“Organizational Membership and Civic Competence”

1. “Organizational Membership and Civic Competence” Written by: Gabriel A. Almond and Sidney Verba Interpreted by: Erin Turcot

2. Does membership in voluntary associations lead to political competence and democratic citizens? • Factors to Consider: • Types of Organization • Perceptions of Political Competence • Activity within Organization • Multiple memberships

3. Types of Organizations • Organizations Representing Economic Interests • Social Organizations • Religious Organizations • Civic-political Organizations • Fraternal Organizations * In the U.S. 57 % of people surveyed participate in voluntary organizations and American women are more likely to participate in organizations than women in Great Britain, Germany, Italy, or Mexico

4. Are Organizations Concerned with Public Affairs/Politics? • Some are purely social • Some are overtly political • However, they all affect political attitudes because of: • Social interactions • Opportunity to participate in the decisions of the organization • General broadening of perspectives that occur from social activity • So, some individuals may not perceive their organizations as having a political role, however, these organizational functions are political

5. Perceptions of Political Competence • Hypothesis: members of voluntary associations should feel more confident of their ability to influence the government • Results: • 79 % of people in political organizations perceive themselves to be politically competent • 70 % of members in non-political organizations perceive themselves to be politically competent • 54 % of non-members perceive themselves to be politically competent

6. Conclusions of Political Competence Hypothesis • Even members of non-political organizations still have a greater sense of political competence than non-members. • This shows that latent political functions are performed in voluntary associations

7. Activity within Organization Points to Consider: • Are members actively or passively participating? • Is there a central authority? • Does participation effect sense of competence?

8. Organization Participation Findings • The United States as compared to other democratic nations has a higher percentage of participants in leadership roles. • People with greater competence are more likely to participate • Membership participation leads to greater sense of political competence • In the U.S, female organization members are more likely to be active participants than men

9. Multiple Memberships and Politcal Competence • Members in more than one organization show greater competence • U.S compared to other countries: • U.S.: 55% of org. members belong to 1+ orgs • Britain: 34 % • Germany: 27 % • Italy: 20 % • Mexico: 8%

10. Conclusions: • Organizational membership is directly related to participation • Org. members are self-confident and active • Membership in politically-oriented organization leads to greatest political competence • Active membership leads to greater political competence • Most importantly, membership within a non-political or passive membership have greater impact on political competence than someone who is not in an organization

11. Conclusions: Democratic Citizens & Theory of Mass Society • Democratic Citizens are: competent, active, and open with their opinions • Theory of Mass Society: Democracy depends on mass participation • Voluntary Associations are small political systems where people are trained to participate, and gain a sense of political competence • This allows alternative channels of recruitment into politics

12. Source Hodgkinson, Virginia & Michael W. Foley. The Civil Society Reader. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, 2003