Civil Society Elites: An Introduction

This chapter explores the gap in civil society and elite studies. Researchers have recently observed elitist tendencies in civil society in which resources are concentrated to a few powerful civil society organisations and their leaders. Civil society also shows anti-democratic tendencies and the emergence of an illiberal civil society. This chapter introduces the concept of civil society elites to address the identified gap in the research, arguing that civil society elites occupy a paradoxical elite position because they are expected to represent members, beneficiaries, and constituents against powerful groups while at the same time benefiting from their elevated position and their socialisation in elite circles. Drawing on a review of elite and civil society research, this chapter proposes a study of civil society elite composition, reproduction, integration, and contestation in order to provide novel insights into the role of civil society in contemporary liberal democracies. The chapter also presents the various contributions to the book.