The ways citizens can participate in democracy and influence decisions, including voting, joining parties and pressure groups, petitions, protest, and the role of the media.

What this dot point is asking

AQA wants you to explain the many ways citizens can take part in democracy and influence decisions, from voting to joining pressure groups, and to weigh up how effective each method is. You should be able to give examples. This Politics and participation topic (Paper 1 Section B) is tested through "Explain" questions on individual methods (especially pressure groups and petitions) and through extended "Discuss" or "Evaluate" questions that ask which methods are most effective. The higher-tariff skill is comparing methods and judging their effectiveness, rather than simply listing them.

Voting and standing for office

Voting decides who holds power and is the foundation of representative democracy, but a single vote has limited influence between elections, which is why people use other methods too. Joining a party lets a citizen help shape its policies and choose candidates from the inside, and standing for office (as a councillor, for example) is the most direct way to gain decision-making power. AQA expects you to see voting as necessary but not sufficient: it sets the direction every few years, while the other methods let citizens influence specific decisions in between.

Pressure groups

Pressure groups use methods such as lobbying politicians, organising petitions, running media campaigns and staging peaceful demonstrations. Examples include groups campaigning on the environment, animal welfare or human rights, and "insider" groups such as professional bodies that government consults directly. Their strength is that they concentrate expertise and public support on a single issue, which can be more focused than a general election; their limit is that decision-makers can choose to ignore them. AQA expects you to distinguish a pressure group, which campaigns on issues, from a political party, which seeks to form a government.

Petitions, protest and lobbying

Citizens can sign or start a petition to show support for a change; a petition on the UK Government and Parliament website that passes a set threshold of signatures can be considered for a debate in Parliament. Peaceful protest, such as marches and demonstrations, is a lawful way to show strength of feeling and attract attention. Lobbying means trying to persuade decision-makers directly, for example by writing to or meeting an MP. Boycotts (refusing to buy from a company) put economic pressure on businesses to change. Effective influence is almost always peaceful and lawful; violent or unlawful action tends to lose public sympathy and can be counter-productive.

The role of the media

The media, including newspapers, broadcasting and social media, influences decisions by reporting issues, shaping public opinion and holding those in power to account. Citizens and campaigns can use the media to publicise a cause, reach a large audience quickly and put an issue on the political agenda. Social media in particular lets ordinary citizens organise and spread a message at low cost, though it also spreads misinformation, so claims need checking. The media is therefore both a method citizens can use and a powerful actor in its own right.