ABSTRACT
The primary reason why political scientists (and you) study interest groups is that interest groups lobby. If that last sentence looks familiar to you, it should—it is the same sentence that began the last chapter. That chapter, however, was concerned with the non-lobbying activities of interest groups and their lobbyists. Now it is time to take a closer look at what interest groups and lobbyists do when they try to affect government decisions—that is, when they lobby. This chapter examines direct lobbying—lobbying that entails face to face contact with government decision-makers. Chapter 6 examines electoral lobbying—lobbying that is designed to affect the outcome of an election. And Chapter 7 examines indirect lobbying—lobbying that is aimed at citizens rather than government decision-makers, and is designed to mobilize citizens to contact government decision-makers and/or change their minds about a particular issue or set of issues.
