The Question of Participation: Toward Authentic Public Participation in Public Administration

Author(s): Cheryl Simrell King, Kathryn M. Feltey and Bridget O'Neill Susel
Source: Public Administration Review, Vol. 58, No. 4 (Jul. - Aug., 1998), pp. 317-326
Published by: Wiley on behalf of the American Society for Public Administration
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/977561 .
Accessed: 01/11/2014 08:33
Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at .
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

.
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of
content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms
of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.

Wiley and American Society for Public Administration are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and
extend access to Public Administration Review.

http://www.jstor.org

This content downloaded from 86.121.5.231 on Sat, 1 Nov 2014 08:33:43 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

Toward
in Public

Authendc

Public

Participanon

Administrfon

ofAkron
Simrell
Cheryl
King,
University
ofAkron
M.Feltey,
University
Kathryn
Bridget
O'Neill
Susel,
Summit
Ohio
County,

Theappropriate
roleof thepublicin publicadministrationhas beenan activeand ongoingareaof
andcontroversy
revolution,
experimentation,
inquiry,
sincethebirthof thisnation. The contemporary
movement
to examine
theroleof thepublicin the
process
of administrative
decisionmakinghascome
to problems
aboutin response
in thelatterhalfof
andasa resultof concern
thiscentury
on thepartof
andpoliticians
overcitizen
citizens,administrators,
andapathy(Box,1996;Putnam,
discouragement
1995;Timney,1996;Thomas,1995).Asbothcitizensandtheirleadershavenoticed,"participation
throughnormalinstitutional
channelshas little
impacton the substanceof government
politics"
andSchaefer,
(Crosby,
Kelly,
1986,172).
Manycitizens,
andpoliticians
administrators,
are
interestedin increasingpublicparticipationin public

How can theprocesses

ofpublicparticipationbe improved?This
studyusesinterviewsandfocus-group
discussions
to lookfor some
answers.Theresultssuggestthatimproving
publicparticipation
requireschangesin citizenand administrator
rolesand relationshipsand in administrative
processes.Specifically,
we needto
moveawayfrom staticand reactive
towardmoredynamprocesses
ic and deliberative
processes.Thearticlesuggests
somepractical
stepsto achievethesechanges.

decisions.Effortsto do so arecurrently
underway
acrossthecountry.However,
thereis considerable
evidence
to suggest
thattheseeffortsarenoteffective
(Crosby,
Kelly,andSchaefer,
and
1986;Kathlene
Martin,1991;KweitandKweit,1981,1987;Parsons,1990). Someeffortsappearto be ineffective
ofpoorplanning
because
orexecution.
Otherefforts
maynotworkbecause
administrative
systems
thatare
baseduponexpertise
andprofessionalism
leavelittle
roomfor participatory
processes(deLeon,1992;
Fisher,1993;Forester,
1989;WhiteandMcSwain,
1993).
Thequestion
of howto engender
effective
andsatisfyingparticipation
processes
is thecentralissuein
thisresearch.
Ourfindings
indicate
thateffective,
or
authentic,
publicparticipation
impliesmorethan
simplyfindingthe righttoolsandtechniques
for
increasing
publicinvolvement
in publicdecisions.
Authentic
publicparticipation,
thatis, participation
thatworksforallparties
andstimulates
interest
and
investmentin both administrators
andcitizens,
requires
rethinking
theunderlying
rolesof, andrelationships
between,
administrators
andcitizens.

PublicAdministration
Review* July/August
1998,Vol.58,No.4

This content downloaded from 86.121.5.231 on Sat, 1 Nov 2014 08:33:43 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

317

In the firstsectionof thisarticlewe examinethe questionof the

by reviewing
of moreeffectiveparticipation
necessityor desirability
andidentifyingthe relin U.S. publicadministration
the literature
and citizens.
evant contemporaryissuesfor both administrators
The currentmodel of the participationprocessis presentedand
critiquedin the secondsection,usingthe conceptof authenticparticipationas a startingpointfor movingtowardmoreeffectiveparticipatoryprocesses.We then turn to identifyingthe barriersto
as seenby our researchparticipants.Strateeffectiveparticipation
giesforovercomingthe barriersarediscussed,and implicationsfor
and citizenshiparesuggested
the practiceof publicadministration
in the last section. Followinga groundedtheorymodel (Strauss
andCorbin,1990), thisarticleis organizedaroundthe themesthat

emergedfrom the literaturereview,interviews,and focus group

discussions(seethe MethodologyBox).

of More
TheNecessityor Desirability
EffectiveParticipation
has historiin publicadministration
The role of participation
callybeen one of ambivalence.Althoughthe politicalsystemin
the UnitedStatesis designedto reflectandengenderan activecitiprozenry,it is alsodesignedto protectpoliticalandadministrative
cessesfroma too-activecitizenry.It is withinthis contextthatparticipation in the administrativearena has traditionally been
framed.

