Institutions privilege some interests by structuring conflict scope.
Schattschneider's 1960 argument: organisation is the mobilisation of bias, and the definition of what counts as a political question determines who wins before any vote is taken.
In practice
- A committee agenda headed "implementation timetable" has settled that the thing will happen, and the objectors arrive prepared for a different meeting.
- A consultation that asks how a road should be built has settled whether it should be, and the scope was the decision.
- Subject
- Law & Politics
- Essay
- Competing accounts of how power works