Study Document
American Government How Influential Are Term Paper
Pages:3 (870 words)
Subject:Government
Topic:Government Agencies
Document Type:Term Paper
Document:#21333798
" (Judith Evans 1996)
Policy has also been defined as being: "A set of interrelated decisions taken by a political actor or group of actors concerning the selection of goals and means of achieving them within a specified situation where those decisions should, in principle, be within the power of these actors to achieve." (Jenkins, 1993)
Policymaking, or the formation of policies is stated to have two dimensions, which are:
Dimension One: It is carried out by a specific set of actors; and Dimension Two: It is according to some specific type of process.
The term "Ex-Ante V. Post-Hoc Policy" is definitive of the fact that policy is sometimes created in expectation that it will be a force that drives decisions and in fact preceding decisions and affecting the method and manner in which decisions are made. This view is in contrast with the view of policy as being the 'codification of experience'. The first is related to a rational and managerial policy view and the second may be sourced from a type of laissez faire treatment of a specific subject or may be sourced from a process of 'successive and incremental adjustments over time as operational problems appear.'
Interest Groups Defined
Interest groups are defined as, "organizations, which seek to influence government policy through bargaining and persuasion and other means that are not focused toward election candidates. Inclusive in interest groups are organization whose main focus and purpose is that of a producer of both goods and services but seek to affect the influence government secondary to the production aspect. The power held by interest groups is best studied through examining the development of the theory of group pluralism, which is said to be inclusive of four stages that are:
1. Group Theory: The original theory proposed in the 1950's and supported by Truman's work "The Governmental Process."
2. Pluralist Theory: The theory of power that was proposed by Dahl and associates in 1960's.
3. Theory of Multiple Elitism: This theory of power was acknowledge in the 1970's, which is centered on the work of Theodore Lowi, Jr. And Mancur Olson, Jr. that stressed the special interest rule problem.
4. Neo-Pluralism: The Neo-pluralist theory of the 1980's "which saw possibilities for effective representation for a widely share interests without assuming an equilibrium of democratic and fair representation.
Critics of interest group argue that some groups are easier organized than are others and argued further that smaller groups of corporation and…
Sample Source(s) Used
3. Theory of Multiple Elitism: This theory of power was acknowledge in the 1970's, which is centered on the work of Theodore Lowi, Jr. And Mancur Olson, Jr. that stressed the special interest rule problem.
4. Neo-Pluralism: The Neo-pluralist theory of the 1980's "which saw possibilities for effective representation for a widely share interests without assuming an equilibrium of democratic and fair representation.
Critics of interest group argue that some groups are easier organized than are others and argued further that smaller groups of corporation and economic
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