Ian O’flynn
Biographic Data
| ID | 4036941 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Ian O’flynn |
| GIVEN NAMES | Ian |
| FAMILY NAME | O’flynn |
| SIGNATURE | O’FLYNN I |
| AFFILIATIONS | Newcastle University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-4526-2739 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 28 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 187 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 27 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 1 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2003 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 8 |
Veto Rights in Power-Sharing Democracies
Veto rights are a prominent institutional feature in ethnically divided societies, especially power-sharing democracies. Yet while vetoes are intended to protect the vital interests of each ethnic community, they can give rise to serious concerns about political deadlock and instability. In response, we argue that vetoes should be subject to a justificatory test grounded in public reason. On the face of it, one troubling consequence of this appro…
Can Deliberative Democracy Provide Remedies for Affective Polarisation
This article revisits the problems of electoral democracy, especially affective polarisation, from the perspective of the theory of deliberative democracy. Some authors representing ‘realist’ views of democracy have concluded that empirical findings regarding affective polarisation challenge not just the idea of representative democracy as responsive government but also the prospects for deliberative democracy. We point out certain problems and l…
Vetoes, deadlock and deliberative umpiring
This article addresses power-sharing constitutions that include powers of veto wielded by discrete ethnonational groups. Such constitutional arrangements – seen, for example, in Northern Ireland and Bosnia – have often prompted severe deadlock, a problem that in turn threatens democratic functioning and raises the risk of renewed communal violence. We consider the use of ‘umpires’ of power-sharing constitutional systems to vet the use of vetoes a…
Judgments, preferences, and compromise
Deliberative Peace Referendums
‘Peace referendums’, which seek to manage armed conflict, are increasingly common around the world. Yet such referendums remain erratic forces—liable as often to aggravate as to resolve tensions. In this book we consider when, despite their risks, referendums can play useful roles amid conflict. We argue that this largely depends on a referendum’s design, including how well it incorporates contemporary lessons from the theory and practice of deli…
Deliberative disagreement and compromise
Deliberative democracy entails a commitment to deciding political questions on their merits. To that end, people engage in an exchange of reasons in a shared endeavour to arrive at the right answer or the best judgement they can make in the circumstances. Of course, in practice a shared judgement may be impossible to reach. Yet while compromise may seem a natural way of dealing with the disagreement that deliberation leaves unresolved – for examp…
What future for Kirkuk? Evidence from a deliberative intervention
The “youth bulge” in developing countries means that we need to pay close attention to how young people want to be governed. That need is particularly great in developing countries that are also deeply divided. But in divided societies, conventional opinion polls often do not suffice, yielding shallow opinions hostage to elite machinations and mutual mistrust. To shed light on what young people would want if they had a chance to learn and deliber…
Pulling Together
If deeply divided societies are to make the move from conflict to peace and democracy, their communities must pull together. While togetherness can be construed in different ways, its basic logic can be spelt out in terms of the notion of a ‘shared intention’. Accordingly, the burden of this article is to argue that developing shared intentions between conflicting communities is important for overcoming their conflict and to explain why deliberat…
Deliberative democratization
In the transition literature, ‘free and fair elections’ is often treated as the most important indicator of democratic quality. In this paper, however, we argue that ‘free deliberation among equals’ is in many respects a more telling measure. On the face of it, this argument might strike one as implausible. After all, the decisive moment in many transitions is the signing of a pact between elements in the government and opposition who are more co…
Deliberative Democracy for a Great Society
According to Albert Weale, as long as the parties to a social contract have equal bargaining power, the agreement they make will incorporate principles of democratic justice. However, as argued in this article, deciding what counts as equal bargaining power requires the parties to display, in the first instance, a prior commitment to deliberation. In other words, it requires them to see things as others see them and to weigh their reasons equally…
Deliberating across Deep Divides
Deeply divided societies would seem to be infertile ground for mass deliberation. ‘Enclave deliberation’, among people on the same side, may well occur. But people on opposing sides may not trust one another, they may not listen with an open mind, or they may regard the other side's arguments as insincere cover for sectional interests. Perhaps, though, we underestimate their deliberative capacities? This article examines a deliberative poll (DP) …
Public Deliberation, Network Analysis and the Political Integration of Muslims in Britain
