Description
Book SynopsisBased on historical archives, interviews, and a survey evidence, this title suggests that the gun control campaign has been stymied by a combination of factors, including the inability to secure patronage resources, difficulties in articulating a message that resonates with supporters, and strategic decisions made in the name of effective policy.
Trade Review"Goss has written an excellent book, useful to all students of lobbying... This thoughtful, well-documented book should be read and examined by would-be gun control activists and other advocates for social reform."--Choice "Rarely does a book make a significant contribution to two separate fields, but this work by Kristin Goss does. Readers interested in social movements and social movement theory will find an interesting case study of a movement that never happened--efforts to strengthen gun control laws in the United States. Those who study gun control will encounter a unique perspective on the interest group politics and policy making of firearms regulation. Well-researched and clearly written, the book is insightful and informative. Goss's journalistic background is evident, both in her prose and in the relative brevity of the book. Her arguments are clearly elucidated in a first chapter that should serve as a model."--Harry L. Wilson, Political Science Quarterly
Table of ContentsList of Figures ix List of Tables xi Acknowledgments xiii CHAPTER ONE: The Gun Control (Participation) Paradox 1 CHAPTER TWO: A Movement in Theory 31 CHAPTER THREE: Socializing Costs: Patronage and Political Participation 73 CHAPTER FOUR: Personalizing Benefits: Issue Frames and Political Participation 105 CHAPTER FIVE: Changing the Calculation: Policy Incrementalism and Political Participation 145 CHAPTER SIX: Mobilizing around Modest Measures: Three Cases 176 CHAPTER SEVEN: Conclusion: Politics, Participation, and Public Goods 190 Appendix A: Gun-Related Trends 201 Appendix B: Brief Case Studies of Other Social-Reform Movements 204 Appendix C: Survey of Million Mom March Participants 208 Notes 215 References 249 Index 271
