Private Groups and Public Life: Social Participation and Political Involvement in Representative Democracies

by van Deth,Jan W.

• ISBN13: 9780415169554
• ISBN10: 0415169550
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1997-12-15
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

The relevance of social participation and intermediary associations for democracy has been at the centre of approaches to democratic politics since the nineteenth century. More recently the rise of new states in Central and Eastern Europe and contemporary discussions about social conflict, civil society, communitarianism, and social capital have stimulated a revival of the subject. This study explores the changing role and functions of voluntary associations, intermediary organisations and other social movements in democratic societies. The contributors employ macro- and micro-perspectives to examine the relationship between social and political involvement in the democratic process. The contributors use previously unpublished empirical data from countries such as Britain, Germany, France, Denmark, Belgium, Norway and Spain. They find the structure of voluntary associations and intermediary organisations throughout these countries has changed significantly and their membership levels and relevance todemocratic decision-making have grown pointing to a changing, but not declining, democratic culture in Western Europe.

Table of Contents

Series editor's preface	vii	(3)
List of figures	x	(1)
List of tables	xi	(3)
List of contributors	xiv	(3)
Preface	xvii
1 Introduction: social involvement and democratic politics	1	(23)
Jan W. van Deth
2 Voluntary associations and democratic participation in Britain	24	(23)
George Moyser
Geraint Parry
3 Social reflexivity, democracy and new types of citizen involvement in Denmark	47	(17)
Peter Gundelach
Lars Torpe
4 Political parties and social organizations in Flanders	64	(18)
Jaak B. Billiet
5 Women and the transformation of the Norwegian voluntary sector	82	(25)
Per Selle
6 The rise of protest businesses in Britain	107	(18)
William A. Maloney
Grant Jordan
7 Political capital formation among British party members	125	(19)
Paul F. Whiteley
Patrick Seyd
8 The corporatist channel and civil society in the Netherlands	144	(19)
Jantine Oldersma
9 Associative and Political participation in Switzerland and France	163	(20)
Dominique Joye
Annie Laurent
10 The political participation of intermediary organizations at the local level	183	(15)
Herman Lelieveldt
11 Organizing capacity of societies and modernity	198	(22)
Bernhard Wessels
12 Voluntary associations, social movements and individual political behaviour in Western Europe	220	(21)
Paul Dekker
Ruud Koopmans
Andries van den Broek
Index	241