Article Review on "Citizen Participation: Can We Measure Its Effectiveness"

Article Review 10 pages (3250 words) Sources: 5

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Citizen Participation: Can We Measure Its Effectiveness" by Judy B. Rosener simply makes the case that it isn't certain that citizen participation is "effective" because of, generally, the fact that most research on the question takes the form of "case studies, listing of definitions and techniques, [and] schemes for implementing participation programs" that failed to provide accurate, scientific data on how "effective" citizen participation was to the "goal" (457). Rosener contends that evaluation research methodology can frame instances of citizen participation into something that will generate scientific evidence, allowing us to understand the effects of citizen participation.

Rosener first attempts to explain the concept of citizen participation by asking the journalistic questions who, where, what, how, and when. Defining citizen participation this way, she claims, illustrates the complexity of the term and the problems associated with understanding the effectiveness of involving the public in policy decision making, as well as defines what must be known before judging the effectiveness of citizen participation.

Asking the question "who," Rosener defines at least three sets of actors to whom 'citizen participation' is meaningful: elected officials, public administrators, and citizens. Each of these groups has different constraints, values, expectations and goals, and thus holds different meanings of citizen participation. Knowing who actually perceives is "crucial to any understanding of the effectiveness of citizen participation" (458). The question of "where," refers to where we want citizen participation to take us. In other words, we must know the goal of citizen participation to determine its effectiveness. Likewise, the question of "what" refers to the specific objectives of citizen participation, for example, knowledge sharing, the generation of options for policy makers, etc. Unless these objectives are clear, we cannot make accurate judgments regarding the effectiveness of citizen participation. Rosener's question of "how" indicates "how different kinds of issues relate to participation" (458). In other words, certain decisions require "experts" while others require no specialized knowledge. It is important to know how these issues relate to participation to understand its effectiveness. Finally, "when" refers to asking the question of when in the policy process do we want participation.

Rosener then goes on to explain how evaluation research can illuminate the effectiveness of citizen participation. Evaluation research is "nothing more than the application of certain kinds of research methods to the evaluation of social programs" (459). It functions to compare the effects of a program to its goals in order to assist further decision-making about the program in question. Embarking on evaluation research in citizen participation requires that first the who, where, what, how and when be answered. Additionally, it is important to know how it will actually be known that there's a cause and effect relationship between participation and the achievement of its goals. Rosener then presents a matrix to answer these questions. It is composed of four cells. Cell I is the coincidence of complete knowledge of the cause/effect relationship and the agreement on goals (between, for example, policymakers and citizens). Cell II is incomplete knowledge and agreement. Cell III is complete knowledge and no agreement, and cell IV is incomplete knowledge and no agreement. Most studies, Rosener says, lie in the cell IV environment -- as most participation programs generally do not articulate and come to a consensus on goals and objectives beforehand -- and thus limit our knowledge about how effective citizen participation actually is. The challenge of the future, she contends, is to move toward the cell I environment; "once participation is assessed in terms of how it contributes to the achievement of predetermined, clearly articulated goals and objectives, it will then be possible to compare participation activities" (462). It is in this way that we will know what works and what doesn't.

"Emergent Citizen Groups and Emergency Management" by Robert A. Stallings and E.L. Quarentelli addresses, in large part, three questions: (1) What are the characteristics of citizen groups which emerge around perceived needs or problems related to natural and technological disaster situations? (2) How do they play a part in each of the various phases of the emergency management process? And (3) What implications do these groups carry for emergency management policies and procedures?

There are two types of emergent citizen groups: those that form in the preparedness and post-crisis phase and those that form during the actual emergency. Both forms can be thought of as "private citizens who work together in pursuit of collective goals relevant to actual or potential disasters but whose organization has not yet become institutionalized" (94).

There are three types of groups which can emerge during an actual emergency. "Damage assessment groups" are characterized by assessments such as search and rescue, ascertaining which buildings have been damaged, or creating lists of missing persons (94). They are often the first source of information regarding the extent and location of damage for public officials. "Operative groups" simply act as sort of workforces, clearing debris, distributing food, etc. (94). "Coordinating groups" are more focused on management, forming to resolve domain disputes, communitywide problems, and the like (95).

These three groups share a number of characteristics. There tends to be a core of only a "handful" of continuing members, with the 'peripheral' members participating "fitfully" (95). The groups rarely acquire a name. The groups are relatively variable in terms of age, sex, race, and lifestyle. They usually have little to no structure in terms of hierarchy. Most of these groups exist only temporarily -- a few hours, days, or perhaps a week.

