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This study seeks to understand how social movements change over time. As social
movements institutionalize, they form organizations, or interest groups, to further their goals.
Therefore, the study of social movement institutionalization finds a confluence of three different
theoretical approaches—institutionalization theory, interest group theory and social movement
theory. Understanding how these three theoretical approaches relate to each other is another
purpose of my research. I approach these questions by conducting a case study of the Christian
Right.
The institutionalization of a social movement is not an area of study that has been well
developed among social movement scholars. While the institutionalization of social movement
organizations (Zald and Ash 1966) and the institutionalization of protest within society
(McCarthy & McPhail 1998, Kubik 1998) have been studied, no scholar has described in
theoretical terms the institutionalization of a social movement. This is curious considering that
the Christian Right social movement has been described as having become institutionalized
(Wilcox 1996). In other words, while the term “institutionalization” has been used to describe
the change that has taken place with the Christian Right, institutionalization has not been has not
been well defined in relation to social movements.
Therefore, after giving some historical context and defining my terms, I will discuss
theories of institutionalization, interest groups and social movements. Then I will discuss why
social movement theory is a necessary component for understanding the institutionalization of
the Christian Right and the behavior of Christian Right organizations. I will conclude with a
discussion of the methods and data used for this research, and my findings.
Convention