(StraussandCorbin,1990)andis basedon interviewswith

The research
reportedherefollowsa groundedtheorymodelof research
in northeastOhio. We usedqualitative
subjectmatterexpertsand focusgroupdiscussionsamongcitizensand publicadministrators
effortsmoreeffectivefor both citithe questionof how to makeparticipation
techniquesbecauseof our desirefor depthin addressing
We alsowantedto allowissueswe maynot haveconsideredto emergefromthe research.
zensandadministrators.
eitherthroughtheirresearchor practice.
aboutparticipation,
we identifiedas knowledgeable
Subjectmatterexpertsareindividuals
with fivesubjectmatterexperts;one interviewwasconductedin person.Subjectmatter
We conductedhour-longtelephoneinterviews
Protection
projects,one for the Environmental
expertsincludetwo organizerswho arecurrentlyengagedin extensiveparticipation
Agencyand one for the city of Dayton,Ohio; two formerexecutivesfromnationalfoundationsthat focus on increasingthe links
currentlyworkingin nuclearwastecleanupin Idaho;and one
practitioner
betweencitizensand government;a publicparticipation
scholarin the field.
established
identifiedthe keycomponentsof successful
In the interviewsthe subjectmatterexpertstalkedaboutthe meaningof participation,
suggestedwaysto bolstercitizeninvolvementin civicprocesses,
efforts,addressedthe issueof declinein participation,
participation
anddiscussedkey theoriesguidingresearchandpracticein participation.We usedthe resultsof the interviewsto shapethe discussion
guidelinesforthe focusedgroupdiscussions.
in local government,
in publicadministration:nonelectedadministrators
The focusgroupsincludedthreetypesof participants
in at leastone publicprocessor eventduringthe previousyear. A type of snowballsamactivists,and citizenswho had participated
networks;
wereidentifiedthroughourpersonalandprofessional
plinghelpedus identifygroupparticipants.The firstfewparticipants
werefairlydiversewith
giventhistechnique,ourparticipants
we askedthemto recommendotherpotentialparticipants.Surprisingly,
andperspectives.
regardto theirexperiences
The activistsand citizensweresimilarin termsof theirinterestin, and commitmentto, participation.They differedin that the
thanordinarycitizens
citizeninterestsandhadhigherlevelsof participation
thatrepresent
activistswereformallytied to organizations
in the focus
werenot represented
in publicprocesses
missionandgoals.Citizenswho did not participate
becauseof theirorganization's
groupdiscussions.
We convenedsevengroupsin threecommunitiesin northeastOhio, chosento representthe diversityof communitiesin the area
(largecity,mediumcity,rural/edgecity). The focusgroupsrangedin sizefromsix to elevenmembers,with threecitizen-onlygroups,
werediverse
Participants
group,andtwo groupsof bothactivistsandadministrators.
group,one activist-only
one administrator-only
the
although
represented,
they
efforts,andthe organizations
the focusof theirparticipation
characteristics,
with regardto demographic
particiin the groupsrespondedto fourgeneralquestions:Whatdoespublic
wereall local(cityor county). Participants
administrators
be achieved,if at
How caneffectivepublicparticipation
pationmeanto you? Whatarethe barriersto effectivepublicparticipation?
Other
topicsand
all? Whatadvicedo you haveto giveto peoplestudyingandattemptingto practiceeffectivepublicparticipation?
The
of
the
conversations.
the
direction
not
control
guidedthe discussionsbut did
questionsemergedin eachgroup. The facilitators
transcriber.
discussionslastedfor two hoursandwererecordedverbatimby a courtroom
usinga qualitativeformof coninterviewsand discussionsindividually,
In the firststageof the analysis,we codedthe transcribed
the
we
analyses,usinga nominal
of
separate
tent analysis(see Straussand Corbin,1990). In the secondstage analysis, synthesized
in
this
discussed
themes
paper.
grouptechniqueto createthe categorical
in the focusgroupswereactivein publicparticipation
proall participants
It is importantto note that,exceptfor administrators,
discussion
effective.
turned,
be
more
Every
group
on
how
these
us
might
to
processes
cesses.Wewantedpeopleinvolved give guidance
We haveincorpohada greatdealto sayaboutnonparticipation.
Ourparticipants
at somepoint,to the questionof nonparticipation.
into
the
discussion.
ratedtheirviewsof nonparticipation

318

1998,Vol.58, No.4
Review* July/August
PublicAdministration

This content downloaded from 86.121.5.231 on Sat, 1 Nov 2014 08:33:43 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

