Why Groups Are Politically Active: An Incentive-Theoretical Approach

Whether and how intensely voluntary membership groups engage in political activities to start with, however, are rarely examined. We present a new incentive-theoretical perspective on group political activity, considering both member demands and leadership constraints.

We argue that investments in political activities (one way of generating collective incentives) as a means to prevent member exit are more or less important depending on a group’s composition. Simultaneously, the extent to which leaders are incentivized to cater to members’ demands, when trying to balance these against conflicting demands, depends on communication channels between leaders and members and the importance of membership fees.