How Do We Capture Information Asymmetries Empirically? First Progress from the LOBBYMETRY Project

The LOBBYMETRY project addresses two types of imbalances in lobbying: 1) mobilisation asymmetries at the issue level, which exclude some actors from the policy debate, and 2) information asymmetries at the dyadic level between policymakers and lobbyists, which empower specific groups in their exchanges with decisionmakers. The project analyses these asymmetries and their relationship to each other, as well as their effects on the ways in which sectional and public interests feed into policymaking. In this early phase of the project, the team will present first progress when it comes to the conceptualisation and measurement of information asymmetries, as well as mis- or disinformation in lobbying, and their effects on how public interests are reflected in policy outcomes.