2020/09/29 by Jonathan S. Davies, Davies, Jonathan, Rob Procter +1 · 3 citations
Business, Management and Accounting · Engineering · Social Sciences · #E-Government and Public Services #FOS: Computer and information sciences #Human-Computer Interaction (cs.HC) #Innovative Approaches in Technology and Social Development #Smart Cities and Technologies #Social and Information Networks (cs.SI)
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2009.14074
openalex publication_date 2020/09/29 · openalex created_date 2020/10/08 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Trust and confidence in democratic institutions is at an all-time low. At the same time, many of the complex issues faced by city administrators and politicians remain unresolved. To tackle these concerns, many argue that citizens should, through the use of digital platforms, have greater involvement in decision-making processes. This paper describes research into two such platforms, 'Decide Madrid' and 'Better Reykjavik'. Through the use of interviews, questionnaires, ethnographic observation, and analysis of platform data, the study will determine if these platforms provide greater participation or simply replicate what is already offered by numerous other digital tools. The findings so far suggest that to be successful platforms must take on a form of deliberative democracy, allowing for knowledge co-production and the emergence of collective intelligence. Based on this, we aim to identify key features of sustainable models of online participation.