UNIT 5
CHAPTER 11: INTEREST
GROUPS
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Unit 5- Chapter 11 Study Guide, page 1
1. Provide a definition of the term “interest groups.”
2. Name two factors that distinguish interest groups from political parties.
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2.
3. Complete the following table on the theories of interest group politics.
Theory
Definition
Role of Groups
Who Holds Power
4. List five essential arguments of the group theory of politics.
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2.
3.
4.
5.
5. List four major points made by the elitist view of the interest group system.
1.
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4.
6. List the three major points of the hyperpluralist position on group politics.
Unit 5- Chapter 11 Study Guide, page 2
Group Impact on
Public Policy
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2.
3.
7. What is the difference between a potential group and an actual group?
8. What is Olson’s law of large groups?
9. Define the term “single-issue group” and give an example.
10. List the four general strategies used by interest groups to shape public policy.
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2.
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11. What are the two basic types of lobbyists?
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2.
12. List four important ways lobbyists can help a member of Congress.
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4.
13. Why does PAC money go so overwhelmingly to incumbents?
Unit 5- Chapter 11 Study Guide, page 3
14. What is an amicus curiae brief? How can interest groups use it to their benefit?
15. What was the main purpose of the Taft-Hartley Act?
16. What are the two main organizations that speak for corporations and business?
1.
2.
17. What is meant by a public interest lobby?
18. List three items environmental groups have promoted and three items they have opposed.
Promoted:
1.
2.
3.
Opposed:
1.
2.
3.
19. Name two important organizations involved in promoting equality and summarize their major goals.
1.
2.
Unit 5- Chapter 11 Study Guide, page 4
20. Summarize the pluralist, elitist, and hyperpluralist perspectives on interest groups and democracy.
1. Pluralist
2. Elitist
3. Hyperpluralist
21. How do interest groups affect the scope of government?
Unit 5- Chapter 11 Study Guide, page 5
KEY TERMS
1. subgovernments
2. collective good
3. free-rider problem
4. selective benefits
5. lobbying
6. electioneering
7. Political Action Committees (PACs)
8. class action lawsuits
9. union shop
10. right-to-work laws
Unit 5- Chapter 11 Study Guide, page 6
KEY CONCEPTS
1. An interest group is an organized body of individuals with shared goals who try to
influence government policy. Their activities are protected by the Constitution.
2. American society contains a vast array of interest groups which have grown
dramatically in number since the 1960s. Traditional occupational groups have been
supplemented by an increase in public interest groups and lobbying operations
sponsored by corporations and state and local government bodies. Moreover, policy
making now takes place in often more complex and conflictual group environments than
in the recent past.
3. The influence of individual interest groups depends on such factors as the nature of
a group's membership, its financial and leadership resources, its prestige and status,
and government structure, rules, and procedures.
4. Groups try to influence any branch or level of government that they believe will
respond to their concerns. The tactics used by interest groups include direct and grassroots lobbying, PAC contributions and other forms of electoral support, efforts to shape
public opinion, and demonstrations and protests.
5. Interest groups are linkage institutions as they supplement the formal and geographic
system of congressional representation by providing citizens with an informal means of
influencing government. Not all Americans are equally represented by the interest
group system. Although every American is free to organize and participate in interest
group activity, the people most likely to participate are the better educated and those
with financial resources.
Unit 5- Chapter 11 Study Guide, page 7
SUMMARY
1. What Are Interest Groups?
Those who study interest groups have offered a variety of definitions to explain
what they are. Most definitions revolve around notions of "associations or groups of
individuals" who "share" some sort of "common" "interest" or "attitude" and who try to
"influence" or "engage in activity" to affect "governmental policies" or the people in
"government."
2. Types of Interest Groups
In general, interest groups represent economic or social interests of the public
and are single- or multi-issue.
3. The Roots of American Interest Groups
Interest groups, national in scope, did not begin to emerge until around the
1830s. Beginning in the 1960s, hundreds of new interest groups were formed; many of
them were Washington, D.C.- based in order to better advance their interests in the
nation's capital. This time, however, a new, more effective breed of conservative groups
arose to counter their claims before legislatures, as well as in the courts. Professional
associations, too, became an active presence in Washington, D.C.
4. What Do Interest Groups Do?
Interest groups often fill voids left by the major political parties and give
Americans opportunities to make claims, as a group, on government. The most
common activity of interest groups is lobbying, which takes many forms. Groups
routinely pressure members of Congress and their staffs, the president and the
bureaucracy, and the courts; they use a variety of techniques to educate and stimulate
the public also to pressure key governmental decision makers. Interest groups also
attempt to influence the outcome of elections; some even run their own candidates for
office. Others rate elected officials to inform their members how particular legislators
stand on issues of importance to them. Political action committees (PACs), a way for
some groups to contribute money to candidates for office, are another method of
gaining support from elected officials and ensuring that their "friends" stay in office.
Reaction to public criticism of this influence led Congress to pass the first major
lobbying reforms in 50 years.
5. What Makes an Interest Group Successful?
Just as groups are diverse, so are the ways in which they become successful
and measure their success. Strong leaders or patrons are critical to the success of
most interest groups, as are adequate resources, whether in the form of a dedicated
membership or a reliable source of funds. Leaders and funds allow groups to engage in
a variety of lobbying activities and, once they get the programs or laws they seek, to
monitor their implementation.
6. Changing the Interest Group Society
We are at a defining point in our interest group society. Fewer people are joining
groups; but, a the same time, some interest groups and political action committees play
increasingly important roles in politics, much to the chagrin of many voters.
Unit 5- Chapter 11 Study Guide, page 8