In this H andbook, our aim is to map lobbyists’ interactions with public policy. A vast body of literature cutting across disciplines examines this relationship. It employs a diverse range of theories and uses various methodological tools. This is not surprising, as lobbying activity has expanded considerably since the 1970s; however, in the last 20 years, it has exploded. In the US and the EU alone, billions of dollars are spent annually to mobilize thousands of lobbyists. Significantly, the phenomenon is growing across the globe, leading to the professionalization and proliferation of government affairs. Lobbying is multi-level, multi-institutional, multi-actor, multi-resource, and transnational. The arena within which it takes place is characterized by its fluidity and fast-paced evolution. The line separating lobbyists and policymakers is becoming fuzzier, while the resources exchanged between actors are complex.

Considering this, we have edited the handbook utilizing two distinct tools. First, we employ resource-exchange as a metatheory to encompass the wide range of subjects the handbook addresses. Second, we take a multi-analytic approach that observes the relationship between lobbyists and public policy across three levels: (i) macro-level/systemic; (ii) meso-level/sub-systemic; and (iii) micro-level/organizational-strategic. Using these two tools, we examine lobbying and public policy across five thematic parts.

Part I examines lobbying and public policy at the macro-level. It focuses on systemic characteristics and analytic perspectives associated with lobbying. In this part, the handbook provides substantive theoretical tools, conceptual models, and methodological discussions. Readers can appreciate and understand the subject's universal aspects. The chapters included discuss central forms of interest intermediation, focusing namely on corporatism and pluralism; interest group communities’ diversity and methodological approaches to study them; the adverse effects of lobbying such as corruption and the different conceptual methods to observep. xiiit; global advocacy and lobbying in international organizations; and the growing interest in lobbying regulation, its necessity, and regulatory pitfalls.

Part II addresses meso-level concepts and perspectives on lobbying and public policy. In particular, the part focuses on the relationship's dynamic assessment vis-à-vis the policy cycle and policy procedures. Different procedures and policymaking stages impact institutional resource demands qualitatively and quantitatively, which in turn has an effect on interest group mobilization. The chapters within Part II address: lobbying during the policy cycle's agenda-setting stage; stakeholder engagement and public administration; consultations’ opportunity structures and interest group mobilization; strategic lobbying and impact assessments; courts and litigation as a strategy to impact policy ex post; non-governmental organizations’ (NGOs’) capacity to address the democratic deficit; and collaborative governance as an innovative way to improve policymaking across the cycle.

Part III examines micro-level strategy. It assesses why and how political variables impact lobbying, as well as outlining why organizational characteristics lead to variance in strategic choices. The chapters within Part III address: the link (and interplay) between political parties and interest groups; business campaign financing as a lobbying tool; the link between interest groups and members of parliament, and how regulations can impact this interaction; the revolving door phenomenon in the US and the EU, its differences and commonalities; the strategies NGOs employ to successfully impact policy; and the evolution of business government affairs over time.

Parts IV and V draw from the different analytic perspectives (macro, meso, micro) and take a comparative approach. Part IV focuses on the political system's impact on lobbying. Specifically, it addresses how and why interest intermediation varies within different political systems and assesses its impact on lobbying. This part examines interest intermediation in the US, EU, UK, Germany, France, Japan, and Brazil. While each political system holds its own opportunity structure and a distinct lobbying style, we can and do observe common threads across them. The growth of institutional authority and government affairs professionalization leads to increased engagement, denser and more diverse interest group populations. Part V examines the policy good's impact on interest group activity. As regulatory fields demand primarily technical expertise, this tends to incentivize business interest mobilization. Conversely, (re)distributive fields demand political legitimacy, incentivizing public interest activity. The part examines this principle through a focused and detailed assessment within specific policy fields, industries, and particular policies. This includes lobbying vis-à-vis trade policy; environmental policy; agricultural policy; health policy; financial policy; tech regulation; tobacco regulation; gender policy; and LGBTQI+ policy. Thus, Part V examines a spectrum of lobbying activity through a bottom-up perspective.

This handbook's value lies with its high-resolution wide-angled mapping of lobbyists’ interaction with public policy. It examines the relationship through a unique analytic lens while drawing from a rich body of work across 37 chapters, developed by 50 contributors located in Europe, North and South America, and Japan. Moreover, it encompasses a range of methodological approaches from large N assessments, case study work, interviews, process tracing, and network analyses to mention a few. Furthermore, it discusses different normative frameworks, applies a spectrum of conceptual models, and considers timely policies and regulations. We hope that this handbook acts as a toolbox providing a significant array of tools that allows researchers, students, and policy stakeholders to appreciate, understand, and research lobbying.