Exam Questions Interest Groups Ch.7

American Democracy Now, 6e (Harrison)

Chapter 7 Interest Groups

1) What phrase did Alexis de Tocqueville coin to describe Americans in his 1835 work Democracy in America?

A) "a nation of warriors"

B) "a nation of workers"

C) "a nation of shopkeepers"

D) "a nation of joiners"

E) "a nation of dreamers"

2) What percentage of Americans belong to voluntary groups or associations?

A) 40 percent

B) 50 percent

C) 60 percent

D) 70 percent

E) 80 percent

3) Relationships that improve our individual lives by giving us social connections to solve common problems are forms of

A) intellectual capital.

B) social capital.

C) leveraged networks.

D) associative relationships.

E) empowering networks.

4) In what way do interest groups succeed in channeling civic participation?

A) They offer ways for people to act collectively.

B) They involve individuals more actively in politics.

C) They assist in engaging communities in political issues.

D) They offer an alternative participatory option over the two-party system.

E) All of these answers are correct.

5) All of the following are tenets of pluralist theory EXCEPT that

A) it is important for democracy to have a large, diverse set of interest groups.

B) policy making is a competition among diverse interest groups.

C) policy making is an elite business, staffed by the powerful and highly educated.

D) interest groups provide a structure for political participation.

E) interest groups' varying assets tend to counterbalance one another.

6) As opposed to pluralist theory, elite theory posits that

A) those in power should raise and spend money to influence the outcome of elections.

B) change is favorable and elite power must be used to protect the economic interests of the public at large.

C) interest groups should compete to ensure representation of their interests in policy.

D) there is no mobility in the power structure, and accessibility is an issue.

E) wealthy, educated individuals control the direction of major policy.

7) ________ theory posits that political power is dominated by the wealthy, who commonly use that power for their own benefit.

A) Pluralist

B) Libertarian

C) Democratic

D) Elite

E) None of these answers is correct.

8) Which of the following is held as an undisputed fact among political scientists today?

A) Pluralist theory is far more accurate than elite theory.

B) Elite theory no longer applies in modern politics.

C) Neither pluralist theory nor elite theory explain the role of interest groups.

D) Interest groups are an essential feature of American democracy.

E) Interest groups have no policy-making power unless they represent elites.

9) Most Americans have a ________ impression of interest groups.

A) very positive

B) somewhat positive

C) neutral

D) somewhat negative

E) generally negative

10) Which of the following is NOT among the vital functions served by interest groups?

A) performing electoral functions

B) making money an issue in politics

C) educating the public about policy issues

D) providing average citizens with access to activism

E) mobilizing citizens to participate in civic affairs

11) Which of the following statements about interest groups and their political action committees (PACs) is most accurate?

A) Money from PACs makes campaigns more engaging.

B) Participation of PACs in a campaign tend to make it more even and less expensive.

C) Interest groups tend to strengthen the advantages of incumbency.

D) Interest group activity makes the electoral process more egalitarian.

E) Corporate and labor interest groups are legally limited in their ability to spend money on political ads in favor of or against political candidates.

12) Which social group is likely to be overrepresented in interest groups?

A) the wealthy

B) whites

C) the upper middle class

D) the educated

E) All of these groups are likely to be overrepresented in interest groups.

13) Which demographic characteristics have historically been the best predictors of interest group membership?

A) color and education

B) income and gender

C) race and social class

D) social class and income

E) income and education

14) According to research presented in the text, people with which education level had the highest participation rates in online groups?

A) less than high school

B) high school grad

C) some college

D) college grad

E) Participation rates were the same for all education levels.

15) Which of the following occupations are primarily represented by professional organizations?

A) doctors and lawyers

B) teachers and tradespeople

C) executives in business and industry

D) federal and state employees

E) truck and taxi drivers

16) Which of the following occupations are represented by labor unions?

A) doctors and lawyers

B) teachers and tradespeople

C) executives in business and industry

D) federal and state officials

E) soldiers and security personnel

17) Which of the following occupations are represented by industry-specific organizations?

A) nurses and paralegals

B) teachers and tradespeople

C) executives in business and industry

D) federal and state officials

E) soldiers and security personnel

18) For a range of reasons, children from working-class families are ________ to have been socialized to participate in traditional interest groups.

A) much more likely

B) more likely

C) neither more nor less likely

D) less likely

E) much less likely

19) One recent study indicated that college students are ________ to join a politically motivated interest group than their peers who do not attend college.

