The dynamics of dominance and compromise

Political goals are often sought by groups, whether they be political parties, trade associations, interest groups, or of any other sort. The formalities of modern political systems rely on individual voting, but group identities shape both individual behavior and the workings of government. To buil...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inDecision (Calcutta) Vol. 51; no. 1; pp. 69 - 84
Main Author Gmeiner, Robert
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published New Delhi Springer India 01.03.2024
Springer Nature B.V
Subjects
Business and Management
Collective action
Democracy
Fluid dynamics
Interest groups
Literature reviews
Management
Metaphor
Political parties
Political systems
Research Article
Group decision making
Interest groups
Collective action
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Summary:Political goals are often sought by groups, whether they be political parties, trade associations, interest groups, or of any other sort. The formalities of modern political systems rely on individual voting, but group identities shape both individual behavior and the workings of government. To build a metaphor from the natural sciences, fluids (groups) are composed of molecules (individuals), but the fluid has properties of its own that affect its motion (actions) and interactions with other fluids (groups). This paper develops a model based on fluid dynamics relationships to explain group interactions based on observable group characteristics. It complements many strands of literature by explaining the circumstances in which existing models are valid, and in which they are incomplete. In so doing, it does not refute any existing models, but links them together and addresses their shortcomings.
ISSN:0304-0941
2197-1722
DOI:10.1007/s40622-024-00381-4