SmartBook
What is the primary difference between interest groups and political action committees (PACs)?
An interest group pursues the group's broad goals, while PACs raise and spend money to influence election outcomes.
Which of the following statements about electioneering are true?
Campaign contributions are a key element of electioneering. All the tactics of electioneering are active methods of civic participation. Endorsements and ratings are tactics of electioneering.
True or false: Both elitists and pluralists agree that interest groups are unable to exercise any control over the government.
False
True or false: Groups that provide greater collective benefits generally attract universal support among individuals who reap those benefits.
False
True or false: Professional interest groups only take a stand on issues that will directly affect their members' professional interests.
False
True or false: Research indicates that once an interest group has established itself, it is unaffected by the creation of other groups with similar agendas.
False
The Women's March, which began in response to President Trump's inauguration in 2017, is a grassroots movement that has created entry points for new grassroots activists. Of the following key functions of interest groups, which two best exemplify the the Women's March movement?
Interest groups provide average citizens with an avenue of access to activism. Interest groups mobilize citizens and stimulate them to participate in civic and political affairs.
What is the effect of the presence of opposing interest groups on an interest group's success?
It makes it more difficult to get policymakers to act in any one group's favor.
According to Robert Putnam, in what ways does social capital improve both individual lives and communities?
It provides us with relationships that we can use to help solve common problems. It is a factor in living a longer, happier, and healthier life. It increases efficacy because it stimulates people to interact with their governments.
A(n) ______ is an entity whose specific goal is to raise and spend money to influence the outcome of elections.
PAC
Which of the following consumer interest groups was founded in 1971 by activist Ralph Nader?
Public Citizen
Which of the following most accurately characterizes direct strategies?
contact between the interest group and policymakers
Which is a common reason people might cite as a key motivator for joining an interest group?
decision makers being more likely to listen to their concerns
Which of the following most accurately describes an economic incentive to interest group membership?
discounts for members on hotels, airfares, and car rentals
Which is not a correct category of interest groups?
domestic
An ______ is represented by connections between those concerned about a policy and those creating and administering the policy.
issue network
Professionals typically become members of professional associations due to
membership incentives and services.
If your mother participated in your town's historical preservation society, you are ______ someone whose mother was not a member of an interest group.
more likely to become an interest group member than
Which of the following are included in a public employee union?
police teachers
An interest group may form a(n) ___ whose main goal is to raise and spend money to influence the outcome of elections.
political action committee
One of the criticisms of interest group participation is that
political action committees have caused campaigns to become too expensive.
Interest groups engage in ______ outreach in order to raise awareness of issues in the hope that it will promote civic engagement.
public
Litigation by an interest group is often used to challenge
public policies.
A incentive is involved when people join an interest group because they discover that the group's ideological beliefs are well suited to their own.
purposive
Which of the following would be least likely to be on the the agenda of a consumer interest group?
school prayer
Which of the following are key functions of interest groups?
serve as a method for checks and balances educate the public about policy issues protect the common good
Which of the following are values of interest groups in American democracy?
serving as a tool to help guide policy makers serving as a mechanism for people to approach government
Litigation by interest groups
shape policy and encourage executive agency enforcement.
Because Robert Putnam's work relating to social capital was written 20 years ago, it failed to take into account the
social capital derived from participation in online civic engagement and activism.
Which of the following demographic characteristics are related to both the likelihood of interest group participation and the types of participation engaged in?
social class race income education
A large informal group of individuals or organizations striving for a broad, common goal centered on significant changes to the social or political order is called a(n)
social movement.
