AP GOV Ch. 11
The successes of civil rights and womenʹs rights groups in redirecting the course of public policy, once they were organized, is pointed to as evidence to support the ________ theory that American politics is open and not a problem.
pluralist
Which of the following theories offers the most positive interpretation of the effect of interest groups on American democracy?
pluralist
The idea that interest group activity brings representation to all is associated with
pluralist theory.
One of the main differences between American political parties and interest groups is that
political parties run candidates for office.
A(n) ________ group is composed of all people who might be group members because they share some common interest.
potential
The free-rider problem refers to
potential members of a group failing to join the actual group, as they know they will receive the same benefits whether they are active members or not
The biggest obstacle to the effectiveness of large groups is the
problem of raising funds and attracting government support.
The right of interest groups to organize is
protected by the Bill of Rights
All subgovernments have the same goal
protecting their self-interest.
According to the text, one of the most common function of lobbyists is to
provide information and ideas to members of Congress
A single-issue group is one that is all of the following EXCEPT
organizes on the national level only.
Right-to-work laws ________ the union shop.
outlaw
According to ________ theorists, interest groups compete and counterbalance one another in the political marketplace.
pluralist
An example of a collective good is
clean air.
Which of the following is NOT true about Political Action Committees?
Most PAC money goes to challengers rather than incumbents.
Which of the following groups claims the smallest share of its potential members?
National Consumers League
Which of the following groups has the largest potential membership?
National Organization for Women
Lobbyists provide members of Congress all of the following EXCEPT A) help with accomplishing their legislative goals. B) information. C) campaign strategy and organizational help. D) ideas and innovations. E) None of the above; lobbyists provide all of the above to members of Congress
None of the above; lobbyists provide all of the above to members of Congress
Consumer organizations suffer from
Olsonʹs Law of Large Groups.
Interest groups seeking to exert influence on the electoral process can honestly and openly funnel money into the campaign coffers of their supporters through
PACs
Which of the following ideas is NOT associated with hyperpluralism?
Political power is highly concentrated.
Which of the following is NOT one of the basic interest group strategies in America?
Running candidates for office
Technological improvements in communication have caused interest groups to
Sharply increase in number
________ helps to explain why public interest lobbies have relatively small proportions of actual members.
The free-rider problem
Which of the following statements about interest groups is FALSE? A) The majority of groups now have their headquarters in Washington, D.C. B) There are an enormous number of highly specialized and seemingly trivial groups. C) Almost every group has a staff and publications. D) The growth rate of interest groups has slowed in recent years. E) Groups are more diverse today than in past decades.
The growth rate of interest groups has slowed in recent years.
Which of the following statements about interest groups going public is FALSE?
The public relations of most groups tend to be characterized by hard sell and bias.
According to the text, lobbying works best
on people already committed to the lobbyistʹs policy position.
By 2000, the number of groups listed in the Encyclopedia of Associations was over
20,000
________ enables a group of similarly situated plaintiffs to combine similar grievances into a single suit.
A class action lawsuit
________ are written arguments submitted to the courts in support of one side of a case
Amicus curiae briefs
________ theorists are impressed by how insignificant most organized interest groups are
Elitist
_______ is a communication by someone other than a citizen acting on his or her own behalf, directed to a government decision maker, particularly in the legislative and executive branch, with the hope of influencing his or her decision.
Lobbying
Which of the following statements is FALSE? A) With proportional representation systems, all it takes is between one and five percent of the vote for a party to win seats in the national legislature. B) In many Scandinavian countries, farmersʹ parties have long been in existence. C) Many new interest groups in Europe have formed parties on the basis of shared values. D) Green parties in Europe have never been able to win enough votes to enter the national legislature. E) Parties are more like interest groups in Europe than in the U.S.
Green parties in Europe have never been able to win enough votes to enter the national legislature
Three basic strategies employed by interest groups are all of the following EXCEPT
Implementation
Interest group liberalism is associated with which of the following criticisms?
In an effort to please and appease every interest, agencies proliferate, conflicting regulations expand, programs multiply, and the budgets skyrocket.
Which of the following statements is FALSE? A) In the American economy, government directly determines wages, prices, and profits. B) Public policy in America has economic effects through regulations, tax advantages, subsidies and contracts, and international trade. C) Even a minor change in government regulatory policy can cost industries a great deal or bring increased profits. D) How the tax code is written determines whether people and producers pay a lot or a little of their incomes to the government. E) B and D only
In the American economy, government directly determines wages, prices, and profits.
A ʺcommunication by someone other than a citizen acting on his or her own behalf, directed to a governmental decision maker with the hope of influencing his or her decisionʺ is a definition of
Lobbying
Which of the following is NOT typical of American interest groups?
They run their own slate of candidates for office in many parts of the country.
All people who might be group members because they share some common interest make up
a potential group.
Elitist views of interest groups emphasize that
a system of interlocking directorates reinforces the power of the few dominant groups
An amicus curiae brief is
a written argument submitted to the courts in support of one side of a case
The ________ theorists argue that the power of the few is fortified by an extensive system of interlocking directorates, and that wealthy corporations prevail when it comes to major decisions by government.
elitist
Single-issue group politics has been especially emotional over the issue of
abortion
Steve Sovernʹs LASTPAC and Common Cause
agree that all candidates and officeholders should not accept money from political action groups.
