The effects of economic crises on participatory democracy

Bibliographic Data

ID6327331
AuthorsPau Alarcón (0000-0002-7937-9337, Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Carol Galais (0000-0003-2726-2193, Universitat Autonòma de Barcelona), Joan Font (0000-0002-2177-8538, Institute of Advanced Social Studies (IESA_CSIC), Cordoba, Spain), Graham Smith (0000-0002-8537-4241, University of Westminster)
Year2019
Volume47
Issue2
Pages265-286
Publication date2019-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenuePolicy & Politics (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0305-5736 • E-ISSN: 1470-8442
PublisherBristol University Press (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1332/030557318x15407316045688
OpenAlexW2900208597
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited21

This paper examines the impact of economic conditions on participatory democracy. It analyses whether economic crises affect the types of proposals that emerge from local participatory processes and the fate of these proposals. Focusing on more than 500 proposals that emerged from 34 participatory processes in Spain between 2007 and 2011, our study covers a period which straddles the emergence of severe economic problems resulting from the global financial crisis. Applying four different but complementary analytical strategies, we find two types of effects. First, proposals made during the crisis period were less costly though more challenging. Second, local governments implemented a smaller proportion of the proposals that were put forward by the public. These findings suggest that external economic shocks reduce the ability of governments to respond to the demands of citizens, but that citizens also recalibrate their expectations in response to austerity

Affect (linguistics · Austerity · Citizen journalism · Democracy · Development economics · Economic policy · Economic system · Economics · Financial crisis · Macroeconomics · Participatory budgeting · Participatory democracy · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Fiscal Policies and Political Economy · Social Policy and Reform Studies · Taxation and Compliance Studies