An incentive that causes a person to join an interest group because of the social associations it offers is a(n) ______ incentive.
solidary
Which term describes the aims of those who join interest groups in the hope of getting to know members with similar interests?
solidary
Which of the following describe the downside of interest groups in our political system?
strengthening the advantages of incumbents domination by elites skewing the policy process in their favor increasing the influence of money in politics
Which issue would not represent a concern of the largest agricultural interest group?
subsidized housing
Which of the following are important factors of interest group membership that relate to the group's overall effectiveness?
the membership's intensity about the issue size of the membership cohesion of the group demographics of the membership
Which groups of Americans are more likely to participate in social movements because of their loose membership and leadership structures?
the poor minorities young people
Why did Congress enact laws to create PACs?
to provide a means of overseeing the flow of money into political campaigns
With regard to information that interest groups provide, policymakers
understand that it is slanted toward the group's interest.
Which of the following would be examples of indirect strategies utilized by interest groups?
writing letters to politicians orchestrating a protest
Which organization emphasizing "pro-family" values played a pivotal role in the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980?
Moral Majority
Which political party do business and corporate political action committees typically favor with their contributions?
Republicans
Foreign nationals are prohibited from
contributing money to American political campaigns.
When an interest group endorses a candidate who is running for office, what key function is it fulfilling?
performing a role in the electoral system
Which of the following most accurately describes an interest group's organizational resources?
the tools it has to achieve its goals
How are issue networks formed?
they are the result of the fact that individuals have interests and expertise in particular policy issues despite disagreeing on the outcome
Which of the following is an example of a public outreach campaign aimed at bringing about reforms in the American justice system?
#BlackLivesMatter
Which decade saw the rise of the environmental movement in the United States?
1970s
What percentage of Americans belong to a voluntary group or association?
80 percent
Labor group political action committees typically favor which political party with their contributions?
Democrats
______ interest groups secure government and material benefits for their members.
Economic
testimony is used by interest groups to provide information to policy makers concerning the impact of policies.
Expert, Professional, or Skilled
One example of an environmental interest group is
Greenpeace.
What makes indirect interest group strategies different from direct strategies?
Indirect strategies are directed more toward the public than elected officials.
Which is true of the 2018 Supreme Court case Janus v. United States?
It ended compelled union dues for public employees and will have widespread impact on the strength of public employee unions.
Which of the following are reasons that interest groups are dominated by individuals with higher levels of wealth and education?
They have more disposable income to spend on membership dues. They are more likely to be informed of the issues and to understand the importance of interest groups in shaping policy. They likely have occupations in which interest group participation is helpful.
True or false: A strong charismatic leader can raise public awareness of an interest group and its activities, thereby making it attractive to new members and contributors.
True
Which person is most likely to become a member of an interest group?
a 23-year-old doctoral student in political science
Which of the following would be considered electioneering strategies?
a get-out-the-vote drive forming a political action committee (PAC) press releases endorsing a candidate
Which of the following factors within an interest group's organizational environment can increase its success?
a lack of competition from opposing interest groups highly skilled leadership within the group itself
Which of the following plays a major role in the success of the AARP?
a large membership
Which person is least likely to become a member of an interest group?
a person from a working-class background
A group that raises and spends money for the purpose of influencing the outcome of an election is known as
a political action committee.
One of the incentives of becoming an interest group member is to satisfy
a sense of belonging. a desire for increased opportunities of occupational advancement.
One of the main values interest groups provide American society is
allowing ordinary people to influence the political process.
Someone from a working-class family is less likely to join an interest group because working class people
are less likely to have been socialized to participate in traditional interest groups.
What political issue gave rise to consumer interest groups?
automotive safety
Why do many interest groups form political action committees (PACs)?
because contributing to a candidate's campaign can help gain access for interest group lobbyists
How do interest groups foster civic participation?
by increasing community engagement by increasing the political involvement of individuals
How do political scientists generally categorize interest groups?
by what kinds of issues concern them and who benefits from their activities
Which type of group typically has a problem with free riders?
citizens' groups
Which example would not be a direct interest group strategy?
civil disobedience
The American Farm Bureau Federation is one of the most influential interest groups in the United States because of its
close relations with key agricultural policymakers.
