Download or read book Organizing for Policy Influence written by Benjamin Farrer and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-08-09 with total page 299 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this book, Benjamin Farrer explains how activists can influence the policies they care about, even when they are outnumbered and their issues are ignored. The solution lies in a surprising place: organizational choice. Different types of organizations will be more influential under particular democratic institutions. If they choose the optimal type of organization - given their institutional context - then even minority groups can be influential. Environmentalists are a key example of how small groups can sometimes punch above their weight. Environmentalists in different countries have made different organizational choices. These choices explain whether or not they succeeded in influencing policy. In the empirical chapters that follow, Farrer shows that environmentalists can sometimes be more influential if they form interest groups, but under other institutions, political parties are the optimal organizational choice. Although interest groups are often easier to create, national institutions can sometimes insulate mainstream politicians from niche interest groups. When institutions deny access to interest groups, activists are forced to send the stronger signal of party entry. Using a variety of methods, including a formal model, an experiment, and a wealth of empirical data from a variety of settings, Farrer proves that this theory of organizational choice adds to our understanding of several crucial phenomena. First, it helps explain patterns of political participation, by showing the importance of instrumental, rather than purely expressive, motivations for activism. Second, it provides an important modification to Duverger’s (1954) law, by showing that new party entry is a function not only of electoral rules but also of the rules that govern interest groups. Third, it extends research on the role of institutions in determining policy outputs, by showing that policy outcomes are a function of the interaction between organizational choices and institutional context.

Download or read book Organizing for Policy Influence written by Benjamin Farrer and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-08-09 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this book, Benjamin Farrer explains how activists can influence the policies they care about, even when they are outnumbered and their issues are ignored. The solution lies in a surprising place: organizational choice. Different types of organizations will be more influential under particular democratic institutions. If they choose the optimal type of organization - given their institutional context - then even minority groups can be influential. Environmentalists are a key example of how small groups can sometimes punch above their weight. Environmentalists in different countries have made different organizational choices. These choices explain whether or not they succeeded in influencing policy. In the empirical chapters that follow, Farrer shows that environmentalists can sometimes be more influential if they form interest groups, but under other institutions, political parties are the optimal organizational choice. Although interest groups are often easier to create, national institutions can sometimes insulate mainstream politicians from niche interest groups. When institutions deny access to interest groups, activists are forced to send the stronger signal of party entry. Using a variety of methods, including a formal model, an experiment, and a wealth of empirical data from a variety of settings, Farrer proves that this theory of organizational choice adds to our understanding of several crucial phenomena. First, it helps explain patterns of political participation, by showing the importance of instrumental, rather than purely expressive, motivations for activism. Second, it provides an important modification to Duverger’s (1954) law, by showing that new party entry is a function not only of electoral rules but also of the rules that govern interest groups. Third, it extends research on the role of institutions in determining policy outputs, by showing that policy outcomes are a function of the interaction between organizational choices and institutional context.

Download or read book Community Organizing and Community Building for Health written by Meredith Minkler and published by Rutgers University Press. This book was released on 2005 with total page 512 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: .

