Interest Groups as Policy Shapers

The heart of government is public policy. Pri vate interest groups and administrative agencies have come to be the principal originators of policy, while legislative groups, along with administrative and private groups, are the major shapers of public policy. The role of private groups depends upon the cultural setting within which they operate and the nature of the policy-making process. An interest group may succeed in shaping public policy when it is able to identify its conception of desirable policy with prevailing attitudes of the public and when it has access to the major centers of policy determination. Identification of the interests of the group with those of relevant publics may be accomplished by ma nipulating public attitudes, by adjusting the attitudes of the group, or both. Groups seek access along a number of fronts in all three branches of government. The ability of a group to gain or exploit access is limited by certain factors which, to a large extent, are not subject to its control. There has been frequent comment on the alleged danger from interest groups. An objective appraisal of interest groups in a democracy should focus on the process by which policy is formulated rather than on the policy which results.