James S. Fishkin

James S. Fishkin
Fishkin at the first edition of the Democracy 2050 conference, organized by the Tribu Foundation in Santiago de Chile in 2018
Born	1948 (age 75–76)
Education	Yale University (BA, PhD); Cambridge University (PhD)
Occupation(s)	Professor, author
Notable work	Deliberative Polling
Title	Janet M. Peck Chair in International Communication, Stanford University

James S. Fishkin (born 1948) is an American political scientist and communications scholar. He holds the Janet M. Peck Chair in International Communication in the Department of Communication at Stanford University, where he serves as a professor of communication and, by courtesy, political science. He also acts as the director of Stanford’s Deliberative Democracy Lab. Fishkin is widely cited for his work on deliberative democracy, with his proposition of Deliberative Polling in 1988 being particularly influential. Together with Robert Luskin, Fishkin's work has led to over 100 deliberative polls in 28 countries.

Career

Fishkin earned his BA and Ph.D. in political science from Yale University, and his second Ph.D. in philosophy from King's College, Cambridge University. He currently leads the Deliberative Democracy Lab at Stanford University. He has held numerous fellowships, including a Guggenheim fellowship, a fellowship at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford, a fellowship at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, and a visiting fellow commoner role at Trinity College, Cambridge. Fishkin was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2014.

Deliberative polling

Main article: Deliberative opinion poll

The deliberative opinion poll, a concept proposed by Fishkin, involves gathering a representative random sample of people to deliberate on a specific issue. Participants are provided with briefing materials, carefully designed to represent all viewpoints in a balanced manner. After a day or more of deliberation, they are asked to register their considered opinions. These decisions have been used in various contexts such as electing candidates in primaries (e.g., in Greece), recommending policy decisions (e.g., in China and Texas), among other applications. It also served as the foundation for "Power and the People," a Channel 4 program on which Fishkin consulted, airing in the UK from 1994 to 1999.

Publications

Books

Deliberative democracy

• Fishkin, James S. Democracy When the People Are Thinking: Revitalizing Our Politics Through Public Deliberation. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.
• Fishkin, James S. When the People Speak: Deliberative Democracy and Public Consultation. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009. Paperback edition, 2010. Japanese edition, 2010; Chinese edition, in press.
• Ackerman, Bruce; Fishkin, James S. Deliberation Day. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2004.
• Laslett, Peter; Fishkin, James S. Debating Deliberative Democracy. Oxford: Blackwell, 2003.
• Fishkin, James S. The Voice of the People: Public Opinion and Democracy. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1995; expanded paperback edition, Fall 1997.
• Fishkin, James S. The Dialogue of Justice: Toward a Self-Reflective Society. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1992; paperback edition, 1996.
• Fishkin, James S. Democracy and Deliberation: New Directions for Democratic Reform. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1991; paperback edition, 1993.
• Laslett, Peter; Fishkin, James S. (Eds). Philosophy, Politics and Society, Sixth Series: Justice Between Age Groups and Generations. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1992.

Political theory and philosophy

• Goodin, Robert E.; Fishkin, James S. (Eds). Population and Political Theory (PPAS - Philosophy, Politics & Society). Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2010.
• Fishkin, James S. Beyond Subjective Morality: Ethical Reasoning and Political Philosophy. Yale University Press, 1986.
• Fishkin, James S. Justice, Equal Opportunity and the Family. Yale University Press,1984.
• Fishkin, James S. Limits of Obligation. Yale University Press, 1982.
• Fishkin, James S. Tyranny and Legitimacy: A Critique of Political Theories. The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1979.

