ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on a few of the most fundamental constitutional and political institutions that shape the relationship between citizens and their elected representatives in Germany. It discusses some recent empirical evidence on the behavioural and attitudinal aspects of this relationship. The chapter looks at a number of problems in the relationship between citizens and Member of Parliament (MP). The constituency role of the MP would appear to benefit the political system in that MPs, as constituency MPs, appear to be fulfilling a role expected of them by citizens. The link between the parliament and citizen, in terms of direct contact, is through the individual Member of Parliament. The increase in demands made of MPs by constituents may be attributed to the growth in the public sector – creating more public bodies with which citizens had contact – and to the expansion of secondary and tertiary education and the mass media.
