POLS 537: Political Parties and Interest Groups
Spring 2007
Class: Friday 1:25-4:25, HSS 204
Instructor: Anthony Nownes
Office: 811 McClung Tower
Office hours: Monday 10-1, or by appointment
Phone: (865) 974-7052
Email:
Introduction
The purpose of this course is to provide a rigorous survey of theoretical and empirical work dealing with political organizations in American politics. Specifically, we will focus upon political parties, social movements, and interest groups. You will be required to do extensive reading, the aim of which is to prepare you to conduct research in the field. During the course of the semester there may be some additions (or subtractions) to this course outline.
Course Requirements
Each student will be expected to attend class meetings and be familiar with assigned readings.
Grading:
Ten percent of your grade will be based on in-class participation. Twenty percent of your grade will be based on in-class presentations.
As for the other 70 percent, you have two options:
Option 1: The “prepare for comps” option.
This option will help you prepare for comprehensive MA or PhD examinations. You will submit two (2) 15-25 page analytical review essays. Each essay will answer a simulated comprehensive examination question dealing with parties and/or interest groups. Every two weeks or so, I will hand out a question to people who choose this option. You will choose the two you wish to answer. Students will be given three weeks to complete each essay. A fairly large amount of bibliographic work will be required for each paper, but the emphasis will be on developing the writing and analytical skills necessary to succeed in this profession.
Option 2: The “book review and research paper” option.
For this option, you will write and develop a research paper.
For this option, you will:
1: Submit a detailed and critical 8-12 page review of a book on political organizations. (You will choose from books on a list I will provide, or you may clear a book with me).
2. Submit a 20-25 page original research paper. The paper will report the results of original research in the area of your choice.
Other Issues
Plagiarism:
I will not tolerate plagiarism. The following is an excerpt from the University of Tennessee’s Honor Statement, which can be found in Hilltopics Student Handbook, which is the official student handbook of the University of Tennessee:
“Students are also responsible for any act of plagiarism. Plagiarism is using the intellectual property or product of someone else without giving proper credit. The undocumented use of someone else’s words or ideas in any medium of communication (unless such information is recognized as common knowledge) is a serious offense, subject to disciplinary action that may include failure in a course and/or dismissal from the University. Specific examples of plagiarism are: 1. Copying without proper documentation (quotation marks and a citation) written or spoken words, phrases, or sentences from any source; 2. Summarizing without proper documentation (usually a citation) ideas from another source (unless such information is recognized as common knowledge); 3. Borrowing facts, statistics, graphs, pictorial representations, or phrases without acknowledging the source (unless such information is recognized as common knowledge); 4. Collaborating on a graded assignment without the instructor’s approval; 5. Submitting work, either in whole or in part, created by a professional service and used without attribution (e.g., paper, speech, bibliography, or photograph).” p. 11
For more on plagiarism and other forms of academic misconduct, consult Hilltopics, pp. 11-23.
Accommodations for students with disabilities:
I am committed to making all necessary accommodations for students with disabilities. Students with disabilities are urged to contact the Office of Disability Services (2227 Dunford Hall, 974-6087) to learn more about their rights and responsibilities. Here is an excerpt from Hilltopics about the Office:
“The mission of the Office of Disability Services is to provide each student who has a disability an equal opportunity to participate in the University’s programs and activities. The ODS provides all students who have documented disabilities assistance with appropriate accommodations. ODS obtains and files disability-related documents, certifies eligibility for services, determines reasonable accommodations, and develops plans for the provision of such accommodations. It is the student’s responsibility to request any individual assistance in advance.” p. 47
Texts and Readings
The texts listed below are required and can be purchased at the UTK Bookstore.
1. Robert M. Alexander, ed. 2006. The Classics of Interest Group Behavior. Belmont, CA: Thomson Higher Education.
2. Frank R. Baumgartner, and Beth L. Leech. 1998. Basic Interests: The Importance of Groups in Politics and in Political Science. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
3. Donald Green, Bradley Palmquist, and Eric Schickler. 2002. Partisan Hearts and Minds: Political Parties and the Social Identities of Voters. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
4. John C. Green, and Paul S. Herrnson, eds. 2002. Responsible Partisanship? The Evolution of American Political Parties Since 1950. Lawrence, KS: The University Press of Kansas.
5. Mancur Olson, Jr. 1965. The Logic of Collective Action. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. NOTE: This book was not ordered by the bookstore. Please procure a copy ASAP. There should be many copies available on-line through Amazon and other outlets.
6. John R. Wright. 2003. Interest Groups and Congress: Lobbying, Contributions, and Influence. New York: Longman.
For each week, you will see two sets of readings. The numbered set contains the required readings. The other set contains additional readings that may be of help to you in understanding the required readings, and may also prove useful for your research/term papers. These “second lists” are not definitive. They are meant only to steer you toward certain articles and books. Many important pieces of research are excluded (for various reasons). You must not conclude that because a particular work is missing that it is not useful. Part of your job in writing your paper(s) is to locate the material you need to make your case.
