Conceptualizing participation: Defining and analyzing public participation in policymaking processes

Abstract

This study suggests a method to analyze, theorize, and conceptualize public participation in policymaking. Participation is a fundamental component of democracy and is derived from the right to actualize the public's sovereignty by participating in the shaping of collective life. Empirically focusing on consultation procedures that were integrated into setting the policy on network neutrality in the United States and Israel (2009–2017), we present an analytical model to study participation in policymaking processes. The findings of this study call for a reflection on the role of participation in public policy design and its importance. We argue that any assessment of citizens' participatory instances should be separated from institutionalized policymaking and disconnected from the principle of formal decision-making, as participation and institutionalized decision-making are separate fields with a different logic. We further suggest a definition of participation and enumerate its advantages.