A pluralistic interpretation of interest group politics would maintain that
all legitimate groups can affect public policy by means of one political resource or another
An organization of people with similar policy goals entering the political process to try to achieve those aims is called
an interest group.
The term interest group can be generally defined as
an organization of people with similar policy goals entering the political process to try to achieve those aims.
American political parties differ from interest groups in that parties
are policy generalists.
Most PAC money goes overwhelmingly to incumbents because incumbents
are the most likely to be able to return the investment.
Economic groups
are those groups interested in wages, prices, and profits.
Right-to-work laws are most strongly supported by
business groups
Elite theorists emphasize the power of
business leaders.
Flight attendants won a(n) ________ against the airline industryʹs regulation that all stewardesses had to be unmarried.
class action lawsuit
Subgovernments are composed of key interest group leaders interested in policy X, the government agency in charge of administering policy X, and the ________ handling policy X.
congressional committees and subcommittees
Amicus curiae briefs
consist of written arguments submitted to the courts in support of one side of a case.
According to the text, the least effective activity of lobbyists in Congress is
converting members of congress to the lobbyists' postion
Class action lawsuits
enable a group of similarly situated plaintiffs to combine similar grievances into a single suit
Many interest groups involve themselves in ________ to help get those they consider to be the right people into office or to keep them there.
electioneering
Political Action Committees are primarily a means used by interest groups for
electioneering
The idea that just a few groups have all the power is associated with
elite theory.
Which of the following is NOT one of the major elements of the subgovernment system at the national level?
federal court
In many countries with multiparty systems and proportional representation, interest groups
frequently win some seats in the national legislature.
Literally, amicus curiae means
friend of the court
The text identifies two types of lobbyists,
full-time employees and consultants.
Interest group liberalism refers to
governmentʹs excessive deference to interest groups.
The group theory of politics offered by pluralist theorists argues all of the following EXCEPT
groups are all of equal strength.
According to the group theory of politics,
groups do not play by the rules of the game.
A hyperpluralist interpretation of group politics would maintain that
groups have become so powerful that government ends up aiding every possible interest.
The free-rider problem refers to the difficulty of
groups in organizing all their potential members.
Interest group liberalism is criticized especially by ________ theorists
hyperpluralist
The criticism that government refuses to make tough choices between X or Y, instead pretending there is no need to choose and trying to favor both is most often made by ________ theorists
hyperpluralist
The idea that too many groups are getting too much of what they want is associated with
hyperpluralist theory
The presence and power of multinational corporations illustrates
hyperpluralist theory
Single-issue groups
include members with narrow, uncompromising interests.
According to James Madison in Federalist Paper No. 1, the way to prevent any one group from having too much power is to
increase the scope and number of groups.
Political action committee (PAC) money goes overwhelmingly to
incumbents
An advantage of single-issue groups is their
intensity.
Which of the following is NOT a way in which a lobbyist can help a member of Congress?
introducing legislature into congress
One of the major inducements of the American interest group system is that it
is biased toward the wealthy
Pluralists argue that lobbying
is open to all and is therefore not to be regarded as a problem
According to Mancur Olson, small interest groups generally are ________ compared to all other groups.
less focused
The most successful tactic that civil rights and environmental groups have used to influence policy is
litigation
In Europe, interest groups
often form political parties.
The union shop
requires new employees to join the union representing them.
The union shop
requires that all employees in a unionized business join the union.
Since the 1960s, the number of interest groups has
risen rapidly
A ʺcollective goodʺ refers to
something of value that benefits both the actual and potential members of a group.
The case involving Eli Lilly and Company illustrates how
special interestsʹ campaign contributions can influence congressional action
Interest group liberalism is promoted by
subgovernments.
The hyperpluralist complaint that interest group politics creates subgovernments refers to
the cooperative efforts of group leaders, government agencies, and members of congressional committees and subcommittees to promote special interests.
The pluralist theory of American politics maintains that
the extensive organization of competing groups is evidence that influence is widely dispersed among them
Elitist theorists argue that
the fact that there are numerous groups proves nothing, because most groups are extremely unequal in power.
According to Mancur Olson
the larger the group, the further it will fall short of providing an optimal amount of a collective good.
According to Olsonʹs Law of Large Groups,
the larger the group, the further it will fall short of providing an optimal amount of a collective good.
Part of Olsonʹs Law of Large Groups is the argument that
the larger the potential group, the less likely potential members are to contribute
According to Olsonʹs Law of Large Groups, A) the larger the group, the more effective it will be. B) the smaller the group, the more effective it will be. C) the size of a group does not determine its effectiveness, the leadership structure is the key. D) all groups have a life cycle of birth, growth, maintenance, and decline, although many never decline completely. E) large groups are more democratic.
the smaller the group, the more effective it will be.
An advantage for small groups is that
there is more at stake for each member, making it easier to organize and activate all members
In ʺgoing publicʺ interest groups
use advertising and public relations to enhance their image.
Interest group liberalism holds that
virtually all pressure group demands are legitimate, and the job of government is to advance them all.
An interest group is more likely to form its own political party where
voters choose their legislators using proportional representation
