Jennifer L.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Lawless, Jennifer L.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Running from Office: Why Young Americans are Turned Off to Politics

Running from Office: Why Young Americans are Turned Off to Politics

American Politics: A Field Guide

Women, Men & US Politics: 10 Big Questions

It Still Takes a Candidate: Why Women Don't Run for Office, Revised and Expanded Edition

It Takes a Candidate: Why Women Don't Run for Office

Becoming a Candidate: Political Ambition and the Decision to Run for Office

It Still Takes a Candidate: Why Women Don't Run for Office, Revised and Expanded Edition

Becoming a Candidate: Political Ambition and the Decision to Run for Office

It Takes a Candidate: Why Women Don't Run for Office