Research Highlights and Abstract This article One of the first papers to bring deliberative theory and network theory together. Maps ‘who is talking to whom’ in the field of ethnic relations in Britain. Argues that, while Muslim actors do not necessarily couch their claims in general terms, they are well integrated nevertheless. In this article, we examine the assumption that, insofar as actors deliberate well, political integration will follow. …
Introduction
Can a compromise be fair
This article examines the relationship between compromise and fairness, and considers in particular why, if a fair outcome to a conflict is available, the conflict should still be subject to compromise. It sets out the defining features of compromise and explains how fair compromise differs from both principled and pragmatic compromise. The fairness relating to compromise can be of two types: procedural or end-state. It is the coherence of end-st…
Internal Conflict, the International Community and the Promotion of Principled Compromise
The international community has many reasons to promote compromise between the parties to internal conflicts. Yet to do so effectively, the international community ought to treat principled rather than strategic compromise as its default position. To make this case, we begin by defining ‘compromise’ and by distinguishing principled from strategic compromise. We then defend the idea of principled compromise against the realist who thinks that that…
Should Peace Agreements Recognize Women
In order to end conflict and foster democracy, most contemporary peace agreements recognize particular ethnic groups, typically by accommodating them within the central institutions for governing the state. Yet the conflicts that peace agreements aim to manage or resolve also affect other groups in society. Accordingly, this article considers whether a convincing normative case might be made for extending the act of recognition to women. To this …
Deliberating About the Public Interest
Democratic Theory and Practice in Deeply Divided Societies
Political scientists have had a great deal to say about the prospects for democracy in deeply divided societies. Yet this article defends the view that political theorists also have a vital, if too often overlooked, role to play in terms of defining larger normative goals and purposes. To make this case, I focus specifically on the principle of political equality. Throughout, however, my guiding assumption is that normative prescriptions inevitab…
Deliberative Democracy, the Public Interest and the Consociational Model
One of the most basic charges levelled at the consociational model is that, although it may provide for conflict management, it fails to provide for the longer-term goal of conflict resolution. This article seeks to respond to this charge by viewing the consociational model through a deliberative democratic lens. In particular, I argue that deliberative democracy provides normative standards that can inform the design of consociational institutio…
Democratic Autonomy, Women’s Interests and Institutional Context
Many democratic systems explicitly recognise and accommodate the interests of particular ethnic groups within their decision procedures. This is true, for example, of the democratic system established under the terms of the Belfast Agreement. But the question remains as to whether those systems leave sufficient space for the recognition and accommodation of other kinds of political interests. In this article, I seek to explore this question with …
Divided Societies and Deliberative Democracy
Comparative scholars have disagreed for some time now as to whether democratic institutions in a divided society are more likely to remain stable if those institutions are premised on a concern for inclusion or on a concern for moderation. But since the empirical evidence marshalled by such scholars is often open to interpretative dispute, neither side has been able to prove its case conclusively. In order to help move this stability debate forwa…
Deliberative Democracy and Divided Societies
Deliberative Democracy and Divided Societies
"In a world where the impact of internal conflicts is spreading ever wider, there is a real need to rethink how democratic ideals and institutions can best be implemented." "This book responds to this challenge by showing that deliberative democracy has crucial, but largely untapped, normative implications for societies deeply divided along ethnic lines. Its central claim is that deliberative norms and procedures can enable the citizens of such s…
Power Sharing
Power Sharing
Introduction: New Challenges for Power Sharing Ian O'Flynn ((Lecturer in Politics at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) and David Russell (Policy Officer at the Northern Ireland Community Relations Council, Research Associate, Democratic Dialogue, Belfast and Research Associate, The Centre for Lebanese Studies, University of Oxford) Part 1. Conceptual Issues 1. Democratic Values and Power Sharing Ian O'Flynn 2. Integration and Autonomy: Minor…
Deliberating across Deep Divides
Deeply divided societies would seem to be infertile ground for mass deliberation. ‘Enclave deliberation’, among people on the same side, may well occur. But people on opposing sides may not trust one another, they may not listen with an open mind, or they may regard the other side's arguments as insincere cover for sectional interests. Perhaps, though, we underestimate their deliberative capacities? This article examines a deliberative poll (DP) …
Divided Societies and Deliberative Democracy