tion). These administrators

believethat greatercitizenparticipation increasesinefficiencybecauseparticipationcreatesdelaysand
increasesredtape.
As the KetteringFoundationstudyshows,an "undeniable
tension"existsbetweenthe public'srightto greaterinvolvementand
of publicofficialsto act as administrative
the prerogative
decision
makers(1989, 12). Citizensreportfeelingisolatedfrom public
In recenttimes, interestin publicparticipation
in administra- administrative
processes.Althoughthey careaboutthe issuesfactive decisionmakinghas increasedas a resultof a numberof fac- ing theircommunitiesandthe nation,citizensfeel "pushedout"of
tors,not the leastof whichis thata citizenrywith diminishedtrust the publicprocess(KetteringFoundation,1991). Citizensmisin governmentis demandingmoreaccountability
frompublicoffi- trustpublicofficialsand administrators.Nationalopinion polls
cials(Parrand Gates,1989). Thereis also a growingrecognition showthatcitizens'distrustof governmentis on the rise:43 percent
on the partof administrators
thatdecisionmakingwithoutpublic of citizensreporteda lackof trustin governmentin 1992while70
participationis ineffective.As Thomasindicates,"thenew public percentreporteddistrustin 1994 (citedin Tolchin,1996, 6). This
involvementhas transformed
the workof publicmanagers...publicdistrustoften leadsto citizencynicismor what Mathews(1994)
participationin the managerialprocesshas becomea fact of life. calls impotenceand causesinterestin participationto decline
In the future,this may becomethe casefor even moremanagers, (Berman,1997).
since the public'sdemandfor involvementdoes not seem to be
Somecitizensfeeltheirconcernswill be heardonlyif theyorgaabating"(1995, xi). Thomassuggeststhat undercontemporary nizeinto groupsandangrilyprotestadministrative
policydecisions
politicaland economicconditions,we can no longernot include (Timney,1996). NIMBYs(Not In My Backyardgroups)have
the publicin publicdecisionmaking.
challengedadministrative
decisionson a varietyof differentissues
Parallelingthe increasedpractitioner
interestin publicpartici- in recentyears(Fischer,1993;Kraftand Clary,1991), creatingno
theoristshaveincreasingly
pation,contemporary
focusedon partic- end of troublefor peopletryingto implementadministrative
deciipationin theirtheoriesof the role,legitimacy,and definitionsof sions. Citizensinvolvedin theseprotestgroupsareconfrontational
the field in what some call "postmodern"
times (Frederickson, in their participatory
effortsbecausethey believeadministrators
1982;Stivers,1990;Cooper,1991;Farmer,1995;FoxandMiller, operatewithina "contextof self-interest"
andarenot connectedto
1995;Wamsleyand Wolf, 1996). In an attemptto find a way to the citizens(Kettering
Foundation,1991, 7).
bridgethe problemsof traditional
modelsof publicadministration, The participants
of ourstudy,administrators,
activists,andcitisome researchers
call for shiftsin the governanceprocess. Stivers zens alike, agreedthat participationis necessaryand desirable.
callsthesechangedrelationships
"activeaccountability":
One citizentold us thatparticipation
was "thenecessaryopportuAdministrative
legitimacyrequiresactiveaccountability
nity to be a partof somethingbiggerthan oneself,a partof our
to citizens,fromwhomthe endsof government
derive.
responsibilityto our community." An activistsaid, "it is very
in turn,requires
a sharedframework
Accountability,
for
importantto havean opportunityto influenceand to know that
the interpretationof basicvalues,one that must be
yourinfluencehas the potentialto makea difference."Adminisdevelopedjointlyby bureaucrats
and citizensin realtratorsalso stressedthe centralityof input:"we needinput,""we
worldsituations,ratherthanassumed.The legitimate
don't make good decisions without it," "it is essential." Our
administrative
state,in otherwords,is one inhabitedby
researchparticipants
agreedthat the mainproblemwith participaactivecitizens(1990,247).
tion as it is currentlypracticedand framedis thatit doesn'twork.
Althoughthereis theoreticaland practicalrecognitionthat the They believedthat findingbetterways to engenderparticipation
publicmust be moreinvolvedin publicdecisions,manyadminis- will makeit moremeaningfulforall involved. Administrators
rectratorsare, at best, ambivalentabout public involvementor, at ognizethe needfor participation,
but they cannotfind waysto fit
worst, they find it problematic. In an increasinglyglobaland the publicinto decision-making
processes. Citizensbelievethat
chaoticworld,administrators
aregrapplingwith issuesthatdo not greaterparticipationis needed,but they are renderedcynicalor
seem to have definitivesolutions,while still tryingto encourage apatheticby vacuousor falseeffortsto stimulateparticipation
that
publicinvolvement(KetteringFoundation,1989). The issuestra- askfor,yet discount,publicinput. As a result,citizensfind themditionallyfacingadministrators,
"themoremalleableproblems,the selvesmovingfrompotentiallycooperativeto confrontational
situones that could be attackedwith commonsense and ingenuity, ationsthatpit administrators
againstcitizensin an adversarial
way.
havein recentdecadesgivenwayto a differentclassof problemsWhy arewe in this paradoxical
conundrum?One reasonmaybe
'wicked problems'- with no solutions, only temporaryand the way participation
is currentlyframed,the point to whichwe
imperfectresolutions"
(Fischer,1993, 172). Administrators
need nowturn.
guidanceand help in addressing
these"wickedproblems"
but find
thatthe helptheyseekfromcitizensoftencreatesnewsetsof probHow is ParticipationCurrentlyFramed?
lems. As a result,althoughmanypublicadministrators
viewclose
relationships
with citizensas both necessaryand desirable,mostof
Publicparticipation
processeshavefourmajorcomponents:(1)
themdo not activelyseekpublicinvolvement.If theydo seekit, the issue or situation;(2) the administrative
structures,systems,
theydo not usepublicinputin makingadministrative
decisions(as and processeswithin which participationtakes place; (3) the
indicatedby a 1989 study conductedby the KetteringFounda- administrators;
and, (4) the citizens. Participation
effortsarecur-

There

isahoagrowing
onthe
part
recognition

that
without
decision
oadministrators
making
public

isineffective.
participation

Toward
Authentic
in PublicAdministration
Participation

This content downloaded from 86.121.5.231 on Sat, 1 Nov 2014 08:33:43 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

