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Interest and pressure groups on government
Interest groups in democracy
Interest and pressure groups on government
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E.E. Schattschneider's argument in favor of interest groups, comes in his defined advantages of interest groups. Mainly that interest groups are "known, identifiable, and recognizable." This works to the interest groups advantages because it allows like-minded people to easily understand what the group stands for and join if they approve of the goals of the interest group. Notability can also be an advantage when lobbying Congress. Known groups may have more influential power to sway congressional votes. Schattschneider has commented on the exclusivity of interest groups being an advantage. Exclusivity can be a power tool to unite the members of an interest groups. It gives members a common identity that plays into the goals of the group.
Interest groups, lobbyists, large corporations, and PACs try to influence the congressional committees' bills so they can have a say in the legislative process. When an interest group hears about a bill that is being debated on in a committee, they try to influence a members vote and they try to get a part of the bill changed. For example, a lobbyist came to me on a bill I proposed on making health care plans have no minimum requirement on benefits the company gives to its patients. He told me about how he did not get the right treatments and tests done on diseases he has and now is suffering badly from them. It was because the health plan did not have to give him anything extra. He changed my mind on the bill, and I changed the bill to setting a minimum standard on benefits given to patients.
The dangers of faction can somewhat outweigh the good. The framers of the American Constitution feared the power that could possibly come about by organized interest groups. Madison wrote "The public good is disregarded in the conflict of rival factions citizens who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community." However, the framers believed that interest groups thrived because of freedom, the same privilege that Americans utilize to express their views. Madison saw direct democracy as a danger to individual rights and advocated a representative democracy to protect individual liberty, and the general public from the effects of such inequality in society. Madison says "A pure democracy can admit no cure for the mischief's of faction. A common passion or interest will be felt by a majority Hence it is, that democracies have ever been found incompatible with personal security or the rights of property; and have, in general, been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths."
An interest group is any organization that seeks to influence public policy. Interest groups are found in many societies, America being no exception. Theodore Lowi, Political Science Professor at Cornell University, explores the effects interest groups, or liberal pluralism, has had and will continue to have on politics in the United States. Lowi authored the work in the late 20th century but his arguments are still plausible today. The work is split into four parts, beginning with the origins and background on liberalism in the Unites States, then moving into issues with liberal governments, and lastly the book deals with other government systems beyond liberalism. Lowi himself describes his work as a textbook inquiry into the character of
We elect politicians on the basis on the issues by which they stand, and these issues are either held up or weakened by the numerous interest groups that exist today. Interest groups target both major and minor issues, using all of their resources to sponsor or overpower the groups’ concern. Interest groups are composed of a limited range of the body of voters who have a great stake in the issues their group support. They make evident the issues their group supports. Their resources are used in an attempt to make their issue public policy. Interest groups are persistent; they do not give up until they succeed. They lobby congress, take legal action, and attempt to influence election results in order to benefit their cause. ”The AARP monitors local and national legislation of interest to its members.”1 The AARP, an example of a non-PAC interest group, focus their efforts to electioneering and media. They influence the elections through their voter guides, election forums and the large senior voting population. Through television, radio, and periodicals the AARP is able to achieve many of their goals to aid retired persons.
Essentially, interest groups use many different tactics to accomplish their central goals but this paper will detail 2 of them. The first being lobbying, which is the act of persuading businesses as well as government leaders to help a specific organization by changing laws or creating events in favor of that group. Interest groups use this technique by hiring someone to represent them and advocate their cause to on the behalf of the entire group. These hired representatives usually have more than enough experience within the political field and are able to persuade connections within the government for help with their concerns. This method gets a lot of criticism because although lobbyist offer their input to government officials on pending laws, they only look at what is favorable for their cause. When trying to make a difference you have to not only reflect on your argument but on the side affects of that argument as
Sectional and Promotional Pressure Groups Sectional groups protect the interests of a section of society and act on their behalf, they are sometimes referred to as ‘self interest’ groups, some examples of sectional groups include BMA (British medical Association) and the TUC (Trades union congress). However promotional groups promote and argue a cause that is for the greater good – rather than sel interest, examples of promotional groups include Greenpeace U.K, Amnesty international and shelter. What methods do pressure groups employ to influence the political process? When thinking of ways to influence the political process pressure groups have to be careful when discussing tactics. They can either choose to take a direct approach, using direct action which includes demonstrations or they can opt to take action which is not such high profile.