Comparative scholars have disagreed for some time now as to whether democratic institutions in a divided society are more likely to remain stable if those institutions are premised on a concern for inclusion or on a concern for moderation. But since the empirical evidence marshalled by such scholars is often open to interpretative dispute, neither side has been able to prove its case conclusively. In order to help move this stability debate forwa…
Deliberative Democracy, the Public Interest and the Consociational Model
One of the most basic charges levelled at the consociational model is that, although it may provide for conflict management, it fails to provide for the longer-term goal of conflict resolution. This article seeks to respond to this charge by viewing the consociational model through a deliberative democratic lens. In particular, I argue that deliberative democracy provides normative standards that can inform the design of consociational institutio…
Public Deliberation, Network Analysis and the Political Integration of Muslims in Britain
Research Highlights and Abstract This article One of the first papers to bring deliberative theory and network theory together. Maps ‘who is talking to whom’ in the field of ethnic relations in Britain. Argues that, while Muslim actors do not necessarily couch their claims in general terms, they are well integrated nevertheless. In this article, we examine the assumption that, insofar as actors deliberate well, political integration will follow. …
Can a compromise be fair
This article examines the relationship between compromise and fairness, and considers in particular why, if a fair outcome to a conflict is available, the conflict should still be subject to compromise. It sets out the defining features of compromise and explains how fair compromise differs from both principled and pragmatic compromise. The fairness relating to compromise can be of two types: procedural or end-state. It is the coherence of end-st…
The Problem of Recognising Individual and National Identities
Since the early 1970s, internal power sharing has remained central to the attempt to reach a political settlement on the constitutional structures for governing Northern Ireland. Even in the face o
Pulling Together
If deeply divided societies are to make the move from conflict to peace and democracy, their communities must pull together. While togetherness can be construed in different ways, its basic logic can be spelt out in terms of the notion of a ‘shared intention’. Accordingly, the burden of this article is to argue that developing shared intentions between conflicting communities is important for overcoming their conflict and to explain why deliberat…
Democratic Theory and Practice in Deeply Divided Societies
Political scientists have had a great deal to say about the prospects for democracy in deeply divided societies. Yet this article defends the view that political theorists also have a vital, if too often overlooked, role to play in terms of defining larger normative goals and purposes. To make this case, I focus specifically on the principle of political equality. Throughout, however, my guiding assumption is that normative prescriptions inevitab…
What future for Kirkuk? Evidence from a deliberative intervention
The “youth bulge” in developing countries means that we need to pay close attention to how young people want to be governed. That need is particularly great in developing countries that are also deeply divided. But in divided societies, conventional opinion polls often do not suffice, yielding shallow opinions hostage to elite machinations and mutual mistrust. To shed light on what young people would want if they had a chance to learn and deliber…
Deliberative democratization
In the transition literature, ‘free and fair elections’ is often treated as the most important indicator of democratic quality. In this paper, however, we argue that ‘free deliberation among equals’ is in many respects a more telling measure. On the face of it, this argument might strike one as implausible. After all, the decisive moment in many transitions is the signing of a pact between elements in the government and opposition who are more co…
Internal Conflict, the International Community and the Promotion of Principled Compromise
The international community has many reasons to promote compromise between the parties to internal conflicts. Yet to do so effectively, the international community ought to treat principled rather than strategic compromise as its default position. To make this case, we begin by defining ‘compromise’ and by distinguishing principled from strategic compromise. We then defend the idea of principled compromise against the realist who thinks that that…
Deliberative Democracy for a Great Society
According to Albert Weale, as long as the parties to a social contract have equal bargaining power, the agreement they make will incorporate principles of democratic justice. However, as argued in this article, deciding what counts as equal bargaining power requires the parties to display, in the first instance, a prior commitment to deliberation. In other words, it requires them to see things as others see them and to weigh their reasons equally…
Vetoes, deadlock and deliberative umpiring
This article addresses power-sharing constitutions that include powers of veto wielded by discrete ethnonational groups. Such constitutional arrangements – seen, for example, in Northern Ireland and Bosnia – have often prompted severe deadlock, a problem that in turn threatens democratic functioning and raises the risk of renewed communal violence. We consider the use of ‘umpires’ of power-sharing constitutional systems to vet the use of vetoes a…
