Lobbying and Relationship Management: The K Street Connection

Even though lobbyists spend millions of dollars in Washington DC, lobbying has been largely ignored by public relations scholars. This study is the first to investigate lobbying from a relational perspective. Health care lobbyists reported that interpersonal relationships were critical in doing their jobs, and that ethics played a key role in maintaining positive organization-public relationships on Capitol Hill. The results also indicate political science scholars have been too issue-focused in their research concerning interest groups in Washington, and that the relational perspective holds promise for future studies of lobbying in both the public relations and political science arenas.