Chapter 9: Interest Groups

citizens’ groups (noneconomic groups)

organized interests formed by individuals drawn together by opportunities to promote a cause in which they believe but that does not provide them significant individual economic benefits

collective (public) goods

benefits that are offered by groups (usually citizens’ groups) as an incentive for membership but that are non-divisible (such as a clean environment) and therefore are available to nonmembers as well as members of the particular group

economic groups

interest groups that are organized primarily for economic reasons but that engage in political activity in order to seek favorable policies from government

free-rider problem

the situation in which the benefits offered by a group to its members are also available to nonmembers

the incentive to join the group and to promote its cause is reduced because nonmembers (free riders) receive the benefits (for example, a cleaner environment) without having to pay any of the group’s costs

inside lobbying

direct communication between organized interests and policymakers, which is based on the assumed value of close (“inside”) contacts with policymakers

interest groups

organizations that actively seek to influence public policy

iron triangle

a small and informal but relatively stable group of well-positioned legislators, executives, and lobbyists who seek to promote policies beneficial to a particular interest

issue network

an informal and relatively open network of public officials and lobbyists who come together in response to a proposed policy in an area of interest to each of them

(unlike an iron triangle, an issue network disbands after the issue is resolved) - temporary

lobbying

the process by which interest-group members and lobbyists attempt to influence public policy through contacts with public officials

outside lobbying

a form of lobbying in which an interest group seeks to use public pressure as a means of influencing officials

political action committee (PAC)

the organization through which an interest group raises and distributes funds for election purposes

by law, the funds must be raised through voluntary contributions

private (individual) goods

benefits that a group (most often an economic group) can grant directly and exclusively to individual members of the group

super PACs

election committees that are unrestricted in their fundraising and spending as long as they do not coordinate their campaign efforts with that of a candidate