Search

The article focuses on the emergence of "amateur" organizations in certain areas. The emphasis within such organizations upon ideological and other purposive incentives as the relevant stimuli for party work was interpreted as foreshadowing changes in party goals and strategy. Several analyses concluded, however, that activism based upon purposive or impersonal incentives were somewhat evanescent. The maintenance of amateur orientations might depend, however, upon the congruence of motivational orientations between leaders and lower-level activists. The impact of the amateur type of party organization depends not only upon its ability to sustain itself but also upon its relevance for areas of growing political importance, particularly the suburbs. This paper examines Democratic and Republican party activists in DeKaib County, Georgia. During the summer of 1970, personal interviews were conducted among leaders and officials of the Democratic and Republican county party organizations in DeKaib County, Georgia.