The Engaged Public – Political Science Gap: An Analysis of New York Times Non-Fiction Bestsellers on Politics

Abstract

There is an often-noted gap between political scientists and policymakers. This article examines the related but less investigated gap between political scientists and the engaged public. Reasons for the gap are explored by making inferences about public preferences through an examination of New York Times non-fiction bestsellers on politics from 1985 to 2009. The analysis suggests that although non-fiction readers have an interest in a wide range of political issues, political scientists often fail to reach the engaged public for several reasons, such as due to the public’s increasing consumption of books of a partisan or ideological nature versus the norm of objectivity in academic research. On the basis of an examination of bestsellers on politics, this study explores the nature of the engaged public – political science divide and considers ways of potentially bridging the gap.