Designing democracy: How does institutional structure affect civic participation?

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Abbott, Jared; Touchton, Michael
• 署名单位: Tulane University; University of Miami
• 刊物名称: GOVERNANCE-AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF POLICY ADMINISTRATION AND INSTITUTIONS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0952-1895
• DOI: 10.1111/gove.12710
• 发表日期: 2023
• 关键词: field experiment; voting-behavior; deliberation; ACCOUNTABILITY; mobilization

摘要

How does the structure of democratic institutions affect citizen engagement? This study employs conjoint analysis to assess the effects of institutional design on political participation in participatory budgeting (PB) programs. We find evidence that PB program design strongly affects citizens' interest in participation. Participation appeals more to citizens when PB programs offer participants meaningful control over decision-making outcomes, when barriers to participation are low, and when resources allocated through PB are targeted diffusely to communities rather than individual beneficiaries. We also find that focusing PB on issues specific to marginalized communities does not necessarily boost interest in participation among members of those communities. Finally, we observe few systematic differences in preferences for participation between demographic groups traditionally associated with low rates of civic engagement compared to other groups. We then use the results surrounding PB to discuss broad implications for citizen participation in participatory institutions and democratic governance.