1/12 WEEK 1: Welcome
What is an interest group? What is a political party? Lecture by Dr. Nownes.
ASSIGNMENT 1: Prepare a list of twenty-five (25) unusual interest groups (e.g., NAMBLA). Be sure that the groups on the list are indeed interest groups. Also, please be sure you are able to tell us a little bit about each group. Finally, make sure that you include a nice variety of types of groups.
1/19 WEEK 2: Early Group Theory & the Questions We Ask
1. Baumgartner, and Leech, Basic Interests, Introduction, chs. 1-2.
2. Allan J. Cigler. 1991. “Interest Groups: A Subfield in Search of an Identity,” in William Crotty, ed. Political Science: Looking to the Future, Volume 4, American Institutions, pp. 99-135.
3. Virginia Gray, and David Lowery. 2002. “State Interest Group Research and the Mixed Legacy of Belle Zeller,” State Politics and Policy Quarterly 2: 388-410. Available on-line through the UTK library at http://www.lib.utk.edu/cgi-bin/auth/connect.cgi?sfxejournal=1532-4400.
4. James Madison. 1787. Federalist #10, in Alexander, ed., ch. 2.
5. David Truman. 1951. The Governmental Process: Political Interests and Public Opinion. New York: Wiley, pp. 3-13, in Alexander, ed., ch. 5.
Optional and for future use:
Alexis de Tocqueville. 1973 (1863). Democracy in America. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, pp. 191-198.
Robert Golembiewski. 1960. “The Group Basis of Politics: Notes on Analysis and Development,” American Political Science Review 54: 962-971.
E.E. Schattschneider. 1960. The Semi-Sovereign People. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
James Yoho. 1995. “Madison on the Beneficial Effects of Interest Groups,” Polity 27: 587-606.
PRESENTATION 1: Group #1. Hint: Handouts would be nice!
1/26 WEEK 3: Pluralism and its Earliest Critics
1. Baumgartner, and Leech, ch. 3.
2. Robert Dahl. 1961. Who Governs? New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, chs. 1, 7, 12, and 28.
3. C. Wright Mills. 1956. The Power Elite. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 3-29, in Alexander, ed., Ch. 8.
4. David Truman. 1951. The Governmental Process, ch. 4, pp. 23-33, 39-43, 52-62, 503-516, 524-535.
Optional and for future use:
Peter Bachrach, and Morton S. Baratz. 1962. “Two Faces of Power,” American Political Science Review 56: 947-952.
Arthur Bentley. 1935. (1908). The Process of Government. Bloomington, IN: Principia.
Richard Boyd. 2001. “Thomas Hobbes and the Perils of Pluralism,” Journal of Politics 63: 392-413.
Douglas Cater. 1964. Power in Washington. New York: Vintage.
Robert Dahl. 1982. Dilemmas of Pluralist Democracy. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
John Gaventa. 1980. Power and Powerlessness. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Floyd Hunter. 1953. Community Power Structure. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press.
V.O. Key, Jr. 1964. Politics, Parties, and Pressure Groups, 5th ed. New York: Crowell.
2/2 WEEK 4: Group Development I: Collective Action--The Basics
1. Baumgartner, and Leech, chs. 4, and 5.
2. Mancur Olson, Jr. The Logic of Collective Action, chs. 1, 2, 5, 6.
Optional and for future use:
Joan Esteban, and Debraj Ray. 2001. “Collective Action and the Group Size Paradox,” American Political Science Review 95: 663-672.
Norman Frohlich, and Joe Oppenheimer. 1970. “I Get By With a Little Help From My Friends,” World
Politics 23: 104-120.
Albert O. Hirschman. 1970. Exit, Voice, and Loyalty: Responses to Decline in Firms, Organizations, and States.
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Terry Moe. 1980. “A Calculus of Group Membership,” American Journal of Political Science 24: 593-632.
Will Moore. 1995. “Rational Rebels: Overcoming the ‘Free-rider’ Problem,” Political Research Quarterly 48: 417-454.
ASSIGNMENT 2: Choose three (3) citizen groups. For each group, find the most recent budgetary information you can. Answer these questions: 1). Where does each group get its money? 2). How important are members as sources of income for each group? 3). What patrons (if any) support each group? 4). What proportion of money do patrons provide to each group?
2/16 WEEK 5: Group Development II: Collective Action--Refinements and Empirical
Tests
1. John Mark Hansen. 1985. “The Political Economy of Group Membership,” American Political Science Review 79: 79-96. Available at jstor.org.
