Civic Feedbacks: Linking Collective Action, Organizational Strategy, and Influence over Public Policy
Name
civic-feedbacks-linking-collective-action-organizational-strategy-and-influence-over-public-policy (1).pdf
Size
504.04 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
1411f36843fecddbcc1648bb910910c9
Author(s)
Han, Hahrie
Campbell, Andrea Louise
McKenna, Elizabeth
Date Issued
April 28, 2022
Journal
Perspectives on Politics
Publisher
Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Citation
Han, Hahrie, Campbell, Andrea Louise and McKenna, Elizabeth. 2022. "Civic Feedbacks: Linking Collective Action, Organizational Strategy, and Influence over Public Policy." Perspectives on Politics.
Version
Final published version
Abstract
Democracy is premised on the ability of individuals, often working with others, to influence policies affecting them. However, existing theory cannot always explain why some organized efforts are more influential than others. We introduce the concept of civic feedbacks, arguing that the ways organizations engage individuals in collective action have feedback effects that shape the strategic position of organizations, the options available to leaders, and the likelihood of policy influence. The mechanisms through which civic feedbacks operate include the depth of accountability to the constituency, the network of elite relationships to which leaders subsequently have access, and their ongoing ability to recruit a committed and flexible constituency willing to engage new issues. Analyzing how these feedbacks redound to organizations over time enhances our ability to explain civic organizations’ differential rates of political influence. The concept of civic feedbacks returns organizations and organizational strategy to the center of the study of political influence.
Subjects
Political Science and International Relations
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Political Science
Terms of Use
Creative Commons Attribution
Persistent DSpace Link
DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1017/s1537592722000986