Download or read book Hijacking the Agenda written by Christopher Witko and published by Russell Sage Foundation. This book was released on 2021-05-25 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why are the economic interests and priorities of lower- and middle-class Americans so often ignored by the U.S. Congress, while the economic interests of the wealthiest are prioritized, often resulting in policies favorable to their interests? In Hijacking the Agenda, political scientists Christopher Witko, Jana Morgan, Nathan J. Kelly, and Peter K. Enns examine why Congress privileges the concerns of businesses and the wealthy over those of average Americans. They go beyond demonstrating that such economic bias exists to illuminate precisely how and why economic policy is so often skewed in favor of the rich. The authors analyze over 20 years of floor speeches by several hundred members of Congress to examine the influence of campaign contributions on how the national economic agenda is set in Congress. They find that legislators who received more money from business and professional associations were more likely to discuss the deficit and other upper-class priorities, while those who received more money from unions were more likely to discuss issues important to lower- and middle-class constituents, such as economic inequality and wages. This attention imbalance matters because issues discussed in Congress receive more direct legislative action, such as bill introductions and committee hearings. While unions use campaign contributions to push back against wealthy interests, spending by the wealthy dwarfs that of unions. The authors use case studies analyzing financial regulation and the minimum wage to demonstrate how the financial influence of the wealthy enables them to advance their economic agenda. In each case, the authors examine the balance of structural power, or the power that comes from a person or company’s position in the economy, and kinetic power, the power that comes from the ability to mobilize organizational and financial resources in the policy process. The authors show how big business uses its structural power and resources to effect policy change in Congress, as when the financial industry sought deregulation in the late 1990s, resulting in the passage of a bill eviscerating New Deal financial regulations. Likewise, when business interests want to preserve the policy status quo, it uses its power to keep issues off of the agenda, as when inflation eats into the minimum wage and its declining purchasing power leaves low-wage workers in poverty. Although groups representing lower- and middle-class interests, particularly unions, can use their resources to shape policy responses if conditions are right, they lack structural power and suffer significant resource disadvantages. As a result, wealthy interests have the upper hand in shaping the policy process, simply due to their pivotal position in the economy and the resulting perception that policies beneficial to business are beneficial for everyone. Hijacking the Agenda is an illuminating account of the way economic power operates through the congressional agenda and policy process to privilege the interests of the wealthy and marks a major step forward in our understanding of the politics of inequality.

Download or read book Economic and Societal Impact of Organized Crime Policy and Law Enforcement Interventions written by Danielsson, Alicia and published by IGI Global. This book was released on 2024-03-06 with total page 381 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Organized crime, a hidden and pervasive threat, casts its dark shadow over societies globally, impacting countless lives through activities like human trafficking, illegal drug trade, and cybercrime. This intricate web of criminality leaves lasting scars on individuals, families, and entire communities, with its true cost remaining obscured. Amidst this dilemma, the question arises: how can the erosion of societal well-being be countered and a sense of security restored? Economic and Societal Impact of Organized Crime: Policy and Law Enforcement Interventions stands as a reservoir of knowledge offering profound insights into combatting organized criminal endeavors. Edited by renowned scholar Alicia Danielsson, an expert in Comparative and EU law, this interdisciplinary collection delves beneath the surface of organized crime. Drawing on contributions from diverse fields, the book unravels real-world stories, empirical evidence, and case studies, shedding light on the psychological, physical, and economic toll exacted by these activities. Moreover, it explores the wider societal consequences, including eroding trust in institutions and exacerbating inequality and poverty. This work serves as an intellectual haven for academics, providing a roadmap to comprehending and confronting this global threat. It navigates the intricate pathways of criminal networks, corrupt actors, and the responses of law enforcement and policymakers. By championing an evidence-based approach that prioritizes human well-being and community resilience, the book equips readers to grasp the intricacies of the challenge and contribute to a world where organized crime's grip is loosened, and the foundations of security and justice are reinforced.

Download or read book Qualitative Inquiry in Higher Education Organization and Policy Research written by Penny A. Pasque and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2016-11-25 with total page 178 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Qualitative Inquiry in Higher Education Organization and Policy Research provides readers with the theoretical foundations and innovative perspectives for undertaking qualitative research to influence policy and practice discussions. Well-known chapter authors discuss innovative strategies for investigating complex problems, helping readers understand how research can consider the culture of the institution, administrative hierarchy, students, faculty, and external constituencies. From both an organizational and policy perspective, chapter pairings explore a range of methodologies, including ethnography, case study, critical qualitative inquiry, and the notion of "grit." This volume explores how qualitative inquiry can advance understanding of organizational inequities in higher education, and it offers graduate students and educational researchers the tools to improve the organizational function of institutions while contributing to meaningful change.

Download or read book The Handbook of Political Sociology written by Thomas Janoski and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2005-05-23 with total page 844 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Handbook provides a complete survey of the vibrant field of political sociology. Part I explores the theories of political sociology. Part II focuses on the formation, transitions, and regime structure of the state. Part III takes up various aspects of the state that respond to pressures from civil society.