319

arearrayed
aroundthe Figure1
rentlyframedsuchthatthesecomponents
issue.Thecitizenis placedat thegreatest
distance
fromtheissue, Contextof ConventionalParticipation
theadministrative
andprocesses
aretheclosest,andthe
structures
andcitizens,as
administrator
is the agentbetweenthe structures
Citizens
in Figure1.
depicted
In thecontextof conventional
theadministrator
participation,
Administrators
thesituation
controlstheabilityof thecitizento influence
or the
Administrative
Systems/Processes
process.Theadministrative
andprocesses
structures
arethepolitiframeworks
withinwhichtheadminconstructed
callyandsocially
istratormustoperate.Theseframeworks
givethe administrator
the authority
to formulate
decisions
onlyafterthe issuehasbeen
defined.Thus,theadministrator
hasno realpowerto redefine
the
issueorto alteradministrative
to allowforgreater
processes
citizen
involvement
(Forester,
1989).
In the contextof conventional
theadministrator
participation
playsthe roleof the expert.WhiteandMcSwain
(1993)suggest and open and honest discussion. As an activiststated, "People
thatparticipation
withinthiscontextis structured
to maintain
the needto knowthattheirinputis importantandwill be considered
while publiclypresentingthe in makingthat decision." An administrator
centralityof the administrator
concurred,"I think
administrator
asrepresentative,
orparticipatory.
The one of the keysfor effectiveparticipation
consultative,
at the citizenand neighcitizenbecomesthe "client"
of the professional
ill- borhoodlevelis fordecisionmakersto be interested;to reallylisten
administrator,
equippedto questionthe professional's
authorityandtechnical to whatthe needsareof the people."Anotheradministrator
talked
knowledge.Thisprocessestablishes
whatFischercallsa "practi- aboutlisteningand trust:"Thefirststep is to makeit clearthat
tioner-client
hierarchy"
(1993,165). In thisfalselydualistic
rela- you'regoingto be receptiveto theircomments.But alsoI thinka
tionship,theadministrator
is separated
fromthe"demands,
needs, criticalsecondstepto maintainingtheirtrustis to demonstrateto
andvalues"
of thepeoplewhomhe or sheis presumed
to be serv- them that they'rebeing heard...andthat their ideas are shaping
ing(deLeon,
1992,126).
whateveryou'redeveloping."To achieveall of this, accordingto a
Participation
in thiscontextis ineffective
andconflictual,
andit third administrator,
citizensand administrators
"needto have a
too latein theprocess,
happens
thatis, aftertheissueshavebeen partnership.We do that by beingsensitivethat otherpeopledo
framedandmostdecisionshavebeenmade. Therefore,
rather havean agenda...buteveryoneshouldgraduallycometogether."
thancooperating
to decidehowbestto address
issues,citizensare
Authenticparticipationrequiresthat administrators
focus on
reactiveandjudgmental,
oftensabotaging
administrators'
best both processand outcome. In this context, participationis an
efforts. Administrators
areterritorial
andparochial;
theyresist integralpartof administration,
ratherthan an add-onto existing
andrelyon theirtechnical
sharinginformation
andprofessionalpractices.Authenticparticipation
meansthatthe publicis partof
to justifytheirrolein administrative
expertise
Citizen the deliberationprocessfrom issue framingto decisionmaking
processes.
is moresymbolicthanreal(Arnstein,
participation
1969). The (Roberts,1997). As a citizenindicated,"Fromthe verybeginning
powerthatcitizens
yieldis aimedatblocking
orredirecting
admin- peopleneedto be involved."An administrator
told us, "Ifyou go
istrative
effortsrather
thanworking
aspartners
to definetheissues, to the communitywith a totallypresetagendathat doesn'twork.
establishthe parameters,
developmethodsof investigation,
and Bringingpeople into the processtoo late does not work." An
selecttechniques
foraddressing
problems.
activistconcurred,"Ithinkthatit is veryimportantthatindividuals be giventhe opportunity,
priorto the decisionbeingmade,to
provideinput. [Citizensmusthave] enoughtime to processthat
information.Thereis a lot of phonyparticipationgoing on out
Asdefinedbytheparticipants
of ourresearch,
effective
partici- there."
thatis realor authentic.Authenticparticipationis participation
Addressingthe limitations of current participatoryefforts
pationis deepandcontinuous
involvement
in administrative
pro- requiresthat public administrators
become "interpretive
mediacesseswiththe potentialforall involvedto havean effecton the tors."They must move beyond the technicalissue at hand by
situation.Anactivist
definedauthentic
participation
as"theability involvingcitizensin "dialecticalexchange"(Fischer,1993, 183)
andthe opportunity
to havean impacton the decision-makingandby engagingwith citizensin discourse(FoxandMiller,1995),
process."
to anadministrator,
According
authentic
participation
is ratherthansimplygettingcitizensinput. Then, the administrator
activeinvolvement,
"on-going,
nota one-shotdeal,notjustpulling becomesa cooperativeparticipant,assistingcitizensin examining
thelever..it needsto go out andreachout to everypartof your theirinterests,workingtogetherwith them to arriveat decisions,
however
community,
defined."An activistsaidthatgoodpartici- andengagingthemin openandauthenticdeliberation.
pationhasoccurred
when"people
affected
bythechangearecomA citizenoffersa compellingsummaryof the tensionsinvolved
fortable
withthe decisionmade."A citizenexplained,
"Forme, in publicparticipation:"Youhaveto get in thereand ask their
whenI changeperceptionsI knowit'sa success."
opinion. And they will tell you their opinion in the midst of
Both citizensand administrators
in our studydefinedthe key tellingyou whata lousyjob you aredoing. And you haveto be
elementsof authenticparticipationas focus,commitment,trust, willingto dealwith that,to put up with it. I thinka lot of admin-

Reframing
Participation

320

PublicAdministration
Review* July/August
1998,Vol.58, No.4

This content downloaded from 86.121.5.231 on Sat, 1 Nov 2014 08:33:43 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

