CLEP American Government Exam Prep

Answer: E -When the air you breathe is made cleaner as a result of lobbying done by an interest group to which you do not belong, you are an example of a free-rider. The “free-rider problem” describes the difficulty interest groups have gaining and maintaining members when non-members receive the same benefits as members. Environmental groups are obvious examples of this in that anyone in the US who benefits from clean drinking water is indebted to environmental interest groups to which they probably don’t belong. Economists and political scientists often find the questions, “Why would people join interest groups?” more interesting than “Why don’t people join interest groups?” because the free-rider problem indicates it is actually in your self-interest to not join.