Document Type
Article
Publication Date
8-1-2011
Abstract
In this study, we explore the determinants of cosponsorship activity within state legislatures. Utilizing a social dynamic framework, we develop and test a model of the interplay of the activities of sponsorship and cosponsorship that includes both individual-level and social network characteristics as determinants of agenda-setting behavior; the latter demonstrating how collaboration and mutual interests shape the agenda-setting process. We find several consistent factors that influence the frequency of cosponsorship activity: (1) ideological distance, (2) proximity of legislators' districts, (3) homophily (similar characteristics such as race, gender, and ethnicity), and (4) transitivity (the idea that friends of my friends are also my friends). © 2011 The Comparative Legislative Research Center of The University of Iowa.
Publication Source (Journal or Book title)
Legislative Studies Quarterly
First Page
423
Last Page
460
Recommended Citation
Bratton, K., & Rouse, S. (2011). Networks in the legislative arena: How group dynamics affect cosponsorship. Legislative Studies Quarterly, 36 (3), 423-460. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1939-9162.2011.00021.x