istrators,like us, don't like criticism. They'll, naturally,avoid Figure2

it...andforgetto go out in the fieldandget democracy."Getting
Contextof AuthenticParticipation
democracyseemsto lie at the coreof whyauthenticparticipation
is
a discoursewhereall participants
important.Engendering
havean
Administrative
SystemsandProcesses
equalfootingandwhereone groupis not privilegedoverthe other
is at the heartof authenticparticipation
(Habermas,1975).
Administrators
The contextof authenticparticipation
is verydifferentfromthe
Citizens
context of conventionalparticipation. Authenticparticipation
placesthe citizennextto the issueandthe administrative
structures
andprocessesfurthestaway.However,the administrator
is stillthe
bridgebetweenthe two, as depictedin Figure2. Citizensarecentraland directlyrelatedto the issue;they havean immediateand
equalopportunityto influencethe processesand outcomes. The
administrators'
influencecomes from their relationshipwith the
citizenryas wellas fromtheirexpertiseandposition.The administrativestructuresandprocessesaredefinedby the relationships
and often haveto go backand redoprojectsthat citizensblockonce
interactions
of citizensandadministrators.
decisionshavebeenmade. One administrator
indicated:
Authenticparticipationmovesthe administrator
awayfrom a
Whynot get the citizensin andworkthesethingsout
relianceon technicaland expertisemodelsof administration
and
beforewe go withit? Actually,it mayseemlikeit takes
towardmeaningfulparticipatory
processes.Table1 summarizes
the
a littlelongerbecause,in the old way,we makea decikey differencesbetweenunauthenticand authenticparticipation
sionandrunwithit as faraswe can;but thenwe have
models.As an activisttold us:
to run backand fix it....There'salwaysthis arrogance
Overthelastyear,thefederalurbandevelopment
people
that we know what the people need without their
haveput out somestrictguidelinesto encourageand
input-our systemis set up to keeppeopleawayfrom
mandateparticipation.And they don'tknowhow to
thedecisionmaking.
dealwith the participation..
.they'reintimidated..
.and
Authenticparticipation
involvescitizensin the makingof decithey [arebeginningto realize]that maybewe all can
sionsinsteadof justjudging.As one administrator
told us, "There
learnbetterwaysof doingthis. Theirattitudeshave
aretwowaysof participating:
making,whichincludesdoingsomealwaysbeen:we knowwhat'sbetterfor the neighborthing, and judgment. A lot of us go to meetingswherewe do
hoods. Maybethey'rejust beginningto realizethat
nothing but judge....It'sthe makingand the doing that I think
maybecitizensdo know something. Maybethey do
we'reallwishingmorecitizensparticipated
in."
knowwhat'sbestfor the neighborhood
andthey'rein
Our researchshowsthat the desirefor participationis strong,
the processof tryingto figureout howto balancewhat
and our participantsrecognizeits importance.The next section
they'vebeendoingall theseyearswiththe needforcitiexaminesthe barriers
to authenticparticipation.
zenparticipation.
Processesof authenticparticipationdo not necessarilycreate
moreworkfor administrators.
Authenticitydoes,however,require
differentkindsof work. In conventionalprocesses,administrators The focusgroupparticipants
and subjectmatterexpertsagreed

Barriers
to AuthenticParticipation

Table1
Comparison
of AuthenticandUnauthentic
Participation
Interaction
style
Participation
is sought
Roleof administrator
Administrative
skillsneeded
Roleof citizen
Citizenshipskillsneeded
Approach
toward"other"
Administrative
process
Citizenoptions
Citizenoutput
Administrator
output
Timeto decision

Decisionis made

Unauthentic
Participation
Conflictual
Aftertheagendais setanddecisionsaremade
Experttechnician/manager
Technical;
managerial
Unequalparticipant
None
Mistrust
Static,invisible,
closed
Reactive
Buy-in
Decision
Appears
shorterandeasierbutoften
involvesgoingbackand'redoing"
based
uponcitizenreaction
Byadministrator/political
and/or
administrative
processes
in
perhaps
consultation
withcitizens

AuthenticParticipation
Collaborative
Early;beforeanythingis set
Collaborative
technician/governor
Technical,
interpersonal
skills,discourse
skills,facilitation
skills
Equalpartner
Civics,participation
skills,discourse
skills
Trust
Dynamic,visible,open
Proactive
orreactive
Design
Process
Appears
longerandmoreonerousbutusually
doesn'trequireredoingbecausecitizenshave
beeninvolvedthroughout;
maytakelesstimeto reachdecisions
thanthroughtraditional
processes
Emerges
asa resultof discourse;
equal
opportunity
forallto enterthediscourse
and
to influencetheoutcomes

Toward
Authentic
Participation
in PublicAdministration

This content downloaded from 86.121.5.231 on Sat, 1 Nov 2014 08:33:43 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