A) more than twice as likely

B) more likely

C) neither more nor less likely

D) less likely

E) less than half as likely

20) Which type of incentive for joining interest groups is closely linked to Robert Putnam's idea of social capital?

A) purposive

B) solidary

C) economic

D) ethical

E) moral

21) Members of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) are motivated primarily by ________ incentives.

A) purposive

B) solidary

C) economic

D) ethical

E) moral

22) Belief in a group's cause is an example of which type of incentive?

A) purposive

B) solidary

C) economic

D) ethical

E) moral

23) Many people over 50 join the AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) in order to enjoy the discounts provided to members. This is an example of which type of incentive?

A) purposive

B) solidary

C) economic

D) ethical

E) moral

24) When an interest group representing teachers lobbies a state legislature for an increase in retirement benefits, it is seeking to provide its members with ________ benefits.

A) purposive

B) solidary

C) economic

D) ethical

E) moral

25) What factor influences and decides an interest group's political effectiveness?

A) membership size

B) cohesion

C) intensity

D) demographics

E) All of these factors influence and decide an interest group's political effectiveness.

26) The Occupy Movement that protested income inequality reached a crescendo of activism in 2011, but activity has quieted significantly since that time. This is an example of what facet of interest group membership?

A) intensity

B) demographics

C) financing

D) membership size

E) leadership

27) Separate entities formed by interest groups whose specific goal is to raise and spend money to influence election outcomes are known as

A) political action committees.

B) electoral committees.

C) booster clubs.

D) caucuses.

E) roundtables.

28) In elections, PAC funding shapes electoral outcomes by tending to favor which type of candidate?

A) incumbents

B) mostly incumbents, but some challengers

C) equal support for incumbents and challengers

D) mostly challengers, but some incumbents

E) challengers

29) Which of the following are key factors in an interest groups' organizational environment?

A) financing and opposition

B) leadership and opposition

C) membership and resources

D) resources and leadership

E) demographics and intensity

30) The U.S. Chamber of Commerce represents a collective group of large and small businesses; it is an example of which type of interest group?

A) labor interest group

B) consumer interest group

C) umbrella organization

D) political action committee

E) solidary organization

31) Which of the following best describes union membership in the United States since the 1960s?

A) It has remained steady.

B) It has declined dramatically.

C) It has increased dramatically.

D) It has moderately declined.

E) It has moderately increased.

32) In which decade was union membership the highest?

A) 1960s

B) 1970s

C) 1980s

D) 1990s

E) 2000s

33) In which decade was union membership the lowest?

A) 1960s

B) 1970s

C) 1980s

D) 1990s

E) 2000s

34) Due to their stance on a wide variety of issues, which of the following tend to have the most disproportionate amount of influence?

A) labor unions

B) corporate and business interests

C) agricultural interest groups

D) trade and professional interests

E) environmental interest groups

35) All of these are examples of public interest groups EXCEPT

A) the National Taxpayers Union.

B) the AFL-CIO.

C) the Sierra Club.

D) Common Cause.

E) Public Citizen.

36) The benefits of public interest group activity are most often not limited to the group's membership, but rather result in

A) collective goods.

B) the rational choice effect.

C) the umbrella problem.

D) consumer interests.

E) the limited interest effect.

37) The problem of someone deriving a benefit from the actions of others is known as the

A) collective good distribution.

B) free rider problem.

C) umbrella problem.

D) collective good effect.

E) limited interest effect.

38) The theory that it does not make economic sense for someone to participate in collective action when they can receive a benefit without participating is known as

A) rational choice theory.

B) elite theory.

C) a purposive incentive.

D) a solidary incentive.

E) pluralist theory.

39) Ralph Nader is best known for his involvement with ________ interest groups.

A) environmental

B) professional

C) religious

D) consumer

E) agricultural

40) Today, religious interests are among the most influential interest groups in U.S. politics, but for a long time organized religious interests were uninvolved in politics. Why?

A) They were prevented from doing so by Supreme Court jurisprudence.

B) They were afraid of losing their tax-exempt status.

C) They were virtually ignored by the two major parties.

D) They were afraid of losing their First Amendment freedoms.

E) They were discouraged from doing so by their congregations.

41) Which religious interest organization was instrumental in Ronald Reagan's 1980 election to the presidency?

