Democracy and Interest Groups: Enhancing Participation?

242 Pages·2007·0.929 MB·English

by  Grant Jordan, William A. Maloney (auth.)

Democracy and Interest Groups
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Democracy and Interest
Groups
Enhancing Participation?
Grant Jordan
ProfessorofPolitics
UniversityofAberdeen,UK
and
William A. Maloney
ProfessorofPolitics
UniversityofNewcastle,UK
©GrantJordanandWilliamA.Maloney2007
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2007 978-0-333-76333-9
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Contents
ListofFiguresandTables vi
Acknowledgements viii
1 LookingforDemocracy:TheDemocraticContribution
ofMembership-basedInterestGroups 1
2 TheCollectiveActionParadox:WhatIncentivesInduce
Participation?OlsonDefied? 38
3 MakingInterests:CreatingMembers? 70
(Co-authored with Sara Davidson)
4 TheBusinessofBuildingGroupMembership 86
5 UnderstandingJoining–AndNotJoining 113
6 TheSocialCapitalandDemocraticPotentialofCampaigning
Organizations 145
7 ReinforcingPolyarchy:WhatGroupsDoforDemocracy? 171
Notes 193
References 208
NameIndex 223
SubjectIndex 227
v
List of Figures and Tables
Figures
1.1 TheformationdateofBritishAssociationsasreportedin
the2006DirectoryofBritishAssociations(percentageper
decadeforgroupswithknowndatesoforigin). 4
1.2 The total number of US groups listed in the
EncyclopaediaofAssociations,1956–2003. 4
2.1 GrowthinFederationofSmallBusinesses’membership
(directsalesintroducedin1992). 50
Tables
1.1 Samplingproceduresandresponserates 35
2.1 Assumptionsofthenarrowandwideversionsofthe
theoryofrationalaction 55
4.1 Howsupportersareattractedtocampaigningorganizations 96
5.1 ‘Most important’ method of attracting support:
CampaigninggroupsbysizevsALLgroups 122
5.2 Primarypurposeofgroup:Campaigninggroupsbysizevs
ALLgroups 124
5.3 Benefitsofferedtomembers/supporters:Campaigning
groupsbysizevsALLgroups 126
5.4 The‘mostimportant’benefitforattractingandretaining
support 128
5.5 Reasonsfororganizationalsupport:Campaigninggroups
bysizevsALLgroups 131
5.6 Greaterlossofsupport:Campaigninggroupsbysizevs
ALLgroups 133
5.7 Explaining membership, standardized coefficients
(EnvironmentalgroupmembersvsPro-environmental
non-members) 140
6.1 Membershipandparticipationinorganizations 149
6.2 Areasofcampaigninggroupsinvolvement:Campaigning
groupsbysizevsALLgroups 151
6.3 Mostimportantorganizationalactivity:Campaigning
groupsbysizevsALLgroups 152
vi
ListofFiguresandTables vii
6.4 Mainorganizationalactivities:Campaigninggroupsby
sizevsALLgroups 152
6.5 Lobbyingstrategies:CampaigninggroupsbysizevsALL
groups 154
6.6 Lobbyingtargets:CampaigninggroupsbysizevsALL
groups 155
6.7 Importance of supporters to the organization:
CampaigninggroupsbysizevsALLgroups 157
6.8 Localorganizationaldimension:Campaigninggroups
bysizevsALLgroups 160
6.9 Levelofactivemembers:Campaigninggroupsbysizevs
ALLgroups 164
6.10 Intra electoral turnout (for groups with voting
opportunities) 164
6.11 Participationindecision-makingforums:Campaigning
groupsbysizevsALLgroups 165
6.12 Methodsusedtogaugeopinionsonwhyindividuals
supportorfailtosupporttheorganization 167
7.1 Loyalty:Directmailanddirectdialogue 183
Acknowledgements
The research for this book was funded under the ESRC Democracy
and Participation Programme (1215252038). In the preparation of this
text we benefited from the comments and advice of many colleagues
at: several Democracy and Participation Programme meetings; depart-
mental seminars in Aberdeen, Dublin, Mannheim and Paris; and at
the following annual conferences – American Political Science Associ-
ation (2003), Meeting of Midwest Political Science Association (2003),
the Joint Sessions of the European Consortium for Political Research
(2004)andthePoliticalStudiesAssociation(2002).Specificallywewish
to thank Jan van Deth, Frank Baumgartner, Martin Elff, Joan Font
Fàbregas,MarkFranklin,WynGrant,PeterJohn,DavidLowery,Robert
McMaster, Michael Marsh, Neil Mitchell, Linda Stevenson, Stephanie
Stuck, Eric Uslaner, Sonja Zmerli and the anonymous reviewer of this
bookappointedbyPalgrave.Ourdatacollectiondependedonutilizing
eligibleparticipantsidentifiedinthelargeCitizenAuditsurveyorches-
tratedbyPaulWhiteley,PatrickSeydandCharlesPattieandwearevery
gratefulfortheirfullsupportandunhesitatingcooperation.Withoutin
anywaydiminishingourgratitudetotheabovecolleagues,wemustgive
specialmentiontoSigridRoßteutscher.Wewouldalsoliketoacknow-
ledgeresearchsupportfromEmmaClarence,particularlywithregardto
datacollection,andtoJenniferLees-Marshmentinthedevelopmentof
theBeliefsandActionsProjectfromwhichthisresearchisdrawn.Finally,
weareparticularlygratefultoSaraDavidson.Herexplorationsonpublic
opinionarrivedatthesamedestinationasusfromourgroupdirection.
WeweredelightedthatsheagreedtojoinusinChapter3.Asalways,we
accept full responsibility for the text below, while co-authors naturally
retainthetraditionalrighttopointtoeachother.
GrantJordan,Aberdeen
WilliamA.Maloney,Newcastle
viii
1
Looking for Democracy:
The Democratic Contribution
of Membership-based
Interest Groups
Beyond ‘direct’ democracy lies an infinite wealth of possible
forms in which the ‘people’ may partake in the business of
rulingorinfluenceorcontrolthosewhoactuallydotheruling
(Schumpeter,1943:247).
Democracywithoutorganizationisinconceivable(cid:2)(cid:2)(cid:2)Butdirect
democracy falls down in the face of increasing numbers. The
individualplainman,swallowedupinaseaofhighlydifferen-
tiatedhumanbeings,findsitnecessarytoorganizewithothers
of a like mind so that by concerted action they may bend
the state to their will. Political parties are one result of this
process.Butpoliticalpartiesinvariablyincludeadherentswhose
wills are hopelessly at variance upon all but a very few ques-
tions(cid:2)(cid:2)(cid:2)It is this situation which has engendered the pressure
group(Odegard,1928:Preface).
It is a fundamental property – and perhaps defect – of demo-
cracy that citizens may watch laws being made, and when
they do so they often compare democracy to its image and
then reject the actual process with righteous disdain, even
outrage, opaquely dismissing it as bickering and correctly, but
uncomprehendingly, labelling it ‘politics as usual’. Effectively,
however, politics as usual is the same as democracy in action
(Mueller,1999:248).
1