321

andprocesses
indicators
to drawconclusions
methods
thatparticipation
to participa- standard
aboutratesor levelsof
posebarriers
do aswell. Threecategories
Traditional
tion,butotherfactors
of barriers
indicators
suchasvoting,
participation
were participation.
in ouranalyses:
identified
thenatureof lifein contemporary
civicmeetings,
orrunningforcitycouncildon'tcapture
soci- attending
ety,administrative
andcurrent
andtechniques thecultural
formsof participation
processes,
thataremorelikelyto involve
practices
of participation.
younger
of thecommunity.
members
he alsoagreed
that
However,
valueshavenotbeenreinforced
participatory
in this"eraof privatizationandfreemarketeconomy[where]individuals
havea lot of
The Natureof Life in ContemporarySociety
economic
pressures
withoutmuchsparecapital."
Thebarriers
fromthe practical
realities
of dailylife
stemming
Whileday-to-day
lifekeepspeoplefrombeingmoreparticipaaretiedto thesocialclasspositionof citizensandincludefactors toryandperhaps
inculcates
attitudes
andapathy,
nonparticipatory
liketransportation,
timeconstraints,
numberof manyof ourresearch
familystructure,
feltthatcurrentadministrative
participants
in thelaborforce,childcare,andeconomic
familymembers
disad- processes
areasmuchto blameforthelackof citizenparticipation.
vantages.Somepeopleexpress
a desireto participate
morefullyin
theircommunities,
butthedemands
of day-to-day
lifegetin the
way. As onecitizensaid,"Alot of peopleareholdingdowntwo AdministrativeProcesses
jobsandbothpeopleworkin thefamilyandaretootired...[from] Thesecondsetof barriers
identified
byourparticipants
consists
a dayata time."
tryingto survive
of thoseinherentin administrative
processes
themselves.These
The focusgroupmembers
compared
an idealized
pastwhere barriers
areparadoxical.
Whilemostpeopledefinecitizenparticicivicparticipation
wascommonandvisible,to thepresent,
where pationas desirable,any participation
seen as challengingthe
it is nearlyimpossible
to fit participation
into an over-crowdedadministrative
statusquo is blockedby the veryadministrators
schedule.Thepastwasseenas a timeof economicsecurity
with whodesiremoreparticipatory
processes.
Asonecitizenlamented:
stableemployment
whereparticipation
in community
lifewasa
Isn'tit a shame[that]oneoftheobstacles
incitizenpargiven.Asoneadministrator
explained,"Atleastin mygrandparticipationseemsto be government...
.We'retalking
ent'sgeneration
theyweren't
worried
if Goodyear
wasgoingto be
aboutgrass-roots
thatworkdespite
programs
thegovernthere.Theyknewtheywere.Theywereplaying
ball,goingto Boy
ment,[because
theyareableto] workaround
theoffiScouts.Now...it'sunusual
if youhavea bitof [worry-free]
luxury
cials.Itseemsto methat[elected
officials
andadminisinyourlifeto participate."
trators]shouldall be wantingto get people to
to the oldermembers
According
in the focusgroup,younger
...notputtingupbarriers.Theyonlywant
participate
community
members
arenotpursuing
anactivisttradition.It is a
favorable
participation...to
keepthestatus
quo.
constantchallenge
to community
to getyoungercitizens Anactivist
activists
described
thebarriers
in theprocess
asfollows:
to participate.Oneactivistsaid,"We're
tryingto replace
people
Itseemsto methatthepolitical
process
getsin theway.
whowereactivein theblockclubswithpeoplewhoarefromthe
Youcandoallthethingsthatshouldbe done,getthe
to takeoverthereinsof whattheoldercitizens
youngfamilies
have
citizens
together,
gettheminvolved,
getinput. Butif
beendoingforyears.That'sa hardthingto do."
thedecision
hasalready
beenmadeon a different
level,
Citizens,administrators,
andactivists
allagreedthatparticipait'sall[window]
dressing.
Andwehaveto getpastthat
tion is hinderedby a lackof education,
bothinformally
within
first.Howdoyoudothatwhenthepolitical
process
has
familiesand communitiesand formallyin the schools. One
madethedecision
already
whichwayit'sgoingto go?
administrator
described
howearlychildhood
socialization
prepared Citizensin our focusgroups,like thoseincludedin other
himfora lifeof participation:
research,
viewedcommunication
in participatory
processes
asflowWhenI was a kid we wouldmeet at the dinner
ingoneway-fromtheadministrative
professional
to the citizen.
table..
.andthatwastheplacethatalmostwithoutfail
Citizensin ourprojectfeltthatinformation
is usuallymanaged,
we'dget aroundto politicalandneighborhood
and
andmanipulated,
controlled,
limitingtheircapacity
to participate.
church
goingson...thatwouldbethebasisforlearning
Asonecitizenexplained,
"Bythetimewehearaboutissuesit'stoo
aboutandsocializing
intobroader
issuesin thecommulateto affecta decision."
Another
citizenconcurred,
"Bythetime
nity....Thesamethingwastruefortheneighborhoods.
we hearabouttheissuesit is too latein theprocess. Wemight
Theadultsusedto gatheron thefrontporches
while
hearaboutit if wereadthepaperorif someone
onyourcommittee
theirkidswouldplay.
is on topof thingsenoughto knowwhat'sgoingon." As a result,
Thedemiseof theneighborhood
asanorganizing
andsocializ- citizenstalkaboutadministrators
as adversaries,
as one citizen
ingsystemwasdescribed
in thefollowing
waybyoneadministra-explained:
"Ithinkif we participate..
.we cansometimes
beatthe
tor: "People
don'ttalkto eachotheranymore..
.theneighborhoodsadministrators
to thegun.
aren'tneighborhoods...they
usedto be realtight-knitcommunities."Isolation
fromothersis detrimental
to participation.
Onesubject
matterexpertsuggested
thatcitizenparticipation
is Techniquesof Participation
low [because]
"abysmally
we'vetaughtpeoplenot to participate." Oneof themostproblematic
administrative
barriers
is thetechHowever,he noted thateven if peoplewereinvitedto participate, niquesused in most participatory
processes.As found in other
"thereis still the natureof citizenlife itself,we areall verybusy, research(Crosby,Kelly,and Schaefer,1986;Kathleneand Martin,
perhapstoo busy to participate."He warnedagainstrelyingon 1991; Kweitand Kweit, 1981; 1987; Parsons,1990), our focus
322

PublicAdministration
Review* July/August
1998,Vol.58, No.4

This content downloaded from 86.121.5.231 on Sat, 1 Nov 2014 08:33:43 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

Tomovetoward
authentic
administrators
needto
participation
changemanyof theircurrent
practices.Onechangemaybeto go
means
citizens
designing
processeswhere
thecitizensareratherthanaskingcitizensto cometo them.
As one administrator
proposed,"Soimagineif the councilman
where
citizens
know
that
hasthe
theirparticipation