2. David Lowery, and Virginia Gray. 1995. “The Population Ecology of Gucci Gulch, or the Natural Regulation of Interest Group Numbers in the American States,” American Journal of Political Science 39: 1-29. Available at jstor.org.
3. Anthony J. Nownes. 2004. “The Population Ecology of Interest Group Formation: Mobilizing for Gay and Lesbian Rights in the United States, 1950-98,” British Journal of Political Science 34: 49-67.
4. Robert Salisbury. 1969. “An Exchange Theory of Interest Groups,” Midwest Journal of Political Science 13: 1-32, in Alexander, ed., ch. 11.
5. Walker, Jack L., Jr. 1983. “The Origins and Maintenance of Interest Groups in America,” American Political Science Review 77: 390-406, in Alexander, ch. 12.
Optional and for future use:
Scott Ainsworth, and Itai Sened. 1993. “The Role of Lobbyists: Entrepreneurs with Two Audiences,” American Journal of Political Science 37: 834-866.
Robert Axelrod. 1984. The Evolution of Cooperation. New York: Basic Books.
Dennis Chong. 1991. Collective Action and the Civil Rights Movement. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Anne M. Costain. 1992. “Social Movements as Interest Groups: The Case of the Women’s Movement,” in Mark Petracca, ed., The Politics of Interests. Boulder, CO: Westview, pp. 285-307.
Georgia Duerst-Lahti. 1989. “The Government's Role in Building the Women's Movement,” Political Science Quarterly 104: 249-268.
Jocelyn Elise Crowley, and Theda Skocpol. 2001. “The Rush to Organize: Explaining Organizational Formation in the United States, 1860s-1920s,” American Journal of Political Science 45: 813-829.
Kenneth Godwin, and Robert Cameron Mitchell. 1982. “Rational Models, Collective Goods and Non-electoral Political Behavior,” Western Political Quarterly 35: 160-181.
Virginia Gray, David Lowery, Jennifer Anderson, and Adam J. Newmark. 2004. “Collective Action and the Mobilization of Institutions,” Journal of Politics 66: 684-705.
Virginia Gray, and David Lowery. 2001. “The Expression of Density Dependence in State Communities of Organized Interests,” American Politics Research 29: 374-391.
Virginia Gray, and David Lowery. 1995. “The Demography of Interest Group Communities,” American Politics Quarterly 23: 300-332.
Michael T. Hannan, and John Freeman. 1988. “The Ecology of Organizational Mortality: American Labor Unions, 1836-1985,” American Journal of Sociology 94: 25-52.
Michael T. Hannan, and John Freeman. 1987. “The Ecology of Organizational Foundings: American Labor Unions, 1836-1985,” American Journal of Sociology 92: 910-943.
Russell Hardin. 1982. Collective Action. Baltimore, MD: Resources for the Future.
Douglas Imig. 1995. Poverty and Power. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press.
Paul E. Johnson. 1996. “Unraveling in a Variety of Institutional Settings,” Journal of Theoretical Politics 8: 299-331.
Grant Jordan, and William A. Maloney. 1996. “How Bumble-Bees Fly: Accounting for Public Interest Participation,” Political Studies 44: 668-685.
Richard R. Lau, and David P. Redlawsk. 2001. “Advantages and Disadvantages of Cognitive Heuristics in Political Decision Making,” American Journal of Political Science 45: 951-971.
Jan Leighley. 1995. “Attitudes, Opportunities and Incentives: A Field Essay on Political Participation,” Political Research Quarterly 48: 181-209.
Robert C. Lowry. 2005. “Explaining the Variation in Organized Civil Society Across State and Time,” Journal of Politics 67: 574-594.
Robert C. Lowry. 1997. “The Private Production of Public Goods: Organizational Maintenance, Managers’ Objectives, and Collective Goods,” American Political Science Review 91: 308-323.
Andrew S. McFarland. 1984. Common Cause. Chatham, NJ: Chatham House.
Gerald Marwell, and Ruth E. Ames. 1979. “Experiments on the Provision of Public Goods, I: Resources, Interest Group Size, and the Free Rider Problem,” American Journal of Sociology 84: 1335-1360.
Anthony Nownes, and Grant Neeley. 1996. “Public Interest Group Entrepreneurship and Theories of Group Mobilization,” Political Research Quarterly 49: 119-146.
Lawrence S. Rothenberg. 1988. “Organizational Maintenance and the Retention Decision in Groups,” American Political Science Review 82: 1129-1152.
Kay Lehman Schlozman, Sidney Verba, and Henry E. Brady. 1995. “Participation’s Not Paradox: The View from American Activists,” British Journal of Political Science 25: 1-36.
Theda Skocpol, Marshall Ganz, and Ziad Munson. 2000. “A Nation of Organizers,” American Political Science Review 94: 527-546.