The Role of Special Education Interest Groups in National Policy ...

situations they resort to outside tactics such as demonstrations, typical of social movements. Given the highly personal nature of parent advocacy, the groups do not compromise. For them it is all or nothing. The chapter then analyzes coalitions and personal relationships with policy makers. I show that coalitions are critical for the disability community because of the small size of most such groups. Having a united voice on the broader policy items is the strength of this community by being able to increase the sheer number of people behind an issue position. Parent and disability advocacy groups are also more vulnerable to changes in their leadership, as there is typically only one (or a few, at most) government-relations people. The chapter concludes with a discussion on the on-going tension between education and parent groups.

In chapter 8, I examine group effectiveness over time and the variables that explain effectiveness.³⁵ The main finding of this chapter is that problem definition is a determinant of effectiveness, overriding group resources. How organizations frame their issues, narrate their policy story, and portray students with disabilities is, in other words, important in understanding which interests become locked into policy and which do not.

Finally, I present theoretical implications in chapter 9.³⁶ The quantified problem definition model contributes to the study of policy analysis by empirically analyzing frames, stories, and student portrayals. The second theoretical contribution involves the application of pain and loss activism to parent and disability advocacy. Understanding parent groups’ participation as pain and loss activism helps in understanding and analyzing the groups’ behavior in this policy domain, which grew out of conflict between parents and professionals, and continues to experience conflict over some issues that are repeatedly on the agenda (e.g., student discipline). Finally, the effectiveness model presents an economical conception of the various variables that contribute to groups’ policy successes. The chapter concludes with an examination of the landscape shift in special education politics over the past 30 years, including the generational shifts in Congress and among parent groups’ leadership.