Download or read book Organizing While Undocumented written by Kevin Escudero and published by NYU Press. This book was released on 2020-03-03 with total page 201 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Finalist, 2020 C. Wright Mills Award, given by the Society for the Study of Social Problems Honorable Mention, 2021 Asian America Section Book Award, given by the American Sociological Association An inspiring look inside immigrant youth’s political activism in perilous times Undocumented immigrants in the United States who engage in social activism do so at great risk: the threat of deportation. In Organizing While Undocumented, Kevin Escudero shows why and how—despite this risk—many of them bravely continue to fight on the front lines for their rights. Drawing on more than five years of research, including interviews with undocumented youth organizers, Escudero focuses on the movement’s epicenters—San Francisco, Chicago, and New York City—to explain the impressive political success of the undocumented immigrant community. He shows how their identities as undocumented immigrants, but also as queer individuals, people of color, and women, connect their efforts to broader social justice struggles today. A timely, worthwhile read, Organizing While Undocumented gives us a look at inspiring triumphs, as well as the inevitable perils, of political activism in precarious times.

Download or read book Organizing for Collective Action written by David Knoke and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-01-15 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Organizing for Collective Action investigates the political and economic behaviors of national associations, including trade associations, professional societies, labor unions, and public interest groups. It focuses upon the ways that these organizations acquire resources and allocate them to various collective actions, particularly for member services, public relations, and political action. This analysis is structured around three broad theoretical paradigms for collective action: (1) the problem of societal integration which concerns the ways that people are tied to organizations and the ways that organizations connect their members with the larger society; (2) the problem of organizational governance which considers how individuals become unified collectivities capable of acting in a coordinated manner, and (3) the problem of public policy influence which involves interactions among public and private interest groups to formulate the binding decisions under which we all must live.

Download or read book Prisms of the People written by Hahrie Han and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2021-07-12 with total page 234 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Grassroots organizing and collective action have always been fundamental to American democracy but have been burgeoning since the 2016 election, as people struggle to make their voices heard in this moment of societal upheaval. Unfortunately much of that action has not had the kind of impact participants might want, especially among movements representing the poor and marginalized who often have the most at stake when it comes to rights and equality. Yet, some instances of collective action have succeeded. What’s the difference between a movement that wins victories for its constituents, and one that fails? What are the factors that make collective action powerful? Prisms of the People addresses those questions and more. Using data from six movement organizations—including a coalition that organized a 104-day protest in Phoenix in 2010 and another that helped restore voting rights to the formerly incarcerated in Virginia—Hahrie Han, Elizabeth McKenna, and Michelle Oyakawa show that the power of successful movements most often is rooted in their ability to act as “prisms of the people,” turning participation into political power just as prisms transform white light into rainbows. Understanding the organizational design choices that shape the people, their leaders, and their strategies can help us understand how grassroots groups achieve their goals. Linking strong scholarship to a deep understanding of the needs and outlook of activists, Prisms of the People is the perfect book for our moment—for understanding what’s happening and propelling it forward.

Download or read book Exploring Organized Interests in Post Communist Policy Making written by Michael Dobbins and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-05-18 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines organized interests in post-communist Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), providing incisive analyses in three critically important policy areas - healthcare, higher education and energy. The four countries surveyed – Poland, Hungary, Slovenia and the Czech Republic – afford rich diversity offering broad empirical material available for cross-country and cross-policy comparative analyses. Featuring interdisciplinary research, the book draws together recent developments in the evolution of post-communist advocacy organizations, their population ecology dynamics, interest intermediation, the influence of organized interests and their (bottom-up and top-down) Europeanization. This book will be of key interest to scholars and students of Central and Eastern European politics, interest groups and lobbying, post-communism, transition and consolidation studies, and more broadly to European studies/politics. The Open Access version of this book, available at: http://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/e/9781003049562, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.

