Kathe Callahan

Citizen Participation: Models and Methods

Abstract The belief that individuals should be given a voice in their governance appeals to our democratic ideals and in fact has long been identified internationally as one of the unique aspects of the United States. While there appears to be universal agreement that the involvement of citizens in the decision making process of government is a good idea, there is little agreement as to the best way to achieve meaningful involvement. There are many ways to consult with the public and get a sense of what they see as problems and opportunities; it is quite another thing to actively engage citizens in the decision-making process. This paper explores the challenges and dilemmas associated with direct citizen participation, reflects on the various models of citizen-government interactions and makes recommendations for moving beyond conventional participation. While the benefits of including citizens in the deliberative process are widely recognized, citizen participation is not routinely sought in the decision making process.

ASSESSING CITIZEN INVOLVEMENT EFFORTS BY LOCAL GOVERNMENTS

Based on a national survey of 428 local governments, we demonstrate that citizen involvement efforts can be captured as a construct with four dimensions, including involvement mechanisms, involvement in decision making, involvement in street-level services, and involvement in management functions. We find that although conventional citizen participation methods are consistently used by many governments, broad-based and individual-based methods are utilized less frequently. Citizen input is not frequently sought in decision making or for functional areas that are managerial or technical or involve issues of confidentiality. Governments in large communities are found to be more likely to promote citizen involvement activities than are governments in smaller communities. The form of government is not found to have a significant impact. We also find that the rationale for citizen involvement and the source of pressure for performance and accountability have some effects. A research agenda is developed based on the descriptive results.

The utilization and effectiveness of citizen advisory committees in the budget process of local governments

This paper examines the role of citizen budget advisory committees in local government to gain a better understanding of what exists, what works, and what does not. Specifically this paper seeks to answer the following questions: How are citizen advisory committees utilized? What influence do citizen advisory committees have on the planning and decision making process of local governments? What variables influence the effectiveness of citizen advisory committees? What obstacles prevent meaningful citizen participation from taking place? Through a better understanding of what makes some committees more effective than others, recommendations can be made that will improve the effectiveness of this type of citizen participation.

Aggressive Action: In Search of a Dominant Narrative

The idea of “going to war” seemed obvious enough at first blush. We had been attacked, and we planned to respond in kind. It was that simple. Or was it? Despite the analogies drawn to the attack on Pearl Harbor in December, 1941, the decision to enter a “state of war” after September 11, 2001 was a unique event in American history. Although other American wars are associated with “triggering” events (e.g., the bombardment of Fort Sumter, the sinking of the Battleship Maine, Pearl Harbor, the invasion of Kuwait), none of those past instances occurred in a “narrative vacuum.” In each previous case, the road to war had been well paved materially, politically, and psychologically over an extended period of time. The shelling of Fort Sumter by South Carolinian troops was the culmination of events that had unfolded over several months after the election of Lincoln and after many years of heated discussion and debate.2 The public clamor for war with Spain was already several years old when the battleship Maine exploded and sank in Havana in February 1898, but even then two months passed before Congress declared war.3 The U.S. entry into the First World War is often associated with the loss of American lives when the Lusitania was sankh—but nearly two years and a great deal of preparation passed between that event and the declaration of war.4

Performance Measurement: Getting Results (2nd Edition)

Long before performance measurement came into vogue, Hatry was leading the way and pioneering methods for public sector and nonprofit agencies to measure the performance of their programs. Since th...