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Buy, Lobby or Sue: Interest Groups' Participation in Policy Making - A Selective Survey

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  • Pablo T. Spiller
  • Sanny Liao

Abstract

The participation of interest groups in public policy making is unavoidable. Its unavoidable nature is only matched by the universal suspicion with which it has been seen by both policy makers and the public. Recently, however, there has been a growing literature that examines the participation of interest groups in public policy making from a New Institutional Economics perspective. The distinguishing feature of the New Institutional Economics Approach is its emphasis in opening up the black box of decision-making, whether in understanding the rules of the game, or the play of the game. In this paper we do not attempt to fairly describe the vast literature on interest group's behavior. Instead, the purpose of this essay for the New Institutional Economics Guide Book is to review recent papers that follow the NIE mantra. That is, they attempt to explicate the micro-analytic features of the way interest groups actually interact with policy-makers, rather than providing an abstract high-level representation. We emphasize the role of the institutional environment in understanding interest groups' strategies.

Suggested Citation

  • Pablo T. Spiller & Sanny Liao, 2006. "Buy, Lobby or Sue: Interest Groups' Participation in Policy Making - A Selective Survey," NBER Working Papers 12209, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:12209
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    Cited by:

    1. Corinna Ahlfeld, 2010. "Reputation Sells -Compensation Payments in the Political Sphere," Departmental Discussion Papers 145, University of Goettingen, Department of Economics.
    2. Bordignon, Massimo & Colombo, Luca & Galmarini, Umberto, 2008. "Fiscal federalism and lobbying," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(12), pages 2288-2301, December.
    3. Aad Correlje & John Groenewegen & Jan Jaap Bouma, 2012. "The Regulated Firm in Liberalized Network Industries," Chapters, in: Michael Dietrich & Jackie Krafft (ed.), Handbook on the Economics and Theory of the Firm, chapter 37, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    4. Jean‐Michel Glachant, 2008. "La Deregulation Des Industries De Reseaux Comme Politique Institutionnelle De Creation De Marches Et De Mecanismes De Gouvernance," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 79(3‐4), pages 487-525, September.
    5. Murillo, Maria Victoria & Scartascini, Carlos & Tommasi, Mariano, 2008. "The Political Economy of Productivity: Actors, Arenas, and Policies. A Framework of Analysis," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 1642, Inter-American Development Bank.
    6. Javier A. Prado Domínguez & Antonio García Lorenzo, 2010. "Competencia e incentivos a la cooperación en la interacción de grupos de interés que pretenden aumentar su influencia política directa: ¿cuál es la importancia de la presión política?," Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics, IEF, vol. 192(1), pages 105-125, March.
    7. Recuero Virto, Laura & Gasmi, Farid & Belaid, Rabah, 2009. "Qualité institutionnelle et performance économique : cas des télécommunications dans les pays en voie de développement [Institutional quality and economic performance through telecommunications in ," MPRA Paper 12889, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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    • K - Law and Economics
    • L - Industrial Organization

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