Methods and Measures for Assessing Democratic Innovations

Abstract

n recent years, a burgeoning interest in democratic innovations and deliberative designs has produced a vibrant field of research. Practitioners and researchers have applied a wide array of different democratic innovations with the aim of strengthening participatory and deliberative mechanisms in representative democracies. Nonetheless, we still have limited knowledge on whether some innovations are better than others and how the different features of these innovations affect the outcome. This panel focuses on different methods and measures for assessing democratic innovations. The purpose of the panel is to stimulate the discussion on advantages and disadvantages of different democratic innovations in order to move from a state of fragmented case study research to a more coherent understanding of the operation and effects of democratic innovations. The following questions are of particular relevance: How can one measure the success of democratic innovations? How can one systematically evaluate the effect of deliberation in democratic innovations? We welcome papers that present new methods and measures, respond to challenges confronting democratic innovations, or systematically compare and evaluate existing approaches. We particularly appreciate democratic innovations making use of experimental designs in order to establish a clear link between different features of these innovations and their effects. Furthermore, we welcome papers presenting research designs or methodological issues of upcoming democratic innovation projects.