Describe pluralist theory and discuss the major criticisms of pluralism.
What will be an ideal response?
The ideal answer should include:
1. Pluralism is a group theory of democracy. According to pluralism, society contains a variety of groups with access to government officials, and these organizations compete and cooperate to influence policy decisions.
2. One criticism condemns pluralism for emphasizing how the political game is played rather than why people play it. Critics say that the pluralists do not give enough importance to how benefits really are distributed.
3. Other critics point out that pluralists believe that groups will balance off each other, producing a self-regulating stable system. But what if everyone sees the value in forming a group to gain more benefits from the government? Political inflation leads to so many competing groups making so many demands that the government begins to choke on unnecessary programs that-since no one wants to pay more taxes-can only be funded by ever-higher budget deficits.
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How might congressional reliance on officials in the bureaucracy for information related to policy decisions create problems?
a. Because of the red tape, it may be difficult for Congress to get the information by the time it is needed. b. Information provided by government officials may be distorted because federal employees do not have the perspective of business owners and educators. c. Presidential appointees may pressure subordinates to withhold or distort information in order to advance the president's policy agenda. d. Officials who are not experts in the field in which a policy decision is being made may unknowingly provide inaccurate or misleading information.
Which of the following is associated with CzRM?
a. Protecting the rights of citizens b. Getting rid of e-government c. Complete disregard for administrative values d. Providing citizens timely, consistent, responsive access to government information