Public Choice III [Paperback]

Dennis C. Mueller (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521894751 | ISBN-13: 978-0521894753 | Publication Date: February 17, 2003 | Edition: 3

This book represents a considerable revision and expansion of Public Choice II (1989). As in the previous editions, all of the major topics of public choice are covered. These include: why the state exists, voting rules, federalism, the theory of clubs, two-party and multiparty electoral systems, rent seeking, bureaucracy, interest groups, dictatorship, the size of government, voter participation, and political business cycles. Normative issues in public choice are also examined. The book is suitable for upper level courses in economics dealing with politics, and political science courses emphasizing rational actor models.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"No student or teacher of public choice and no researcher working at the intersection of economics and politics can afford to not have a copy of Public Choice III within easy reach. Public Choice

Book Description

This book represents a considerable revision and expansion of Public Choice II (1989). As in the previous additions, all of the major topics of public choice are covered. These include: why the state exists, voting rules, federalism, the theory of clubs, two-party and multiparty electoral systems, rent seeking, bureaucracy, interest groups, dictatorship, the size of government, voter participation, and political business cycles. Normative issues in public choice are also examined. The book is suitable for upper level courses in economics dealing with politics, and political science courses emphasizing rational actor models.

Product Details

• Paperback: 788 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; 3 edition (February 17, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521894751
• ISBN-13: 978-0521894753
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.1 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #401,727 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

39 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Review Text on Rat-Choice Politics and Public Choice, May 21, 2003

By 

Jeffrey M. Cavanaugh (Champaign, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Public Choice III (Paperback)

This is a great book! As a political-science graduate student I've been exposed to a great deal of game-theory and rat-choice in my seminar classes, but, unfortunately, it has come in the form of numerous papers, piles of books, and several classes that did not build off of one another. I was left with the feeling that it was a very, very important subject, but it was presented in a manner that left me, as a student, with an incomplete picture of the topic and the breadth of work that has gone on in this field.

Mueller's achievements in this volume have been three:

1. Coherent presentation of the theory of public choice / rational politics.

2. Discussion of the most important empirical work that has gone on in this field in a unified fashion that leads one naturally into further inquiry in this area.

3. Logically organizes and presents the material in a way that reinforces concepts, logic, and thinking in the book.

These three things make this book a great review or introductory text to the field of public choice / rational politics that should be on the "must have" list of every serious student of politics and economics. Moreover, not being terribly skilled at mathematics myself, the material is presented both through intuitive written discussions, fairly simplistic "example" equations that are pretty easy to follow if you've had a "principles" microecon course with calculus, and, which I greatly appreciate, a fair amount of graphs. Moreover, the bibliography that the book draws on is very, very extensive...meaning that it has the additional utility of being a handy jumping off point if you're doing research in this area.

My only complaint, and this is a minor one, is that I would like a bit more math in the book either at the end of each chapter or in an appendix that works out, step-by-step, some of the additional concepts he runs over that aren't dealt with mathematically in the main text of the chapters themselves.

This, at least in my opinion, is an excellent book for the graduate student interested in learning about public choice / rational politics.