Elite superiority in policymaking should be tested empirically, not assumed

Evidence

Leaving aside the difficult issue of divergent interests and motives, we would urge that the superior wisdom of economic elites or organized interest groups should not simply be assumed. It should be put to empirical test. New empirical research will be needed to pin down precisely who knows how much, and what, about which public policies. — Martin Gilens and Benjamin I. Page, Testing Theories of American Politics, 141

Categorization

• QUESTION: An open empirical program: exactly which percentile bracket wields how much genuine influence — the reader’s own operationalization target (10th/50th/90th income) maps onto this agenda.
• XREF: connects to: Economic elites dominate US policy while average citizens exert little influence — Martin Gilens and Benjamin I. Page, Testing Theories of American Politics:…, 11; Economic elites exert the largest independent influence on U.S. policy. — Martin Gilens and Benjamin I. Page, Testing Theories of American Politics:…, 91; Correlated elite and mass preferences do not reflect citizen influence on policy. — Martin Gilens and Benjamin I. Page, Testing Theories of American Politics:…, 135

Broader Connections

• Correlated elite and mass preferences do not reflect citizen influence on policy. #expands (0.72) — Martin Gilens and Benjamin I. Page, Testing Theories of American Politics, 135