Effective Citizenship: How We Can Make the World Better and Why We Don't

In Effective Citizenship, Jonathan Baron explores how bad government is supported by citizen's preferences, and how individuals can use their limited political influence to maximize positive outcomes. He proposes three social norms that could lead to more effective citizenship: concern for the whole world (cosmopolitanism), reluctance to impose idiosyncratic moral views on others (anti-moralism), and actively open-minded thinking (AOT). Further, Baron argues that political participation--such as voting--can be more beneficial than charity or ethical consumption.