Which membership characteristic relates to interest group success?
cohesion
Public interest groups are concerned with achieving goods, outcomes that are shared by the general public rather than one specific group.
collective or public
Which type of interest group is not classified as an economic interest group?
consumer
An interest group is said to engage in
direct
Which term describes the behavior of those who join a group because they will receive incentives such as discounts on insurance or travel?
economic
Why has the percentage of union members in the United States declined?
economic changes in the United States that resulted in a loss of manufacturing jobs
Despite the fact that online civic participation has resonated with those who have been historically less likely to participate in interest groups, which of the following remains an important demographic determinant of participation?
education
Working to influence the election of candidates who support their issues is referred to as
electioneering
Which of the following are examples of indirect strategies employed by interest groups in advancing their interests?
electioneering public outreach
Which theory states that a small, close-knit group of people who possess wealth and power control policy making in government?
elite theory
One way for an interest group to provide evaluative evidence of policy impact to Congress is through
expert testimony.
Lobbying elected officials includes which of the following activities?
face-to-face meetings with members of Congress
A person known as a(n)
free
Increased interest group membership is most likely the result of which one of the following factors?
high income level
A purposive incentive to join an interest group is based on one's belief in the interest group's
ideology
Political scientists believe that ______ and ______ are the best predictors of interest group membership.
income; education
New campaign finance rules that allow unlimited expenditures by business and labor have the effect of
increasing the importance of interest groups' financial resources.
PACs formed by economic interest groups overwhelmingly favor
incumbents
Who in government typically benefits the most from interest group resources and participation?
incumbents
A group engaged in mailing bricks to members of Congress as a way to demonstrate support for a piece of legislation are employing which interest group strategy?
indirect
What type of strategy uses intermediaries to advocate for a cause or generally attempts to persuade the public and policymakers to embrace the group's position?
indirect
Which of the following refer to the two types of strategies that interest groups use to advance their causes?
indirect strategies direct strategies
The typical makeup of a foreign policy interest group includes which of the following?
international corporations based abroad U.S. citizens of the foreign nation's heritage a foreign government
Which of the following are reasons that working class people are less likely to join an interest group?
lack of time socialization lack of disposable income
Key factors in an interest group's organizational environment include which of the following?
leadership opposition
An example of a direct interest group strategy is
litigation
The interest group strategy that includes face-to-face meetings with legislators, hosting legislative receptions and events, and making telephone calls is known as
lobbying
How does strong leadership contribute to an interest group's success?
makes the group attractive to new members enhances the group's reputation raises public awareness of the group and its activities
All of the following are included in the measurement of a group's organizational resources except
marketing effectiveness.
On what two key types of resources do interest groups rely in order to remain effective?
membership financing
For those disenchanted with the two-party system, interest groups
offer an alternative means of participation.
Which of the following has/have increased interest group participation among groups that have not historically joined interest groups?
online interest groups
The setting in which an interest group attempts to achieve its goals is referred to as its
organizational environment.
Which of the following are said to make up the iron triangle in policy making?
organized interest groups executive departments and agencies members of Congress
Proponents of ______ theory believe that interest groups facilitate political participation and policy debates.
pluralist
When an interest group is "the only game in town," policymakers are more likely to
rely on that group's views.
Religious groups that are overtly involved in political activities risk losing their
tax exempt status.
One of the benefits relating to interest groups that was identified by Robert Putnam is
that they are essential sources of social capital.
Which group represents the largest agricultural interest group in the United States today?
the American Farm Bureau Federation
One example of a corporate or business interest group is
the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA).
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission involved which issue affecting interest groups?
the ban on unions and corporations promoting or targeting federal candidates
Which of the following factors is not used to predict interest group success?
the group's capacity for changing its purpose the group's ability to run candidates for political office
Which category of interest group includes doctors, lawyers, engineers, accountants, and even video game developers as members?
trade and professional
Interest groups lobbying for policies representing groups of industries or corporations are known as
umbrella