The Civic Imagination: Making a Difference in American Political Life was released by Paradigm Publishers in 2014. It provides a rich empirical description of civic life and a broader discussion of the future of democracy in contemporary America. Over the course of a year, I worked with two other sociologists, a political scientist, and an anthropologist on a multi-sited ethnography of seven civic organizations in Providence, Rhode Island. We draw on this ethnographic evidence to map the 'civic imaginations' that motivate citizenship engagement in America today. The book unpacks how contemporary Americans think about and act toward positive social and political change while challenging contemporary assertions of American apathy.
In a time of unprecedented skepticism of governments, disdain for politics, and distrust of politicians, The Civic Imagination offers two key insights. First, cynicism and apathy do not go hand in hand. People who “are not political” actively create ways to make change. Second, how we think about politics shapes how we do politics. By sharing colorful stories and surprising accounts of how Providence activists go about making change, the book provides examples of possible forms of engagement and critical commentary about these approaches, paying particular attention to how engagement strategies can often be blind to or inadvertently deepen social inequalities.
Reviews of The Civic Imagination:
Contemporary Sociology, reviewed by Shauna A. Morimoto: "The work offers a timely and insightful contribution to recent scholarship that focuses on the changing ways American citizens engage with the political and civic sphere.... And by taking citizens’ civic work seriously, this book provides a valuable and easily accessible contribution for graduate and undergraduate students of sociology, politics, and social and civic culture. Moreover, it is an important read for activists, policymakers, and anyone interested in improving our democracy."
Political Science Quarterly, reviewed by Hahrie Han: "This book makes an important contribution to our understanding of the complex “imaginations” that ordinary citizens bring to their involvement in public life, as innovative for its content as for the way in which the book was
researched and written.... In sum, this book is an engaging, accessible description of civic life during one year in one town in America that helps us better understand this particular historical moment and, in doing so, better understand the forces that broadly shape participation in public life."
Contemporary Sociology, reviewed by Shauna A. Morimoto: "The work offers a timely and insightful contribution to recent scholarship that focuses on the changing ways American citizens engage with the political and civic sphere.... And by taking citizens’ civic work seriously, this book provides a valuable and easily accessible contribution for graduate and undergraduate students of sociology, politics, and social and civic culture. Moreover, it is an important read for activists, policymakers, and anyone interested in improving our democracy."
Political Science Quarterly, reviewed by Hahrie Han: "This book makes an important contribution to our understanding of the complex “imaginations” that ordinary citizens bring to their involvement in public life, as innovative for its content as for the way in which the book was
researched and written.... In sum, this book is an engaging, accessible description of civic life during one year in one town in America that helps us better understand this particular historical moment and, in doing so, better understand the forces that broadly shape participation in public life."
Related publications:
Politics and its Problems: Disavowal, Civil Society, and Democratic Renewal
American Journal of Sociology. September 2013. With Elizabeth Bennett, Gianpaolo Baiocchi, Peter Klein,
and Stephanie Savell.
Civic Imagination and Creative Campaigns: How Fresh Ideas Are Compromising Local Democracy
Metropolitics. October 2015. With Stephanie Savell, Gianpaolo Baiocchi, Elizabeth Bennett, and Peter Klein.