Abstract
The theory of collective action accounts for the provision of collective goods, goods that cannot be withheld from noncontributors. The range of the theory covers material benefits sought by interest groups, civil rights sought by social movements, benefits to the needy, the arts and the sciences supported by philanthropists and charitable contributors, common resource management by voluntary associations, and protest against injustice by a hostile crowd. Individuals' participation is based on a benefit/cost calculus. Although free riders are common in large populations, they are overcome by selective incentives such as peer approval, solidarity, and moral commitment, a dense structure of small groups and associations, and strategic behavior. When there is opposition to the collective good, collective action becomes contentious and confrontations may become coercive, even violent. The theory intersects with public choice, rational choice, collective choice and the new institutionalism.
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