e group. A rational group member cannot put the interests of the group ahead of their own. If the interests of the group are put ahead of the members own interests, than the collective good cannot be shared by that member. Without rationality in a group its level of success would be very low. Olson shows how rationality is defined in the following quote, even if the member of a large group were to neglect his own interests entirely, he still would not rationally contribute toward the provision of any collective or public good, since his own contribution would not be perceptible (Olson 64). A Free Rider reaps the benefit of an interest group without participation or contribution to the group. For example most people reap the benefit of environmentalist groups because they do not contribute to the prosperity of that group, however, they reap the benefits of clean air, saved trees, or preserved wildlife. In order to be classified as a free rider that person must not contribute at all to the group while still benefiting that groups collective goods.ConclusionMancur Olson, wrote this book in 1965 and its knowledge and opinion still proves useful almost 40 years later. Olsons theories are based on political systems throughout the world but have a focus on U.S. politics. Although through his theories, Olson, neglects to mention the influence of human motivation, and the complexity of the human psyche. Olsons theories can only be correct to a point because people in general are not as easy to predict. For the most part though Olson has pointed out themes and rationales from U.S. politics, and put them into structured theories. Mancur Olsons book The Logic of Collective Action Public Goods and The Theory of Groups will be read and studied for years to come....