Empowering

fromyourwardcalledyouupandsaid,youknow,I'minterested
in
of
with
a
small
I
come
meeting
Can
to
group
your
neighbors.
you
tohave
animpact,
where
arepresentative
potential
range
of ratherthanyoucominghere?"Anotheradministrator
concurred,
"We've
got
to
the
we've
stop
doing
done
things
them.
way
always
areincluded,
andwhere
citizens
there
arevisible
outcomes.
Wecan'tbehavingmeetings
andexpectpeople
duringthedaytime
groupparticipants
told us thatmosttechniques
usedin current to come. Wecan'tbe doingthingsin a remoteplaceandexpect
effortsareinadequate.The mostineffective
participation
tech- peopleto comeat8:00atnight....We'vegotto go to them."
niqueis the publichearing.Publichearings
do notwork. Low
is anotherimportant
Accessibility
issue. As oneadministrator
is oftenconstrued
attendance
atpublichearings
aspublicapathy
effortin the community
or outlined,"Another
is grass-roots
leadersilentapproval
of thestatusquo(Kathlene
andMartin,1991). In ship....Folkswhohavebeenhistorically
fromprocesses
excluded
of
lowattendance
is morelikelyto be relatedto thestruc- decision
actuality,
aboutthesescarceresources
needto beincreasingmaking
tureof publichearings.
ly includedin the processes."
Anotheradministrator
agreed,"In
of publichearings orderto havetrueparticipation,
Administrators
thatthe structure
recognize
thoseof us who havesome
and publicmeetingsprohibitsmeaningfulexchange.As one authority
haveto be moreactivein bringing
peoplewhoperceive
is notaboutcommunicat-themselves
administrator
said,"Thepublichearing
asexcluded
intotheprocess."
ing,it is aboutconvincing."
Another
thelimitations
of
explained
Ourresearch
participants
toldusthattheywantauthentic
parpublicschoolboardmeetings,"Whenyou go to a schoolboard ticipation,
butmanybarriers
restrict
Inthefinalsecparticipation.
meeting,theygetthiseggtimer,timeto grabthemicrophone
and tionof thisarticlewe suggesthowto overcome
thesebarriers
in
speak.There's
no follow-up.Youdon'tevengetto askthemques- orderto movetoward
moreauthentic
participatory
processes.
tions....There's
no giveandtake."An activistsuggested
thatthe
publichearingwaswindowdressing,
"Wehavethesehearings
so Overcoming
Barriers
to
theycancheckoffontheirlistthatthey've
hadtheircitizenparticiParticipation
pation....It'sparticipation
out of the fearthattheyaregoingto Authentic
lookbad."
Asourfindings
indicate,
peoplemaybemorewillingto particiA majorproblemis the timingof publichearings.Theyare pateif theyhavea realopportunity
to influence
bothadministraoftenheldlatein the process,whendecisions
havealready
been tiveprocesses
andoutcomes.Shiftingparticipatory
to
techniques
made.Asoneadministrator
"Ithinkpublichearings
explained,
are moreeffective
or authentic
practices
requires
whatdeLeon(1992)
toolate. It'sa formalprocess.Citizens
knowthat.They identifies
definitely
asa two-sided
learning
process.Bothadministrators
and
knowthatandcometo publichearings,
buttheyknowthatit is citizens
needto learn.
toolate."
already
In orderto movetowardauthenticmodels,all threecompoOthercommonmethodsof participation
arecitizenadvisory nentsof publicparticipation-the
administrative
structures
and
councils,citizenpanels,andpublicsurveys(Crosby,
et al., 1986; processes,
theadministrators,
andthecitizens-mustbe addressed
Kathlene
andMartin,1991;Parsons
1990). Limitations
of coun- bythoseworking
in,andseeking
to understand,
publicadministracils andpanelsincludebiasesin composition,
particularly
with tion. Authenticity
cannotbe achieved
by addressing
problems
in
to socialclass(Verba,
regard
et. al., 1993). Surveys,
on theother onlyonearea.Forexample,
citizenempowerment
in theabsence
hand,documentpublicopinionsat one pointin time(Kathlene of administrative
transformation
is problematic.
TodevelopproandMartin,1991)anddo not allowforan interactive
processor cessesthatincrease
participation
withoutchanging
thepowerrelarelationship
between
citizens
andadministrators.
tionsbetweencitizensandadministrators
is alsoproblematic.
in ourproject
Administrators
wereclearthatparticipation
tech- Modelsof authenticparticipation
musttakea three-pronged
niquesneedto beimproved.Oneadministrator
pointedout:"We approach,
allthreecomponents,
addressing
seekingto (1) empowcan'tignoretheprocessof conducting
a goodmeeting.Thereare er andeducatecommunity
members,
(2) re-educate
administramanypeoplewhogetturnedoffwhen[meetings
aren't
runwell].... tors,and(3) enableadministrative
structures
andprocesses.We
It couldbe a royalwasteof mytimeandI resentthat." Another discusseachof theseobjectives
in thefollowing
sections.Table2
administrator
alladministrators:
challenged
provides
a summary
of practical
actionsthatadministrators
and
Lookatalternative
waysto getpeopleinvolved.It isn't
citizenscantaketo overcome
barriers
to authentic
participation
in
justif you can'tcometo the meeting,youcan'tbe
eachof theseareas.
involved.Thatmaybe a veryinteresting
challenge
for
usto thinkabout.Whatotherwayscanpeoplefeelthat
Empoweringand EducatingCitizens
theyhavesomesayin theprocess
withouthavingto
leavetheirkidsandgeta baby-sitter
andgotoa meeting
Empowering
citizensmeansdesigning
processes
wherecitizens
andso forth?Solvingtheseproblems
maybe a tremendous,innovative
wayto breakdownsomeof thesebarriers.

knowthat theirparticipation
has the potentialto havean impact,
wherea representative
rangeof citizensare included,and where
there are visible outcomes. The centralissue is one of access.

Toward
Authentic
Participation
in Public
Administration

This content downloaded from 86.121.5.231 on Sat, 1 Nov 2014 08:33:43 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

323

Table2
Barriers
to AuthenticParticipation:
Recommendations
forPractice
Overcoming
Objectives
Barriers
andEducating
Empowering
Citizens
Realitiesof
DailyLife

Administrators
Re-educating

EnablingAdministrative
SystemsandProcesses

Talkwithadministrators;
establish
one-ononerelationships.

