Organization of Interest Groups

Interest groups can come in varied forms and organize under different methods.

Learning Objective

Discuss the theories behind interest groups and their effects on government

Key Points

An employers' organization is an association of employers. The role and position of an employers' organization differs from country to country, depending on the economic system of a country.
Occupational organizations promote the professional and economic interests of workers in a particular occupation, industry, or trade, through interaction with the government, and by preparing advertising and other promotional campaigns to the public.
Interest groups can be technical or non technical. Some are dedicated to unions while others to specific interests.
Their organization and operations can be based on any of three theories: pluralism, neo-pluralism, and corporatism.

Terms

occupational organizations
Occupational organizations promote the professional and economic interests of workers in a particular occupation, industry, or trade, through interaction with the government, and by preparing advertising and other promotional campaigns to the public.
employers' organization
An employers' organization is an association of employers.

Full Text

Introduction

A Special Interest Group (SIG) is a community with particular interest in advancing a specific area of knowledge, learning or technology.Members cooperate to affect or to produce solutions within their particular field, and may communicate, meet, and organize conferences. They may, in some cases, also advocate or lobby on a particular issue or on a range of issues but they are generally distinct from advocacy and pressure groups which are normally set up for the specific political aim; this distinction is not firm however and some organizations can adapt and change their focus over time. Public policy, in general, is a dynamic interplay of decisions between the President, Congress and interest groups.

Organizations may also have Special Interest Groups which are normally focused on a mutual interest or shared characteristic of a subset of members of the organization. An important example for this are trade unions, educational unions, and labor unions .

National Educators Association

The NEA is a prominent and powerful interest group

Much work has been undertaken by academics in trying to categorize how pressure groups operate, particularly in relation to governmental policy creation.

The field is dominated by several differing schools of thought:

Pluralism: This is based upon the understanding that pressure groups operate in competition with one another and play a key role in the political system. They do this by acting as a counterweight to undue concentrations of power. However, this pluralist theory (formed primarily by American academics) reflects a more open and fragmented political system similar to that in countries like the United States. Under neo-pluralism, a concept of political communities developed that is more similar to the British form of government
Neo-Pluralism: This is based on the concept of political communities in that pressure groups and other similar bodies are organised around a government department and its network of client groups. The members of this network co-operate during the policy making process.
Corporatism: Some pressure groups are backed by private businesses that have heavy influence on the legislature.

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