Interest group tactics and legislative behaviour: how the mode of communication matters

Interest groups often seek to influence legislators and legislative behaviour. We argue that the likelihood of taking interest group requests preferences into account is shaped by how – with what tactic they are conveyed. expect more direct, real-time, contact increases legislators’ receptiveness demands. To test this argument, we introduce take advantage uniquely nuanced lobbying data provide extensive disclosure on all 217,886 attempts targeting individual members Irish Parliament between 2015 2019, link them collected 167,347 parliamentary questions tabled legislators. The evidence suggests does impact behaviour, particularly when communication involves higher levels ‘social presence’. Moreover, our results indicate approximately 20 per cent can be attributed lobbying.