Invented State

Many Americans misjudge what their government actually does, and the book argues that these errors come not from carelessness, low intelligence, or party loyalty. The core problem is that accurate information about current policy is hard to find, while news reporting tends to concentrate on political strategy, whatever is new, and whatever is changing.

When reliable facts are missing, people fill the gaps by reasoning from the cues around them, particularly on issues they care about. Those cues often include misleading claims from political leaders, and people also rely on mental shortcuts. Most of the conclusions they reach are wrong, and together they form what Thorson calls the "invented state," a body of widespread false beliefs about public policy.

The book shows that these misperceptions can be corrected, and that correction is very effective at dispelling false beliefs. Accurate information also shapes attitudes. When people learn how programs such as Social Security, refugee policy, and TANF actually work, they come to approve of them more and change which policy goals they rank highest. This challenges the common assumption that the public is indifferent to policy, suggesting instead that people strongly want to learn the basic workings of their government.