The Organizational Roots of Political Activism: Field Experiments on Creating a Relational Context

Abstract

This article examines the role that democratic organizations play in fostering political activism in America. Activists make democracy work by attending meetings, engaging others, trying to make their voice heard, and participating in myriad other ways. Yet, we still need a deeper understanding of what role organizations play in cultivating that activism. The article presents data from three field experiments showing that creating a relational organizational context makes targets more likely to sign petitions, recruit others, and attend meetings. The article argues that civic organizations can have a powerful impact on activism. In doing so, it introduces a new set of variables related to organizational context to consider in understanding the sources of participation. The article thus extends a burgeoning body of experimental research on the social bases of voter turnout by examining not only voting but other forms of activism that are increasingly common modes of citizen involvement in the twenty-first century.

The Ties that Bind: Assessing the Effects of Political and Racial Church Homogeneity on Asian American Political Participation

“…In contrast, the perception that other churchgoers share one's political leanings entails the processes of political learning, establishment of shared experiences, and fostering of lateral relationships across parishioners that entail mutual reciprocity and trust. These are all critical elements of Han's (2016) relational organizational model of political behavior cultivated through civic The Ties that Bind institutions. Consistent with this approach, we find the bonding capital forged from the perceptions of political homogeneity within the church augments Asian Americans' sense of racial identity.…”

“…Such threat is a central component of the pathway from racial group consciousness to action. On the contrary, participation on the basis of shared ideology within the church can serve as an expressive outlet of the relational ties that Asian American churchgoers have forged with fellow parishioners (Rogers, Gerber, and Fox 2012;Han 2016). Given the variations in Asian Americans' possession of panethnic racial identity, as well as the generally lower levels of racial consciousness exhibited by this group relative to other minorities, the potential of political homogeneity within the church is uniquely potent for this group.…”

Exposure to inequality affects support for redistribution

“…In contrast to previous studies of redistributive preferences that rely on costless expressions of opinion on a survey or relatively unnatural distributive games, this study examines the effect of exposure on a real political action in an authentic setting. Although signing a petition is less costly than some forms of political engagement, it is a meaningful, public form of advocacy (14,15) and a potential gateway to future political participation (16,17).…”

Paths of Recruitment: Rational Social Prospecting in Petition Canvassing

“…In short, petitioning shares at least three theoretically relevant elements with political recruitment more generally: The role of the recruiter : Encouragement and solicitation are central to the petitioning process and induce participation (Brady, Schlozman, and Verba ; Han ). Sequential search : As with voter mobilization canvassers or fundraisers, likely supporters cannot be known with certainty, and the population cannot be searched all at once. Persuasion and inducements : Communication with targets is integral to the recruiting act, and the canvasser must offer incentives in the form of persuasion or tangible benefits. …”