Who Rules The New Haven?

The existence of the city as a sub-national space form is one of the basic forms of organization of modern society.Urban power is undoubtedly the core issue in urban political research.In 1953,Hunter really turned urban politics into a focus on urban power structure research.Over the next three decades,the controversy over "urban power" between the elite of Hunt,Mills,Domhoff,and the pluralism represented by Dahl,Polsby and West has always been accompanied by urban power The development of theory.Among them,Dahl and Domhoff between the "who rules the New Haven?" Controversy is quite representative.In trying to answer the question of "who rules the New Haven?",Dahl used the decision-making method to conduct empirical research on three areas: political nomination,public education and urban renewal.He argues that there is no ruling class in New Haven,but important decisions are dominated by government officials who are subject to different groups and voters.Domhoff used a network analysis to provide exactly the opposite answer.Domhoff believes that wealthy businessmen occupy the upper and rule New Haven or even the United States.Along Dahl and Domhoff for the study of the basic theory of urban power and the empirical study of New Haven two main lines.This article first describes the definition of power,the methodology,and the scope of the study of the power of the city between Dahl and Domhoff.On this basis,to describe Dahl and Domhoff in the following questions on the existence of the differences:(1)influencing the allocation of resources inequality is "cumulative" or "non-cumulative".Does the type of leadership be oligarchic or pluralistic?(2)how important decisions are made?(3)Who has the greatest impact on decision making?(4)What is the relative importance of the most widely distributed political resources-the right to vote?Leaders usually respond to the interests of the few citizens of the upper classes-or are the responses to the interests of most ordinary voters?(5)Is the pattern of influence lasting or changing?(6)What is the significance of universal support for the "American Creed" of democracy and equality?Domhoff did not systematically carry out criticism of each issue,but along the celebrity and economic celebrity overlap and urban renewal decision on both sides of the Dahl to criticize.Through the study of this paper,Dahl and Domhoff in the face of controversy and criticism,in the theoretical direction have produced a certain change.Dahl absorbed some of the views of elitism,and gradually turned to multiple elitism.Domhoff is more to absorb the Marxist class methods and views,put forward to the corporate community as the core of the dominant theory of domination.Now the academic community for the existence of a comparative study of urban power research paradigm is still controversial.therefore,China's urban power research should be based on learning and drawing on the existing academic achievements of the West,combined with China's specific national conditions and political context,the formation of Chinese characteristics with the city power research system.