Using Empirical Research to Design Government Citizen Participation Processes: A Case Study of Citizens' Roles in Environmental Compliance and Enforcement

Abstract

The issue of what role(s) citizens should play in governance is one of many outstanding, oft-debated questions about the appropriate structure and operation of our institutions of governance. Some commentators have argued strongly for increasing citizens' opportunities to participate in government decision-making processes and to shape government outcomes. Others have taken considerably more skeptical positions about empowering citizens. The skeptics are concerned that citizen engagement will cause delays and otherwise lead to inefficient decision-making, empower the already empowered and thereby do little to enhance legitimacy or more broadly-based decision-making, and elevate the voice of "squeaky wheels," thus undermining the role expertise should, and otherwise would, play in agency decision-making.