Distinguish Between Sectional and Promotional Pressure Groups Sectional groups seek to represent the common interests of a particular section of society. As a result, members of sectional groups are directly and personally concerned with the outcome of the campaign fought by the group because they usually stand to gain professionally and/or economically. Trade unions, employers' associations and professional bodies are all sectional groups and membership is usually restricted. Promotional groups endeavour to promote a particular cause, and for this reason are sometimes called 'cause' groups. They are not self-interested in that the achievement of their objectives is not necessarily of direct professional or economic benefit to the members of the group.
These pluralistic interest groups are free to operate and lobby in the political arena, fighting against the majority and other competing factions for voice in Congress. With the influence of multiple factions operating throughout the political system, a balance of power is created (Kernell 2000, 429). This is much like the international theory of sovereign states balancing each other’s power to create a political system that focuses on stability, yet is always in a constant flux of power. With this in mind, special interest groups are constantly contending for power by raising money, campaigning, and lobbying in Congress. When a special interest group is threatened by a competing policy, the group will organize efforts to balance, or transcend the power of the competing group.
Pressure Groups Being Good for Democracy Pressure groups are organisations whose members share common interests and seek to influence governments. They can be classified in several different ways but the most important distinction is between insider and outsider groups. They are organisations that want to change policy but do not want to become the government. They focus on particular issues or areas of concern and can become involved in policy making by organising campaigns, sending letters, organising demonstrations and signing petitions. People join pressure groups to show their support for a particular issue and to join with other like-minded people in trying to influence our politicians.
Interest groups provide benefits to the citizens, which in return benefits the ruling government. Interest groups increase participation among the people and their government which makes it so that topics that the people believe their officials should be emphasizing are able to advance. Members of interest groups help people become passionate and feel as if they are making a difference in society and altering for the
Sharifian GOVT 2305 04/09/2017 NOCASH Disturbed by the constant increasing costs of attending college, me and a few other students at North Lake Community College decided to create an interest group called the National Organization of Collegiate American Students Needing Help or more extensively known as NOCASH. As explained on The Social Studies Help Center’s website, “An interest group is any organization that seeks to influence public policy.” Our group is a single-interest group and our main addressing issues are:
Pressure Groups and Their Influence on the Government Britain is often referred to as a homogenous society as the public. tend to share similar political views. However, more recently, there. has been a decline in membership to political parties and an increase. in the membership of pressure groups. In this essay I will define pressure groups, information surrounding such as the amount of power.
This essay concerns social influence in general. Aspects of social influence as such as majority influence and minority influence will be discussed in terms of their underlying psychological processes and how they differ. Majority influence or conformity refers to the desire to belong or to fit in within a particular group which involves adopting certain attributes, behaviour and attitudes of a particular group. As a result individuals consequently experience group pressure (in Baron, Branscombe & Byrne 2008). Minority influence on the other hand, refers to the influence that the minority exert over the majority in that the majority come to accept the beliefs and behaviours of a minority (in Baron et al. 2008).
This essay explores pressure groups and their role in democracy and society. It also discusses how pressure groups use the media as a communication strategy to influence.
Throughout this semester I have been determined to engage with this course as a whole. I have attended and engaged with all lectures, tutorials and excursions. This is not because I have had to attend but because I have never been this interested and motivated to attend. In addition to this I have followed up on my learning by looking further into inclusivity. I have done this by reading the articles and resources that have been provided by Peter and Richard on Black Board and in class, such as the Welcome to Holland article and the articles outlining how schools are failing students with disabilities.