Interest Groups | Research & Encyclopedia Articles

Interest groups are an integral part of democratic systems: They allow individuals to become involved in the political process by advocating a cause or interest that is important to them. They are outlets for the people's expression of concern over certain issues. Interest groups in the United States have undergone many changes since the 1960s, but they still remain a strong and significant part the political process. Much can also be learned from studying interest groups through a comparative perspective.

An influential comparative analysis distinguishes two significant types of organized interest groups: institutional and associational groups. Institutional groups include large-scale organizations such as churches, militaries, and bureaucracies that serve important social or governmental functions that are not directly related to the interests of their members. Because of their size and importance, institutional interest groups are important participants in the political and policy making process in most countries, despite their nominal lack of focus on their members' political interests.

Associational interest groups are the types of groups that are most frequently referred to as interest groups in political analyses. They can be defined as groups of individuals or organizations that have come together in an organized way to promote an interest or set of interests. By organizing themselves into groups, individuals or organizations hope to influence the government to adopt policies that will further their cause. In addition to trying to influence policymakers, interest groups also provide valuable (if self-serving) information to the government on the costs, benefits, and consequences of proposed policies. Because forming and operating interest groups takes economic resources, time, and skill, they are much more frequent and important in the politics. Associational interest groups are often few in number and weak in power in the world's economically and politically less privileged nations.

Since the 1960s there has been an explosion of interest groups on the American political scene. There have also been changes in the types of activity of interest groups. In the past the predominant activity of an interest group was to attempt to influence the government to adopt policies that were favorable to its platform. In the twenty-first century, interest groups also provide the government with information and help to implement policies. This makes them an invaluable source to busy legislators who do not have time to become experts on all the policies that are put before them. However, interest groups are not without their problems. Just as a lack of wealth prevents the formation of associational interest groups in underprivileged nations, so it can lead to the inadequate representation of the interests of less powerful and underprivileged groups in the politics of wealth nations and a consequent policy bias against the interests of such groups.

Regardless of the resource bases, all interest groups must try to cope with the "free-rider" problem, which occurs when the fruits of an interest group's labor cannot be limited to members. If a group lobbies for a cleaner environment and achieves its goal; cleaner air is not enjoyed solely by the groups' members—everyone enjoys the cleaner air. Rational individuals see that there is no reason that they should expend their time and possibly their money to belong (or perhaps participate actively) to this group because they will enjoy the results no matter what. To combat this, groups offer a variety of benefits. Larger interest groups face this problem more frequently than smaller groups because smaller groups do not provide the anonymity that larger groups do with the result that face-to-face pressure can be applied to individuals to force them to actively participate.

Interest groups provide material, solidary, and purposive benefits for individuals as a way to entice them to join. Material benefits include discounted services or memberships to other organizations along with other economic benefits. A solidary benefit is the satisfaction that one derives from association and interaction with like-minded individuals. A purposive benefit is the satisfaction that one derives from contributing to an abstract cause. The benefits offered depend on the size of the interest group, with larger groups able to offer material benefits more easily than smaller groups. Benefits may be either tangible or symbolic, but interest groups are sure to offer some type of benefit to mobilize individuals to express their common concern and achieve their common goal.

Democratic governments are very conducive to the activities of interest groups. The structure of the U.S. government, for example, is decentralized and pluralistic, which means that there are points of access to the government at the local, state, and national level. Decentralization provides many opportunities for interest groups to lobby for their particular cause at the most appropriate level of government. Pluralism allows many groups to compete at once for the attention of the government. It helps to create a balance in the political order, and it also allows more individuals to become involved and more interests to be represented. Interest groups are thus a natural part of a democratic regime. Democratic government fosters interest groups and the activity of interest groups fosters democratic government because they allow many individuals to become involved in the political world.

Interest groups in Western European governments are also beneficial to their governments. In European countries economic groups are much stronger and more influential than in the United States. Economic interest groups in the United States are weak as a result of fragmentation. In European countries, there may be one or two main economic groups that dictate what the government policy should be. Noneconomic groups, on the other hand, have better participation levels in the United States than in Western European governments.

Interest groups have the important job of articulating the interests of the people. This is particularly important in democratic countries because the very form of the government relies on the activity and interest of the people. Participation through interest groups empowers individuals to become active in the political process. The politics of democratic countries are the politics of interests and interest groups help articulate and facilitate the implementation of the interests of the people.

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