How To Learn About Interest Groups

The political arena wouldn’t be the same without the life and works of advocacy groups, pressure groups or those agencies more commonly known as interest groups. It is basically a group of people sharing the same agenda and interest seeking political influence to attain their goals. Such groups are very active in the political scene, as these groups try to persuade political figures to act on or vote according to the group’s interests, thus the name interest groups.

There are different types of interest groups based on the composition of members, area of influence, and frequency of operations. These types are: Sectional, Promotional and the Fire Brigade.

• Sectional interest groups like trade unions, consumer organizations, professional associations, or trade associations are groups that lobby for the attainment of their members’ interests. These are well-organized groups that have the resources and funding to execute their lobbying methods such as direct lobbying, voter turnout schemes and letter-writing campaigns.
• Promotional interest groups are specialized groups that work to affect influence on certain areas. Among the most common promotional groups are people for the Ethical Treatment of Animals or PETA, Greenpeace, National Rifle Association, and the Drug Policy Alliance.
• Fire brigades are those interest groups that are formed to face a current issue and disband right after the issue has been resolved, whether in favor of the group or not. Such typical events where fire brigades are formed are times of war or elections.

Many people are wondering how these groups can exist considering the amount of work they do for the seemingly general cause, or how such interest groups can manage to recruit people to do their bidding. The answer is actually very simple – benefits.

Interest group members either of the sectional or the promotional types choose to join their groups based on various reasons, mainly seeking their own gains. Since most members of trade unions are also workers who would reap the rewards of a law granting salary increase across the board, union members wouldn’t really be difficult to recruit. In fact, some members join out of their own will just to help out such worthwhile causes. Some benefits are monetary and are given to the member through discount cards, free subscription to magazines and journals, and other tangible benefits that the interest group has in place.

Other benefits that interest groups also seek are the non-tangible benefits of free speech and expression and the prestige of being part of such an advocacy group. Many private companies also provide funding and support to these interest groups where the advocacy directly or indirectly affect the nature of the company’s business.

Interest groups are not new to the political process of any government. In fact, it has existed as long as Democracy, as it allowed the masses to freely participate in the political decision-making processes of a government. The concept of people electing their representative in the government has also been a key factor to the emergence of interest groups, since their elected representative is expected to heed the wails and woes of its people.