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Chapter 11
Government - Interest Groups
20
Other
12th Grade
11/28/2010

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Term
Interest group
Definition
An organization of people with shared policy goals entering the policy process at several points to try to achieve those goals. Interest groups pursue their goals in many arenas.
Term
Pluralist theory
Definition
A theory of gobernment and politics emphasizing that politics is mainly a competition among groups, each one pressing for its own preferred policies.
Term
Elite theory
Definition
A theory of government and politics contending that societies are divided along class lines and that an upperclass elite will rule, regardless of the formal niceties of governmental organization.
Term
Hyperpluralist theory
Definition
A theory of government and politics contending that groups are so strong that government is weakened. Hyperpluralism is an extreme, exaggerated, or perverted form of pluralism.
Term
Subgovernments
Definition
A network of groups within the American political system that exercise a great deal of control over specific policy areas. Also known as iron triangles, subgovernments 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.
Term
Potential group
Definition
All the people who might be interest group members because they share some common interest. A potential group is almost always larger than an actual group.
Term
Actual group
Definition
That part of the potential group consisting of members who actually join.
Term
Collective good
Definition
Something of value (money, a tax write-off, presitge, clean air, and so on) that cannot be withheld from a group member.
Term
Free-rider problem
Definition
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.
Term
Olson's law of large groups
Definition
Advanced by Mancur Olson, a principle stating that "the larger the group, the further it will fall short of providing an optimal amount of a collective good."
Term
Selective Benefits
Definition
Goods (such as information publications, travel discounts, and group insurance rates) that a group can restrict to those who pay their annual dues.
Term
Single-issue groups
Definition
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.
Term
Lobbying
Definition
According to Lester Milbrath, a "communication, by someone other than a citizen acting on his own behalf, directed to a governmental decisionmaker with the hope of influencing his decision."
Term
Electioneering
Definition
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)
Term

Political action committees (PACs)

 

Definition
Political funding vehicles created by the 1974 campaign finance reforms. A corporation, union, or some other interest group can create a PAC and register it with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), which will meticulously monitor the PAC's expenditures.
Term
Amicus curiae briefs
Definition
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 briefs attempt to influence a court's decision.
Term
Class action suits
Definition
Lawsuits permitting a small number of people to sue on behalf of all other people similarly situated.
Term
Union shop
Definition
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.
Term
right-to-work law
Definition
A state law forbidding requirements that workers must join a union to hold their jobs. State right-to-work laws were specifically permitted by the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947.
Term
Public interest lobbies
Definition
According to Jeffrey Berry, oranizations that seek "a collective good, the achievement of which will not selectively and materially benefit the membership or activities of the organization."
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