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David answered on
Dec 20 2021
INTEREST GROUPS & POLITICAL PARTIES
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Interest Groups & Political Parties: The U.S. Context
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INTEREST GROUPS & POLITICAL PARTIES
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Define an interest group, with examples.
Interest groups are groups formed by individuals who have common interests and have
the urge to join together in pursuit of those interests. There are different kinds of interest groups
as per their objectives and purposes. Some interest groups have some social objectives to fulfill,
some have some economic goals to attain, while most of them have some political inclinations.
In respect of politics it can be conveyed that “Interest groups are policy maximizers, while
political parties are focused on maximizing the number of seats they win in Congress” (Brunell,
n.d.). Moreover, members of an interest group also work together to protect and promote their
interests often by influencing the government.
As stated earlier, the types of interest groups vary according to their objectives, aims,
size, and strategies. The different types of interest groups are economic groups, labor groups,
agricultural groups, professional associations, non-economic groups, public interest groups,
government groups, ideological groups, single-issue groups and so on. But the most significant
interest groups can be
oadly classified into economic groups, social policy or ideologically
ased groups, public interest groups, and labor unions. Economic groups are those kinds of
interest groups that focus mainly on the aspects of business economy. Examples of such groups
are National Florists Association, the National Association of Home Builders, the National Beer
Wholesalers, etc (Interest Groups, 2008). Social policy or ideologically based groups, on the
other hand, are those interest groups that “are organized to support and promote a set of core
ideological or political beliefs and ideals” (Interest Groups, 2008). Examples of social policy or
ideologically based groups are National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League,
National Right to Life Committee, American Civil Liberties Union, American Israel Public
Affairs Committee, Americans for Democratic Action, The Federalist Society, etc (Political
INTEREST GROUPS & POLITICAL PARTIES
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parties and interest groups, 2012). Then there are the public interest groups whose objective is to
pursue public interests in order to enhance the welfare activities within the nation. Moreover, the
motto of public interest groups is to pursue those policies that bear greater benefit not to the
members of the group but to the larger society (Kroehler & Hughes, 2005). Examples of public
interest groups are ABA Commission on Homelessness and Poverty, AIDS Action Council,
AIDS Policy Center for Children, Youth, and Families, Affordable Housing Industry
Information, American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, American Association
of People with Disabilities, American Association of Retired Persons, etc (Public Interest
Groups, 2012). Besides, there are interest groups called labor unions which support the laborers
with the power of collective bargaining against any malpractice adopted by the business
organizations or corporations and examples of labor unions are, United Mine Workers of
America, United Auto Workers, International Brotherhood of Teamsters etc (Ha
ison, n.d.). But
in respect to the concern of this paper emphasis should be given more on the social policy or
ideologically based groups which are often directly related to the government policy making
procedure and methods. For instance American Civil Liberties Union follows the objective of
defending and preserving the rights and liberties of the individuals in the U.S. and to look after
whether or not government policies are at par with the principles rendered by the U.S.
Constitution and the laws of the land. In other words the American Civil Liberties Union acts as
the “our nation's guardian of liberty, working daily in courts, legislatures and communities to
defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties that the Constitution and laws of the
United States guarantee everyone in this country” (About the ACLU, n.d.). Hence, we may see
that such interest groups are much more directly involved in politics than the other forms of
interest groups.
INTEREST GROUPS & POLITICAL PARTIES
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Discuss the relationship between interest groups and political parties.
There is a close relationship between interest groups, especially of those groups that are
considered as social policy or ideologically based groups, and political parties. As stated earlier
interest groups try to maximize the...