ABSTRACT
This chapter turns to a specific case – the French 2005 European Constitutional Treaty referendum – as a perfect ground to analyse in detail the learning dynamics happening during referendum campaigns. Referendum campaigns in particular – be it on TV, the radio, the internet or face-to-face in town hall meetings or door-to-door canvassing – should increase voters' level of information about the issue. Most research has indeed focused on the impact of referendums on public policies or the conditions for winning. Another positive effect expected from initiatives and referendums is that they could increase trust in government and satisfaction with democracy. Direct democracy, by multiplying the sources of participation and making the political process more intensive, should increase citizens' interest in politics and their level of political sophistication. Beyond the Swiss case, Benz and Stutzer show that citizens in states with direct-democratic institutions are better informed than citizens in purely representative states.
