Research: Synergy between citizenship and public administration: concepts and tools for a policy co-decision-making process
In recent years, there has been a growing interest in involving citizens in the definition and development of public policies.
Tools that – in various ways – formalise the contributions of actors external to the administration have gained increasing relevance in sectors related to activities of general interest, including (e.g.) welfare management, urban planning, and community development. Underlying this growing legitimacy, which likely corresponds to an incremental adoption of such devices, can be found recognition of the added value that comes from the diversity of perspectives, knowledge, and values of active citizens. This is true according to the most optimistic of hypotheses: that participation practices are implemented to enable concrete inclusion of people’s concerns into decision-making and public management processes, rather than serving as merely symbolic policies made by administrations themselves.
Citizen participation in defining and implementing public policies has become essential to promote inclusive and accountable democracy. The concept of policy co-decision-making process represents an approach aimed at involve both citizens and public administration in a shared decision-making procedure, in order to ensure more transparent, responsible, efficient, and fair governance. Devices falling under this function as tools to promote participatory democracy, facilitating practices that engage the principal positions of the relevant community on key issues. These mechanisms are suitable for dealing with the complex challenges of contemporary society.
Thoroughly understanding the nature and value of such institutions means triggering virtuous processes, fostering the development of more balanced, sustainable, and inclusive solutions and measures, that are the result of greater participation and collaboration among different actors in the public policy arena. The rising attention and interest in collaborative practices stem from multiple factors, including an emerging need to face tackle complex and interconneted collective problems, that are part of a rapidly changing society.
The research is grounded in the observation that both theoretical frameworks and pratical application in this field are fraught with challenges and risks. From a conceptual standpoint, there remains significant ambiguity in the definition and categorisation of the tools of participatory democracy and shared administration. From a pratical standpoint, there is often a lack of operational clarity and control overr these mechanisms at various levels (from national to local). This frequent disorientation within administrations permeates the entire public policy lifecycle, from the structuring of the institutional agenda to evaluation, a phase often negleted due to its perception as ‘ancillary’.
In light of these considerations, the research aims to achieve the following objectives: a) to identify and survey the institutes, devices, and techniques belonging to the spheres of participatory democracy and shared administration; b) to punctually define and model these instruments, through an analysis of the relevant literature, formal regulations whithin our system, and identified best practices; c) to investigate the institutionalisation and integration of participatory forms into political and administrative structures; d) to develop toolkits for analysing and evaluating these mechanisms, with a preference for treating them jointly whenever feasible. In addition: e) to deepen and refine what has already been developed for participatory processes and co-design, especially regarding the Index of Citizen Participation in Public Policy Making; to broaden the spatial scope of the research, by investigating the study objects both f) in other regions in Italy, g) and in territories beyond Italy, in order to enable a comparative analysis on participatory and collaborative practices.
Keywords: deliberation; participatory democracy; shared administration; co-creation and co-production; institutionalization of participatory practices; evaluation