In the 1970s the level of the distributive conflict increased in most developed capitalist countries. But at the same time it was found that the level of the distributive conflict remained on an unchanged level or even declined in some countries. In this article the role of interest organizations is analysed in explaining both cross‐national differences in the level of the distributive conflict and the resurgence of the distributive conflict in the 1970s. Using Mancur Olson's new theory of interest organizations, the author shows on a theoretical level that a pluralist mode of interest intermediation is conducive to a high level of the distributive conflict and that a corporatist mode of interest intermediation is conducive to a low level of the distributive conflict. Empirical analyses in 18 developed capitalist countries are then carried on to test this theory. Empirical analyses strongly support the theor