AMERICAN DEMOCRACY SEEMS TO BE AT A CROSSROADS. Many Americans have simply given up on politics. They've become apathetic--they just don't care. And, honestly, who can blame them? In a world of hyper-polarization and elite-centric political discourse, the average American feels pushed out, so they stop caring. This is discouraging because America's system of government is designed to be, as President Abraham Lincoln famously said, "of the people, by the people, [and] for the people." Government that is of, by, and for the people requires action of, by, and for the people.
Democracy InAction documents the effects of apathy on civic participation. More importantly, it reminds readers that America and her future belong to them and encourages them to participate in the civic life of their communities and country.
Loaded with original survey data and rigorous analysis, this book tells a story of civic engagement in decline. The larger purpose, though, is to solve the problem by encouraging citizens to participate. Designed to reach an audience of everyday Americans--both engaged and unengaged--as well as policymakers, students, and scholars, Democracy InAction brings an educator's approach to document reasons why civic engagement is important in order to influence the reader to do their part. The encouragement provided is intended to overcome apathy--to get the reader to care--and to remedy alienation, to remind the reader that this is their country too. It is also designed to spur policymakers to action by encouraging them to do their part to increase civic participation.
Taylor aims to make democracy work for all of us by reminding readers that it takes all of us to make democracy work.
Travis N. Taylor, Ph.D., is the senior market research manager at the Center for Excellence in Polling, a project of the nonpartisan think tank, the Foundation for Government Accountability. He is also the president and chief research officer at Strategic Insights Research, LLC, a professional research group that works in polling, trial consulting, and market research for faith-based organizations and businesses. He has previously worked as a campaign manager, campaign consultant, state legislative aide, congressional legislative correspondent, and university instructor. He has managed or consulted for more than eighty political campaigns and dozens of trials in both state and federal courts and has conducted more than 300 public opinion research projects.
Dr. Taylor has published academic research in Journal of Lawand Courts, Judicature, The Jury Expert, Critique, and the Oxford Handbook of Political Representation in Liberal Democracies. He has also contributed numerous op-eds and media commentary, including in RealClearPolitics, The Hill, Congressional Quarterly Roll Call Guide, CQ Connectivity, The Washington Times, The Free Press, The Blaze, Daily Caller, The Daily Beast, Wisconsin State Journal, KJRH 2News (Tulsa, OK, NBC affiliate), Cincinnati Enquirer (Ohio), Louisville Courier-Journal (Kentucky), WRFL Radio (Kentucky), and LaCrosse Tribune (Wisconsin). Democracy InAction is his first book.
He has also testified in the Ohio Senate, the Ohio House of Representatives, and the Indiana House of Representatives.
Dr. Taylor earned his Ph.D. in political science with an emphasis on public opinion, state judicial selection, and public policy from the University of Kentucky. He also holds a master's degree in political science from the University of Kentucky, a master's degree in political management from The George Washington University's Graduate School of Political Management, and a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Louisiana.
When he is not asking voters or jurors for their opinions, he enjoys spending time with his family, reading, tae kwon do, and cycling. He lives with his wife and their two sons outside Tulsa, Oklahoma. He is active in both his church and community.
