ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the relationship between electoral institutions and public preferences because past research suggests that public preferences play a critical role in policy-making. The focus on public preferences is also suitable because there are several studies showing a connection between electoral institutions and various elements of public opinion and behavior. Finally, a similar conclusion can be derived from a study by Althaus, which used statistical models to simulate "fully informed" public preferences. In that study, each survey respondent's political preferences were adjusted to match the predicted preferences of a respondent who shares the same set of demographic characteristics but who also possesses the highest level of political information. This study focuses on the institutions that most influence diversity and dissent, particularly the proportionality of the electoral system and the fragmentation of the party systems. To measure the proportionality of electoral systems, I use Lijphart's effective threshold indicator.
