INTRO TO POLITICAL SCIENCE

WEEK 10

DOÇ. DR. EROL KALKAN

GROUPS, INTERESTS AND MOVEMENTS

• in the 1950s and 1960s, at the high point of enthusiasm about ‘group politics’, it was
widely asserted that busi- ness interests, trade unions, farm lobbies and the like had
displaced assemblies and parties as the key political actors. The interest group
universe was further expanded, particularly from the 1960s onwards, by the growth of
single-issue protest groups taking up causes ranging from consumer protection to
animal rights and from sexual equality to environmental protection. Such groups were
often associated with broader social movements (the women’s movement, the civil-
rights movement, the green movement and so on) and were characterized by the
adoption of new styles of activism and campaigning, sometimes termed ‘new politics’.
 •  What are interest groups, and what different
forms do they take?  What have been the major
theories of group politics?
 Do groups help or hinder democracy and
KE Y effective government?  How do interest groups
exert influence?
I S S U E S
•  What determines the success or failure of
interest groups?

•  Why have new social movements emerged,

and what is their broader significance
TYPES OF GROUP

• Groups can be classified into three types:

•  communal groups

• The chief characteristic of communal groups is that they are embedded in the social fabric, in the sense that membership is b ased on birth,
rather than recruit- ment. Examples of such groups are families, tribes, castes and ethnic groups.

•
 institutional groups :

• Institutional groups are groups that are part of the machinery of government and attempt to exert influence in and through that machinery.
They differ from interest groups in that they enjoy no measure of autonomy or independ- ence. Bureaucracies and the military are the
clearest examples of institutional groups, and, not uncommonly, each of these contains a number of competing interests.

•
•  associational groups.

• Associational groups are ones that are formed by people who come together to
pursue shared, but limited, goals. Groups as associations are characterized by
voluntary action and the existence of common interests, aspirations or attitudes. The
most obvious examples of associational groups are thus what are usually thought of as
interest groups or pressure groups.

• The two most common classifications are:

•  sectional and promotional groups  insider and outsider groups.

• Sectional groups (sometimes called protective or functional groups) exist to advance or
protect the (usually material) interests of their members. Trade unions, business
corporations, trade associations and professional bodies are the prime examples of this
type of group. Their ‘sectional’ character is derived from the fact that they represent a
section of society: workers, employers, consumers, an ethnic or religious group, and so on.

• In contrast, promotional groups (sometimes termed cause or attitude groups) are set up to
advance shared values, ideals or principles. These causes are many and diverse. They
include ‘pro-choice’ and ‘pro-life’ lobbies on abortion, campaigns in favour of civil liberties
or against sex and violence on television, protests about pollution and animal cruelty or in
defence of traditional or reli- gious values.
• Insider groups enjoy regular, privileged and usually institutionalized access to government through
routine consultation or representation on government bodies. In many cases there is an overlap
between sectional and insider classifi- cations. This reflects the ability of key economic interests, such
as business groups and trade unions, to exert powerful sanctions if their views are ignored by
government. Government may also be inclined to consult groups that possess specialist knowledge and
information that assists in the formulation of workable policy.

• Outsider groups, on the other hand, are either not consulted by government or consulted only
irregularly and not usually at a senior level. In many cases outsider status is an indication of weakness,
in that, lacking formal access to government, these groups are forced to ‘go public’ in the hope of
exercising indi- rect influence on the policy process.
MODELS OF GROUP POLITICS

•  pluralism
 corporatism
 the New Right.
• Pluralist model
• Pluralist theories offer the most positive image of group politics. They stress the capacity of
groups to both defend the individual from government and promote democratic
responsiveness. The core theme of pluralism (see p. 100) is that polit- ical power is
fragmented and widely dispersed. Decisions are made through a complex process of
bargaining and interaction that ensures that the views and interests of a large number of
groups are taken into account
• Corporatist model