Generally, emergent groups that form in preparedness and post-crisis (non-emergency) times are small -- an average membership of 100 -- but have a much smaller core of, generally, around a half dozen. Typically, these types of groups acquire a name, and, generally, the majority of members are women, white, middle-class, and in the 30-to-40 range. Their structures mostly take the form of a central core of members supported by an outer core of less active members. Major activities of these groups are attempts at mobilizing resources and networking for their cause. Initially, these groups' goals are quite vague, causing the help sought from public officials to be vague and thus unanswered or denied. This often 'forces' these groups to specify their missions. When such groups reach this point, "they start to shed some of their emergent qualities and...come to resemble...what is more familiarly known as pressure groups, voluntary associations, or public interest groups" (96-97).

While not the focus of Stalling and Quarantelli's article, they mention, in the interest of comprehensiveness, that there exist other types of emergent groups, not comprised of private citizens, but that are formed within and among organizations in the private sector or composed exclusively or primarily of public officials. Moreover, "quasi-emergence" can occur when existing public organizations undertake new, unexpected tasks (97).

The existence of these emergence groups imply a number of points to be addressed by public administrators. First, emergence is inevitable, resulting from a perceived need that hasn't been addressed by 'the administration.' Administrators should not ignore what citizens perceive as a need. Second, administrators should remember that emergence is natural, not abnormal. While lacking structure, they are often better prepared to take on emergency situations than structured public groups because they are more flexible and less constrained by internal standards and law. Third, emergence is not necessarily dysfunctional or conflictive. In other words, while emergence may not be the most effective solution, it symbolizes an attempt at a solution and "should be recognized for that fact alone" (98). Fourth, emergence is not necessarily in opposition to public authorities. Most groups begin with the idea that public officials will be on their side once attention has been obtained. Finally, emergence cannot be eliminated by planning. Emergencies always present unique demands that planning does not foresee. "Emergence is one of the ways communities adjust to the uncertainties in their environment" (99).

"Institutionalized Use of Citizen Surveys in the Budgetary and Policy-Making Processes: A Small City Case Study by Watson, Juster, & Johnson explores, through the analysis of the implementation of citizen surveys -- over a period of approximately five years -- in Auburn, Alabama, the effect to which citizen surveys inform and influence budgetary policies. In sum, the authors find that citizen surveys "can provide a productive mechanism to incorporate citizen participation efficiently and productively into local governing processes" (232).

Watson et al. begin with a short history of citizen surveys. Citizen surveys became popular in the 1970s and 1980s as the result of the existing practices -- one-on-one contacts, special interest groups, letters to the editor, and complaints -- being unreliable regarding learning citizens' views. Citizen surveys offered a reliable way to gain feedback on service delivery and input into the policy process. They offered higher quality information in much more detail than the previously existing techniques.

Despite these advantages, however, citizen surveys are still not widely used. This may be the result of the fact that attempts at analyzing the validity and function of citizen surveys have returned ambiguous data,… READ MORE

How to Reference "Citizen Participation: Can We Measure Its Effectiveness" Article Review in a Bibliography

Related Article Reviews:

Citizen Participation, There Are Several Models Article Review

Citizen Participation," there are several models of citizen participation that discuss and map out the relationship between citizens and public officials, all of which help us better understand the public… read more

Article Review 10 pages (3337 words) Sources: 10 Topic: Government / Politics

---

Voter Participation Essay

Voter Participation / Citizen Participation in U.S. Government

How does the Federalist aspect of American government impact the participation of citizens and voters? This paper reviews the particulars and ramifications… read more

Essay 2 pages (739 words) Sources: 2 Topic: Government / Politics

---

Citizen Participation Dilemmas Article Review

limitations, or dilemmas, to direct citizen participation, and if direct citizen participation in the administrative process is to be taken more seriously, our authors feel that these dilemmas must be… read more

Article Review 2 pages (653 words) Sources: 10 Topic: Government / Politics

---

Ladder of Citizen Participation by Sherry R Article Review

Ladder of Citizen Participation" by Sherry R. Arnstein offers a typology of citizen participation for the purpose of dispelling rhetoric and disingenuous euphemisms often used in the controversy over citizen… read more

Article Review 10 pages (3084 words) Sources: 5 Topic: Government / Politics

---

2011 Norway Attacks Effectiveness of the Response Essay

2011 Norway attacks

Effectiveness of the response of the Police response in conjunction with emergency services and other key stakeholders

Flawed communication system

Bureaucratic failings as a source of security… read more

Essay 13 pages (3954 words) Sources: 30 Topic: Terrorism / Extremism / Radicalization

---

View 100+ more related papers  >>