Rm. Alvarez et P. Gronke, CONSTITUENTS AND LEGISLATORS - LEARNING ABOUT THE PERSIAN-GULF-WAR RESOLUTION, Legislative studies quarterly, 21(1), 1996, pp. 105-127
This study examines how much citizens know about a highly salient roll
-call vote: the Gulf War Use of Force Resolution. Citizens' awareness
of how their representatives voted, while not great, was not trivial.
Drawing on survey response theory, the authors determine that how well
citizens are able to recall or guess their representatives' positions
is structured by individual characteristics and a reasonable see of c
ontextual cues. In their conclusion, the authors draw implications for
the impact of public opinion on foreign policy, the ability of citize
ns to monitor their representatives in noncampaign periods, and for th
eories of the representation process.