Deliberative disagreement and compromise
Deliberative democracy entails a commitment to deciding political questions on their merits. To that end, people engage in an exchange of reasons in a shared endeavour to arrive at the right answer or the best judgement they can make in the circumstances. Of course, in practice a shared judgement may be impossible to reach. Yet while compromise may seem a natural way of dealing with the disagreement that deliberation leaves unresolved – for examp…
Deliberating About the Public Interest
Can Deliberative Democracy Provide Remedies for Affective Polarisation
This article revisits the problems of electoral democracy, especially affective polarisation, from the perspective of the theory of deliberative democracy. Some authors representing ‘realist’ views of democracy have concluded that empirical findings regarding affective polarisation challenge not just the idea of representative democracy as responsive government but also the prospects for deliberative democracy. We point out certain problems and l…
Should Peace Agreements Recognize Women
In order to end conflict and foster democracy, most contemporary peace agreements recognize particular ethnic groups, typically by accommodating them within the central institutions for governing the state. Yet the conflicts that peace agreements aim to manage or resolve also affect other groups in society. Accordingly, this article considers whether a convincing normative case might be made for extending the act of recognition to women. To this …
Democratic Autonomy, Women’s Interests and Institutional Context
Many democratic systems explicitly recognise and accommodate the interests of particular ethnic groups within their decision procedures. This is true, for example, of the democratic system established under the terms of the Belfast Agreement. But the question remains as to whether those systems leave sufficient space for the recognition and accommodation of other kinds of political interests. In this article, I seek to explore this question with …
Why Justice Can’t Have It All
Northern Ireland
The Problem of Recognising Individual and National Identities
Since the early 1970s, internal power sharing has remained central to the attempt to reach a political settlement on the constitutional structures for governing Northern Ireland. Even in the face o
Northern Ireland
Why Justice Can’t Have It All
Power Sharing
Power Sharing
Introduction: New Challenges for Power Sharing Ian O'Flynn ((Lecturer in Politics at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) and David Russell (Policy Officer at the Northern Ireland Community Relations Council, Research Associate, Democratic Dialogue, Belfast and Research Associate, The Centre for Lebanese Studies, University of Oxford) Part 1. Conceptual Issues 1. Democratic Values and Power Sharing Ian O'Flynn 2. Integration and Autonomy: Minor…
Deliberative Democracy and Divided Societies
Deliberative Democracy and Divided Societies
"In a world where the impact of internal conflicts is spreading ever wider, there is a real need to rethink how democratic ideals and institutions can best be implemented." "This book responds to this challenge by showing that deliberative democracy has crucial, but largely untapped, normative implications for societies deeply divided along ethnic lines. Its central claim is that deliberative norms and procedures can enable the citizens of such s…
Democratic Autonomy, Women’s Interests and Institutional Context
Many democratic systems explicitly recognise and accommodate the interests of particular ethnic groups within their decision procedures. This is true, for example, of the democratic system established under the terms of the Belfast Agreement. But the question remains as to whether those systems leave sufficient space for the recognition and accommodation of other kinds of political interests. In this article, I seek to explore this question with …
Divided Societies and Deliberative Democracy
Comparative scholars have disagreed for some time now as to whether democratic institutions in a divided society are more likely to remain stable if those institutions are premised on a concern for inclusion or on a concern for moderation. But since the empirical evidence marshalled by such scholars is often open to interpretative dispute, neither side has been able to prove its case conclusively. In order to help move this stability debate forwa…
Deliberating About the Public Interest
Democratic Theory and Practice in Deeply Divided Societies
Political scientists have had a great deal to say about the prospects for democracy in deeply divided societies. Yet this article defends the view that political theorists also have a vital, if too often overlooked, role to play in terms of defining larger normative goals and purposes. To make this case, I focus specifically on the principle of political equality. Throughout, however, my guiding assumption is that normative prescriptions inevitab…
Deliberative Democracy, the Public Interest and the Consociational Model
One of the most basic charges levelled at the consociational model is that, although it may provide for conflict management, it fails to provide for the longer-term goal of conflict resolution. This article seeks to respond to this charge by viewing the consociational model through a deliberative democratic lens. In particular, I argue that deliberative democracy provides normative standards that can inform the design of consociational institutio…
Should Peace Agreements Recognize Women
