Suchergebnisse

Examines the impact of social movement organizations (SMOs) & interest groups on public policy, arguing that their influence is constrained by electoral competition & limits on the ability of citizens/legislators to address multiple issues at the same time. Legislators pay attention to the wishes of the majority of their constituents, & SMOs cannot have a direct impact on policy if they are in conflict with the majority over issues the public cares about. However, SMOs can directly influence policy on issues the public is not particularly interested in, & indirectly influence policy by relating information to elected officials & administrative agencies, as well as by working to change the public's policy preferences or the intensity of their concerns. An examination of the activities of SMOs & interest groups in the context of theories of democracy leads to the conclusion that there is no theoretical justification for distinguishing between them; hence, their abilities to impact public policy are roughly the same. J. Lindroth