Journal papers

• Sandefur, J., Birdsall, N., Fishkin, J., & Moyo, M. (2022). Deliberative Democracy and the Resource Curse: A Nationwide Experiment in Tanzania. World Politics, 74(4), 564-609. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0043887122000090
• Fishkin, J. (2021). Deliberative Public Consultation via Deliberative Polling: Criteria and Methods. Hastings Cent. Rep., 51(52), S19-S24. https://doi.org/10.1002/hast.1316
• Fishkin, J., Siu, A., Diamond, L. ., & Bradburn, N. (2021). Is Deliberation an Antidote to Extreme Partisan Polarization? Reflections on “America in One Room”. American Political Science Review, 115(4), 1464-1481. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1017/S0003055421000642
• Luskin, R., Sood, G., Fishkin, J. ., & Hahn, K. . (2021). Deliberative Distortions? Homogenization, Polarization, and Domination in Small Group Discussions. British Journal of Political Science, (2022), 21. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007123421000168
• Wang, R., Fishkin, J., & Luskin, R. (2020). Does Deliberation Increase Public-Spiritedness?. Social Science Quarterly, 101(6), 2163-2182. https://doi.org/10.1111/ssqu.12863
• Fishkin, J. (2019). Response to Critics: Toward the Reform of Actually Existing Democracies. The Good Society, 27, 190-210. https://doi.org/10.5325/goodsociety.27.1-2.0190
• Kim, N., Fishkin, J., & Luskin, R. (2018). Intergroup Contact in Deliberative Contexts: Evidence From Deliberative Polls. Journal of Communication, 68(6), 1029-1051. https://doi.org/10.1093/joc/jqy056
• Fishkin, J. (2018). Random Assemblies for Lawmaking? Prospects and Limits. Politics & Society, 46(3), 359-379. https://doi.org/10.1177/0032329218789889
• Fishkin, J., & Zandanshatar, G. (2017, September 17). Deliberative Polling for Constitutional Change in Mongolia: An Unprecedented Experiment. Constitution Net.
• Fishkin, J., Mayega, R., Atuyambe, L., Tumuhamye, N., Ssentongo, J., Siu, A., & Bazeyo, W. (2017). Applying Deliberative Democracy in Africa: Uganda’s First Deliberative Polls. Daedalus, 146(3), 140-154. https://doi.org/10.1162/DAED_ a_00453

• Fishkin, James S.; Luskin, Robert C.; Siu, Alice (September 2014). "Europolis and the European Public Sphere: Empirical Applications of a Counter-factual Ideal". European Union Politics. 15 (3): 328–351. doi:10.1177/1465116514531507. S2CID 18309974.
• Fishkin, James S. (December 2013). "Deliberation by the People Themselves: Entry Points for the Public Voice". Election Law Journal: Rules, Politics, and Policy. 12 (4): 490–507. doi:10.1089/elj.2013.0200.
• Fishkin, James S.; List, Christian; Luskin, Robert C.; MacLean, Ian (January 2013). "Deliberation, Single-Peakedness and the Possibility of Meaningful Democracy". The Journal of Politics. 75 (1): 80–95. doi:10.1017/S0022381612000886. S2CID 6733552.
• Fishkin, James S.; Luskin, Robert C.; O'Flynn, Ian; Russell, David (December 2012). "Deliberating Across Deep Divides". Political Studies. 62 (1): 116–135. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.176.6894. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9248.2012.01005.x. S2CID 143401614.
• Fishkin, James S.; Luskin, Robert C. (September 2005). "Experimenting with a democratic ideal: deliberative polling and public opinion". Acta Politica. 40 (3): 284–298. doi:10.1057/palgrave.ap.5500121. S2CID 144393786.
• Fishkin, James S.; Luskin, Robert C. (September 2005). "The quest for deliberative democracy". The Good Society. 9 (1): 4–9. JSTOR 20710913.
• Fishkin, James S.; List, Christian; McLean, Iain; Luskin, Robert (2002). Can deliberation induce greater preference structuration: evidence from deliberative opinion polls? Paper presented at the meeting of the American Political Science Association, Boston, 26 August – 1 September.
• Fishkin, James S.; Jowell, Roger; Luskin, Robert C. (July 2002). "Considered opinions: deliberative polling in Britain". British Journal of Political Science. 32 (3): 455–487. doi:10.1017/S0007123402000194.