• Corporatist models of group politics differ from pluralism in that they attempt to trace the implications of the
closer links that have developed in industrialized societies between groups and the state. Corporatism is a
social theory that emphasizes the privileged position that certain groups enjoy in relation to government,
enabling them to influence the formulation and implementation of public policy. S

• New Right model

• The antipathy of the New Right towards interest groups is derived, ideologically, from the individualism that
lies at the heart of neoliberal economics. Social groups and collective bodies of all kinds are therefore viewed
with suspicion. This is clearly reflected in the New Right’s preference for a market economy driven by self-
reliance and entrepreneuralism. However, the New Right has expressed particular concern about the alleged
link between corporatism and escalating public spending and the associated problems of over-government.
 PATTER N S OF GR OU P POLI TI CS
H O W I M P O R TA N T A R E I N T E R E S T G R O U P S ?

• The principal factors determining group influence are the following:

•  the political culture

 the institutional structure
 the nature of the party system
 the nature and style of public policy.
HOW DO GROUPS EXERT INFLUENCE?

• Interest groups have at their disposal a broad range of tactics and political strate- gies.

• The methods that groups use vary according to a number of factors. These include the issue with which the
group is concerned and how policy in that area is shaped.

• the nature of the group and the resources at its disposal are crucial determinants of its political strategy. These
resources include the following:

•  public sympathy for the group and its goals

 the size of its membership or activist base
 its financial strength and organizational capabilities

•  its ability to use sanctions that in some way inconvenience or disrupt government

•  personal or institutional links it may have to political parties or government bodies.

1. The methods used by interest groups are shaped by the channel of access through
which influ- ence is exerted. The principal channels of access available are:

2.  the bureaucracy
 the assembly
 the courts
 political parties
 the mass media
 international organizations.
SOCIAL MOVEMENTS

• Interest in social movements has been revived by the emergence of so-called ‘new’
social movements since the 1960s: the women’s movement, the environ- mental or
green movement, the peace movement, and so on. However, social movements can
be traced back to the early nineteenth century. The earliest were the labour
movement, which campaigned for improved conditions for the growing working class,
various national movements, usually struggling for inde- pendence from multinational
European empires, and, in central Europe in particular, a Catholic movement that
fought for emancipation through the granting of legal and political rights to Catholics.
SUMMARY

• 􏰂 An interest or pressure group is an organized association that aims to influence the policies or actions of
government. Sectional groups advance or protect the (usually material) interests of their members, while promotional
ones are concerned with shared values, ideals or principles. Whereas insider groups enjoy privi- leged access to policy
formulation, outsider groups lack access to government and so are forced to ‘go public’.

• 􏰂 Group politics has been understood in a number of ways. Pluralism emphasizes the dispersal of power and the
ability of groups to guarantee democratic accountability. Corporatism highlights the privileged position that certain
groups enjoy in relation to government. The New Right draws attention to the threat that groups pose in terms of over -
government and economic inefficiency.

• 􏰂 Organized groups benefit the political system by strengthening representation, promoting debate and discus - sion,
broadening political participation and acting as a check on government power. They may, nevertheless, pose a threat,
in that they entrench political inequality, are socially and politically divisive, exercise non- legitimate and
unaccountable power, and make the policy process more closed and secretive.
• 􏰂 Interest groups exert influence through a variety of channels, including the bureaucracy, the assembly, the courts,
the mass media, the parties and international bodies. The level of influence that groups have in a particular system,
however, relates to how accommodating that system is to group activity in general, and to what access points it offers
groups in terms of the distribution of policy-making power.

• 􏰂 Interest groups have at their disposal a wide range of tactics and political strategies. Their resources may include
public sympathy for the group and its goals, the size of its membership or activist base, its financial strength and
organizational capabilities, its ability to use sanctions against government and its personal or institutional links with
political parties or government bodies.

• 􏰂 A social movement is a collective body in which there is a high level of commitment and political activism not
necessarily based on a formal organization. New social movements are distinguished by their capacity to attract the
young, better-educated and relatively affluent; their generally postmaterial orientation; and their commitment to new
forms of political activism, sometimes called the ‘new politics’.