Experimentalist governance

This chapter discusses 'experimentalist governance', a notion that over the past 15 years has been attracting attention in both academic and policy debates. It begins by very briefly discussing two notions - directly-deliberative polyarchy and democratic experimentalism - that are largely equivalent to experimentalist governance but have slightly different emphases and have appeared earlier. It then offers a conceptual definition of experimentalist governance, discussing what it shares but also how it differs from other important notions, as well as briefly describing its key empirical manifestations. Thereafter, the chapter concentrates attention on three sets of central and currently contested questions on experimentalist governance, concerning its pervasiveness relative to other forms of governance, its implications for inclusive participation, and what it requires to be effective. For each, the chapter outlines competing views and offers fresh empirical examples. It concludes by suggesting how future research can contribute advancing beyond the current state of the literature.

Corporate governance · Democracy · Democratic governance · Economics · Epistemology · Experimentalism · Management · Political science · Politics · Positive economics · Sociology · State (computer science) · Computer Science · French Urban and Social Studies · Law · Philosophy · Political Systems and Governance