Process preferences and American politics: What the people want governmentto be

We present evidence of the kind of governmental processes Americans would l ike to see in Washington. People believe they have been excluded from curre nt processes, but they do not want direct democracy. The extent to which in dividuals believe actual processes are inconsistent with their own process preferences is an important variable in understanding the current public mo od. Moreover, individual-level differences in level of dissatisfaction with democratic processes help explain variations in public approval of governm ent and in willingness to comply with the outputs of government. Of course, many political attitudes and behaviors are influenced by fondness for the policies that government produces, but it is also the case that sentiments and actions ave affected by the way government produces those policies. Far from being merely a means to a policy end, governmental process is importa nt in its own right.