Power and Politics: A Sociological View

While politics can be a complex matter for some to understand, sociologists have been able to breakdown the matter into two distinct categories that can help one to better understand how some processes of the politcal process play out in democracies. When examining politics, two particular models of political structures become prevalent: the power-elite model, and the pluralist model.

The power-elite model evokes the idea that though a nation may be classified as democratic, it is often the case that relatively few people of financial influence "run" the country. These few people belong to the ranks of CEOs, tycoons and magnates, and even wealthy celebrities. While these people may not necessarily hold positions of power in the government, they can wield the power of financial coercion especially by way of lobby groups and political funding. It is through the ownership of capital, the election of those who usually are financially well-off, and cronyism between those who are elected and private civilians of influence that are all responsible for the proliferation of power-elite politics.

The power-elite structure can be challenged by the fact that those of power sometimes donate money to politicians or political groups in sometimes clandestine ways. However, the knowledge that these covert, under-the-table transactions do occur often causes many people to question such issues of campaign finding and lobby groups and wonder as to if a politician's platform is based on personal ideology or corporate donations.

The pluralist concept is also at the root of democracy and is assumes that all sorts of people (from various economic backgrounds, ideologies, and social identities) have a weight in the political system. As opposed to the power elite model, pluralism expects that a broad spectrum of individuals have the ability and opportunity to participate in political decision making and policy setting. Interest groups are one of the key venues for allowing pluralist-model politics to play out; interest groups, like some aspects of the power-elite model, have a vast influence on politicians.