A) Common Cause

B) the Christian Coalition

C) the Moral Majority

D) Pax Christi USA

E) B'nai Brith

42) Which of the following best describes the emphasis of the Christian Coalition's platform?

A) separation of church and state

B) protection of civil liberties

C) protection of business interests

D) interpretation of the Constitution as a "living" document

E) promotion of "pro-family" values

43) Which group is recognized as the national Catholic peace movement?

A) Common Cause

B) the Christian Coalition

C) the Moral Majority

D) Pax Christi USA

E) B'nai Brith

44) For what reason is a foreign interest most likely to lobby the U.S. government?

A) labor policies

B) goodwill

C) immigration policies

D) human rights policies

E) trade policies

45) Who can legally contribute to federal political action committees?

A) U.S. citizens only

B) U.S. citizens who vote in federal elections only

C) U.S. citizens and legal immigrants only

D) U.S. citizens and all immigrants, legal and illegal

E) U.S. citizens, all immigrants, and foreigners

46) President Ulysses S. Grant coined which of the following terms after walking through the Willard Hotel and commenting on the presence of people who represented various interests and were waiting to speak to members of Congress?

A) buttonholing

B) lobbyist

C) issue network

D) iron triangle

E) public outreach

47) Which interest group spent the most money on lobbying in 2015?

A) American Federation of Teachers

B) Sierra Club

C) AT&T

D) American Medical Association

E) U.S. Chamber of Commerce

48) Which of the following is/are used by special interest representatives to gain access to policymakers?

A) face-to-face meetings

B) "buttonholing" in the Capitol

C) telephone calls

D) receptions and special events

E) All of these answers are correct.

49) When interest groups employ former members of government as lobbyists, they are creating

A) an iron triangle.

B) an issue network.

C) a mutually beneficial network.

D) a lobbying network.

E) a direct action network.

50) The interaction of mutual interests involving interest groups, government officials, and members of Congress is known as the

A) iron triangle.

B) issue network.

C) mutually beneficial network.

D) lobbying network.

E) direct action network.

51) In the iron triangle, which of the following is a benefit Congress derives from its relationship with interest groups?

A) the enactment of friendly legislation

B) electoral support

C) favorable enforcement

D) supportive oversight

E) special favors

52) Which of the following Supreme Court decisions drastically altered the political landscape by allowing corporate and union election financing?

A) Federal Election Commission v. Wisconsin Right to Life

B) McConnell v. Federal Election Commission

C) SpeechNow.org v. Federal Election Commission

D) Federal Election Commission v. Jones

E) Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission

53) In order to attract greater attention, which group is often used by interest groups to testify before Congress as a means of raising public awareness?

A) academics

B) experts

C) policy critics

D) celebrities

E) corporate executives

54) All of the following are examples of indirect strategies used by interest groups to advance their cause EXCEPT

A) buttonholing.

B) citizen grassroots lobbyists.

C) electioneering.

D) protests and civil disobedience.

E) endorsements and ratings.

55) The practice of using public outreach to build favorable public opinion of an organization or company is known as

A) issue networking.

B) environmental triangulation.

C) climate control.

D) electioneering.

E) reputation management.

56) When interest groups engage in indirect strategies to support candidates supportive of their agendas, it is known as

A) issue networking.

B) environmental triangulation.

C) climate control.

D) electioneering.

E) reputation management.

57) Political action committees give a large majority of their contributions to

A) challengers in elections where there is an incumbent.

B) Republican candidates in elections where there is no incumbent.

C) Democratic candidates in elections where there is no incumbent.

D) incumbents of both parties.

E) None of these answers is correct.

58) Super PACs first became an important factor in national elections in

A) 1972.

B) 1980.

C) 1988.

D) 2000.

E) 2012.

59) Define social capital and explain its relationship to the benefits generated by participation in interest groups.

60) Identify at least two positive effects of interest groups on the policy-making process.

61) Compare and contrast the pluralist and elite theories of interest group formation.

62) Identify at least two negative effects of interest groups on policy formation.

63) Outline the relationship between interest-group participation and social class.

64) Explain the key features and functions of PACs (political action committees).

65) Identify at least two public interest groups and explain their functions and issues.

66) Discuss lobbying and identify tactics used by lobbyists to communicate with and influence policy makers.

67) Define and explain the effects of the formation of iron triangles.

68) Explain why interest groups use celebrities to publicly communicate their message.