Ap Us Go Po: Ch 11 - Interest Groups

Front 1

interest group

Back 1

An organization of people with shared policy goals entering the policy process at several points to try to achieve those goals. They pursue their goals in many arenas.

Front 2

pluralist theory

Back 2

A theory of government and politics emphasizing that politics is mainly a competition among groups, each one pressing for its own preferred policies.

Front 3

elite theory

Back 3

A theory of government and politics contending that societies are divided along class lines and that an upper-class elite will rule, regardless of the formal niceties of governmental organization.

Front 4

hyperpluralist theory

Back 4

A theory of government and politics contending that groups are so strong that government is weakened. It is an extreme, exaggerated, or perverted form of pluralism.

Front 5

subgovernments (iron triangles)

Back 5

A network of groups within the American political system that exercise a great deal of control over specific policy areas. They are composed of interest group leaders interested in a particular policy, the government agency in charge of administering that policy, and the members of congressional committees and subcommittees handling that policy.

Front 6

potential group

Back 6

All the people who might be interest group members because they share some common interest. It is almost always larger than an actual group.

Front 7

actual group

Back 7

That part of the potential group consisting of members who actually join.

Front 8

collective good

Back 8

Something of value (money, a tax write-off, prestige, clean air, and so on) that cannot be withheld from a group member.

Front 9

free-rider problem

Back 9

The problem faced by unions and other groups when people do not join because they can benefit from the group's activities without officially joining. The bigger the group, the more serious the problem.

Front 10

Olson's law of large groups

Back 10

A principle stating that "the larger the group, the further it will fall short of providing an optimal amount of a collective good."

Front 11

selective benefits

Back 11

Goods (such as information publications, travel discounts, and group insurance rates) that a group can restrict to those who pay their annual dues.

Front 12

single-issue groups

Back 12

Groups that have a narrow interest, tend to dislike compromise, and often draw membership from people new to politics. These features distinguish them from traditional interest groups.

Front 13

lobbying

Back 13

According to Lester Milbrath, a "communication, by someone other than a citizen acting on his own behalf, directed to a governmental decision maker with the hope of influencing his decision."

Front 14

electioneering

Back 14

Direct group involvement in the electoral process. Groups can help fund campaigns, provide testimony, and get members to work for candidates, and some form political action committees (PACs).

Front 15

political action committees (PACs)

Back 15

Political funding vehicles created by the 1974 campaign finance reforms. A corporation, union, or some other interest group can create one of these and register it with the Federal Election Commission, which will meticulously monitor its expenditures.

Front 16

amicus curiae briefs

Back 16

Legal briefs submitted by a "friend of the court" for the purpose of raising additional points of view and presenting information not contained in the briefs of the formal parties. These attempt to influence a court's decision.

Front 17

class action suits

Back 17

Lawsuits permitting a small number of people to sue on behalf of all other people similarly situated.

Front 18

union shop

Back 18

A provision found in some collective bargaining agreements requiring all employees of a business to join the union within a short period, usually 30 days, and to remain members as a condition of employment.

Front 19

right-to-work law

Back 19

A state law forbidding requirements that workers must join a union to hold their jobs. It was specifically permitted in states by the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947

Front 20

public interest lobbies

Back 20

According to Jeffery Berry, organizations that seek "a collective good, the achievement of which will not selectively and materially benefit the membership of activities of the organization."

Front 21

litigation

Back 21

If interest groups cannot get what they want from Congress or the state legislatures, they may sue. Filing lawsuits is engaging in ______.

Front 22

the "revolving door"

Back 22

slang term used to describe the practice of government officials quitting their jobs in government in order to become lobbyists who, in turn, use their inside knowledge and connections to benefit the corporations and groups for which they work by lobbying government

Front 23

functions of interest groups

Back 23

(1) raise awareness and stimulate interest in public affairs, (2) represent members based on shared attitudes instead of geography, (3) provide specialized information and expertise to government, (4) serve as vehicles for political participation, (5) provide additional checks and balances in the political process, and (6) compete with one another in the public arena

Front 24

criticisms of interest groups

Back 24

(1) some have disproportionate influence, (2) sometimes it's hard to tell just who or how many people the group represents, (3) many groups do not, in fact, represent the interests if the people for whom they claim to speak, (4) some use shady tactics that undermine our political system

Front 25

Grass roots

Back 25

Political activity that originates locally, or arises from ground level.