In order to end conflict and foster democracy, most contemporary peace agreements recognize particular ethnic groups, typically by accommodating them within the central institutions for governing the state. Yet the conflicts that peace agreements aim to manage or resolve also affect other groups in society. Accordingly, this article considers whether a convincing normative case might be made for extending the act of recognition to women. To this …
Introduction
Can a compromise be fair
This article examines the relationship between compromise and fairness, and considers in particular why, if a fair outcome to a conflict is available, the conflict should still be subject to compromise. It sets out the defining features of compromise and explains how fair compromise differs from both principled and pragmatic compromise. The fairness relating to compromise can be of two types: procedural or end-state. It is the coherence of end-st…
Internal Conflict, the International Community and the Promotion of Principled Compromise
The international community has many reasons to promote compromise between the parties to internal conflicts. Yet to do so effectively, the international community ought to treat principled rather than strategic compromise as its default position. To make this case, we begin by defining ‘compromise’ and by distinguishing principled from strategic compromise. We then defend the idea of principled compromise against the realist who thinks that that…
Public Deliberation, Network Analysis and the Political Integration of Muslims in Britain
Research Highlights and Abstract This article One of the first papers to bring deliberative theory and network theory together. Maps ‘who is talking to whom’ in the field of ethnic relations in Britain. Argues that, while Muslim actors do not necessarily couch their claims in general terms, they are well integrated nevertheless. In this article, we examine the assumption that, insofar as actors deliberate well, political integration will follow. …
Deliberating across Deep Divides
Deeply divided societies would seem to be infertile ground for mass deliberation. ‘Enclave deliberation’, among people on the same side, may well occur. But people on opposing sides may not trust one another, they may not listen with an open mind, or they may regard the other side's arguments as insincere cover for sectional interests. Perhaps, though, we underestimate their deliberative capacities? This article examines a deliberative poll (DP) …
Deliberative democratization
In the transition literature, ‘free and fair elections’ is often treated as the most important indicator of democratic quality. In this paper, however, we argue that ‘free deliberation among equals’ is in many respects a more telling measure. On the face of it, this argument might strike one as implausible. After all, the decisive moment in many transitions is the signing of a pact between elements in the government and opposition who are more co…
Deliberative Democracy for a Great Society
According to Albert Weale, as long as the parties to a social contract have equal bargaining power, the agreement they make will incorporate principles of democratic justice. However, as argued in this article, deciding what counts as equal bargaining power requires the parties to display, in the first instance, a prior commitment to deliberation. In other words, it requires them to see things as others see them and to weigh their reasons equally…
Pulling Together
If deeply divided societies are to make the move from conflict to peace and democracy, their communities must pull together. While togetherness can be construed in different ways, its basic logic can be spelt out in terms of the notion of a ‘shared intention’. Accordingly, the burden of this article is to argue that developing shared intentions between conflicting communities is important for overcoming their conflict and to explain why deliberat…
What future for Kirkuk? Evidence from a deliberative intervention
The “youth bulge” in developing countries means that we need to pay close attention to how young people want to be governed. That need is particularly great in developing countries that are also deeply divided. But in divided societies, conventional opinion polls often do not suffice, yielding shallow opinions hostage to elite machinations and mutual mistrust. To shed light on what young people would want if they had a chance to learn and deliber…
Deliberative disagreement and compromise
Deliberative democracy entails a commitment to deciding political questions on their merits. To that end, people engage in an exchange of reasons in a shared endeavour to arrive at the right answer or the best judgement they can make in the circumstances. Of course, in practice a shared judgement may be impossible to reach. Yet while compromise may seem a natural way of dealing with the disagreement that deliberation leaves unresolved – for examp…
Deliberative Peace Referendums
‘Peace referendums’, which seek to manage armed conflict, are increasingly common around the world. Yet such referendums remain erratic forces—liable as often to aggravate as to resolve tensions. In this book we consider when, despite their risks, referendums can play useful roles amid conflict. We argue that this largely depends on a referendum’s design, including how well it incorporates contemporary lessons from the theory and practice of deli…
Judgments, preferences, and compromise
Political science (27 works) · Law (24 works) · Law (21 works) · Sociology (21 works) · Politics (19 works) · Law and economics (17 works) · Democracy (16 works) · Political Philosophy and Ethics (15 works) · Deliberative democracy (11 works) · Economics (9 works)