Erik O. Wright Amy Lang University of Wisconsin Madison
This research studies whether new forums for citizen participation in policy making provide substantively equal opportunities to all those who are involved. Some critics of new citizen participation forums are concerned that participants with higher social status, education and rhetorical skill will dominate discussions and shape policy to disproportionately suit their interests. Using transcripts of real-world citizen policy deliberations the project will systematically analyze citizen talk over the course of citizen political decision-making. The analysis will focus on two questions: first, who sets the agenda for discussion? By examining patterns in the introduction of new topics of conversation, the research will evaluate the degree to which members of different social groups are able to set the agenda for discussion. Second, whose interests are used to frame the arguments for a particular policy outcome? The research will systematically trace the interests and criteria that are used to frame arguments in the course of deliberation, and what frames and arguments get picked up by the rest of the group.
This study makes several important contributions to sociology and political science. Previous research has measured participant equality by analyzing the demographic characteristics of participants, or by counting speaking turns. This study proposes that measuring the introduction of new ideas can give us a better understanding of whether different participants have substantively equal influence in decision-making processes. More broadly, the study will contribute to debates about citizen participation and political talk by providing empirical evidence that addresses an important criticism of citizen participation. Finally, funding from the NSF will allow for the creation and dissemination of a rare form of data: complete conversation transcripts of a real-world exercise in citizen political decision-making. The larger goals of the research are to address the question of whether new forums for citizen participation are empowering to politically under-represented groups such as women, ethnic minorities, and young people.