Download or read book Key Policies for Addressing the Social Determinants of Health and Health Inequities written by Centers of Disease Control and published by World Health Organization. This book was released on 2017-09-27 with total page 92 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evidence indicates that actions within four main themes (early child development fair employment and decent work social protection and the living environment) are likely to have the greatest impact on the social determinants of health and health inequities. A systematic search and analysis of recommendations and policy guidelines from intergovernmental organizations and international bodies identified practical policy options for action on social determinants within these four themes. Policy options focused on early childhood education and care; child poverty; investment strategies for an inclusive economy; active labour market programmes; working conditions; social cash transfers; affordable housing; and planning and regulatory mechanisms to improve air quality and mitigate climate change. Applying combinations of these policy options alongside effective governance for health equity should enable WHO European Region Member States to reduce health inequities and synergize efforts to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Download or read book Health Systems Policy Finance and Organization written by Guy Carrin and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2010-05-22 with total page 464 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume is unique in its systematic approach to these three pillars of health systems analysis will give readers of various backgrounds authoritative material about subjects adjacent to their own specialties. Assembling such comparative materials is usually an onerous task because so many programs possess their own vocabularies, goals, and methods. This book will provide common grounds for people in programs as diverse as economics and finance, allied health, business and management, and the social sciences, including psychology. Gives readers of various backgrounds authoritative material about subjects adjacent to their own specialties Provides common grounds for people in programs as diverse as economics and finance, allied health, business and management, and the social sciences, including psychology

Download or read book Organization Policy and Practice in the Human Services written by Bernard Neugeboren and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2012-08-21 with total page 370 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Here is a timely, insightful book that greatly increases the effectiveness of human service professionals and the organizations in which they function. Organization, Policy, and Practice in the Human Services is the first such text to bring together in a systematic fashion the concepts of organizational theory, policy, and practice in the human services. Offering a basic orientation to the structure and operations of social service organizations, Neugeboren addresses society’s need for the successful operation of these complex institutions in our highly organized society. He also calls for a re-examination of what is meant by “dependency” and postulates new methods of dealing with the social and personal problems confronting people in contemporary society. This book is indispensable for administrators, practitioners, and students. Practitioners gain instruction in “bureaucratic expertise,” enabling them to maximize opportunities, limit organizational constraints, reduce the likelihood of “burnout,’and otherwise become a “good bureaucrat” instead of an ineffective if well-intentioned one. Administrators will benefit from a model of organizational goals, practical guidelines for evaluating the effectiveness of an organizational structure, and methods for identifying and remedying the causes of organizational dysfunction. Neugeboren’s practical ideas make a significant contribution in preparing tomorrow’s social workers to deal more effectively with the world facing each of us. His theoretical insights are grounded in discussions of actual cases making them easy to apply to any human service organization.

Download or read book Bureaucratic Politics and Foreign Policy written by Morton H. Halperin and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2007-02-01 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first edition of Bureaucratic Politics and Foreign Policy is one of the most successful Brookings titles of all time. This thoroughly revised version updates that classic analysis of the role played by the federal bureaucracy—civilian career officials, political appointees, and military officers—and Congress in formulating U.S. national security policy, illustrating how policy decisions are actually made. Government agencies, departments, and individuals all have certain interests to preserve and promote. Those priorities, and the conflicts they sometimes spark, heavily influence the formulation and implementation of foreign policy. A decision that looks like an orchestrated attempt to influence another country may in fact represent a shaky compromise between rival elements within the U.S. government. The authors provide numerous examples of bureaucratic maneuvering and reveal how they have influenced our international relations. The revised edition includes new examples of bureaucratic politics from the past three decades, from Jimmy Carter's view of the State Department to conflicts between George W. Bush and the bureaucracy regarding Iraq. The second edition also includes a new analysis of Congress's role in the politics of foreign policymaking.

Download or read book The Determinants of Public Policy written by Thomas R. Dye and published by Lexington, Mass. : Lexington Books. This book was released on 1980 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Migration and Organized Civil Society written by Dirk Halm and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-05-07 with total page 243 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Migrant organizations are of vital importance for countries of residence and countries of origin, but the empirical and theoretical knowledge of the cross-border character of migrant organizations remains incomplete. It is clear that migrant transnationalism challenges the governance of nation-states on the local and national levels. This book, the outcome of an ECPR joint session, systematically and empirically analyzes the differing roles that transnational migrant organizations play in their countries of residence and origin. Drawing on research conducted in Belgium, England, Germany, Holland, Poland and Portugal, it focuses on the relations between migrant organizations and the state. Offering an opportunity for comparative analysis, it also examines why migrants and their organizations engage in different forms of border crossing activities, and how various political systems influence, and are influenced by these forms of engagement. Migration and Organized Civil Society will be of strong interest to students and researchers of political science, political sociology, migration studies, transnationalism, and Diaspora studies.