Is There a Place for Private Conversation in Public Dialogue? Comparing Stakeholder Assessments of Informal Communication in Collaborative Regional Planning

Bibliographic Data

ID2220005
AuthorsC W Lee (0000-0003-0903-2060, Lafayette College, corresponding author)
Year2007
Volume113
Issue1
Pages41-96
Publication date2007-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAmerican Journal of Sociology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0002-9602 • E-ISSN: 1537-5390
PublisherUniversity of Chicago Press (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1086/517898
OpenAlexW2107973372
LanguageEN
Citations received21
References cited44

This study contests the universalism of public engagement models by comparing reports of informal communication in two state‐centered participation processes for regional conservation planning. Through interviews with stakeholders, the author finds that both elites and nonelites deployed informal communication to amplify and to defuse pressure for consensus. Much of the power of informal communication derived from its relation to local knowledge and place‐based networking that was irrelevant in principle to formal process activities—and this was welcomed in one community and resisted in another. These differences highlight the overlooked role of regional‐scale political cultures in light of the increasing formalization of participatory best practices. The article suggests that the study of democratic engagement can gain by exploring the contextual implementation of abstract deliberative ideals such as inclusion, publicity, and transparency

Citizen journalism · Conversation · Deliberative democracy · Democracy · Political science · Politics · Public participation · Public relations · Publicity · Sociology · Stakeholder · Stakeholder engagement · Transparency (behavior) · Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management · Public Policy and Administration Research · Urban Planning and Governance

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