Takeinitiativeto talkwithcitizens;
establish Setupflexiblemeetingschedules;
multiple
one-on-onerelationships.
Go outandget
opportunities.
democracy.
Payattention.
Go to wherepeopleare(lunchhour,child
Don'tseparate
yourselffromyourjob;you carecenters,schools,churches,
laundryfaciliTalkto neighbors;
with
formrelationships
area citizenalso. Thinkaboutyourlifeand ties,electronic,
etc.).
othersin yourarea(interest
orgeographical).planparticipation
effortsaccordingly.
Useelectronic
resources
(butdon'trelyonly
localeconomies,
Strengthen
areadvertised
emphasizing Besurethatprojects
so that
uponthem).
benefitsto peopleversustheeconomy.
peopleareinformed(flyersin well-attended
places,phonecalls,mailings,
etc.).
Provideon-site,freechild-care;
cateredmeals
Createopportunities
forpeopleto interact
ata nominalchargeforparticipants,
free
witheachother.
mealsfordisadvantaged
participants.
Seekdiversity
in representation.

Administrative Teachcitizenshowto workwithinthesystemandto workwiththesystem.

Systemsand
Processes
Headoff antigovernment
sentiment
byeducatingcitizensaboutthenecessity
of governmentpractices
(redtape,etc),assuming
this
is donein a good-faith
effortto findwaysto
workmoreeffectively
withcitizens.

asthefourthbranchof Allocateresources
Beginto seecitizenry
forparticipation
efforts.
onecan'ttalkaboutgovernance
government;
andgovernment
withouttalkingaboutciti- Reward
administrators
forparticipation
zens.
efforts;changejobdescriptions;
participation
mustbe integralto job,notanadd-on.
Shiftfrommajority
focusof education
on
managerial
skillsto governance
skills.
Bringpeoplein beforeagendais set;create
on-goingprojectteamsthatfollowproject
Requirecontinuing
education
creditsfor
throughto completion.
Placemoreemphasis
on civicsandpublic
administrators
thatfocuson innovations
in
in K-12(addto 3Rs)aswellas practice.
participation
Shiftfromemphasis
on managerial
rolesof
in highereducation.Educateto participate.
administration
to governance
roles.

Participation
Techniques

Holdworkshops
withadministrators
that
focusupondiscourse
skills,meetingskills,
andresearch
andstatistics
skills.

InfuseMasterof PublicAdministration
and Changethewaywe meetandinteract
with
undergrad
curricula
withtrainingin theskills eachotherandwithcitizens:
below;developon-sitetraining
fundedby
manysmallmeetings;
roundtable
disagenciesandlocalgovernments:
cussions;
outsidefacilitators;
equal
Holdworkshop
andtrainingopportunities
facilitation
skills;team-building
skills;
participants;
no oneprivileged
in
withadministrators
priorto beginning
proorganizational
development
skills;
groupbecauseof position,status,
jectteamwork.
discourse
skills;interpersonal
skills.
demographic
characteristics,
etc..
Requirethesecurriculum
changesaspartof
NASPAAaccreditation
requirements.

Accordingto one subjectmatterexpert,"Creatingopportunities

for peopleto participateis the key....It is all aboutaccessto skill
buildingandto information."
The educationof citizens should focus on teachingspecific
organizingand researchskills. In addition,communitymembers
need leadershiptraining. Accordingto a subjectmatterexpert,
"democracyschools," much like the Citizenship Schools that
fueledthe civil rightsmovementin the South, shouldbe establishedin local communities"toencouragepeopleto see they can
actuallymakea differenceif they get involved."Anothersubject
matterexpertrecommendedlearningcenters"toprovidecontinuededucationforelectedofficialsandcitizensalike."
Citizensandadministrators
mustworkas partnersin the establishmentof democracyschoolsor learningcenters,and, according
to one subjectmatterexpert,"theyshouldbe learningthe same
skills."Educatingpeople,accordingto one activist,"ishavingpeople feel confidentand informed
...directingtheirenergiestowardsa
specificgoal insteadof sittingtherebeingangrywith theirsituation....Empowerment
[comesfrom]education."

324

Avoidone-shottechniques
likesurveys
or
biasedtechniques
likeboardsor panels.

With a sharedbaseof knowledge,citizensand administrators

canworktogetherfromthe verybeginningwhen issuesarebeing
definedandframed.Citizensneedto be involvedfromthe beginning ratherthanbroughtin at the end when questionsarealready
framedin waysthat are not amenableto open decisionmaking
(e.g.,the specificplacementof a nuclearwastesite versusthe question of nuclearwasteproductionand disposalas a communitybasedissue). In addition,citizensand administrators
can work
togetherto developmethodsof investigation
and selecttechniques
foraddressing
problems.
Manyof the realitiesof dailylife thatlimitcitizens'abilityto be
involvedin publicdecisionsseemalmosttoo big foran administrator to change,especiallyat the local level. How can we change
economiesandhabitsof livingthatlimitpeople'stime,energy,and
capacitiesto participate?Althoughit is difficultto addressthe
majorpolitical,economic,andsocialissuesthatlimitparticipation,
participantsin our researchprojecttold us that it is possibleto
chip awayat thesebig issues. Forexample,someprogramsstimulate participation
and reducecitizenalienationthroughthe devel-

PublicAdministration
Review* July/August
1998,Vol.58, No.4

This content downloaded from 86.121.5.231 on Sat, 1 Nov 2014 08:33:43 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

economies.SummitCountyin northeastern Enabling

opmentof alternative
Administrative
Structures
andProcesses
Ohio is home of one of the first goods-exchangealternative
The mostdifficultthingsto changearethe structuresand proeconomiesthat arenow beginningto cropup acrossthe country.
Peopleconnectwith one anotherthrougha programcalled"Sum- cessesof administration.To shift administrative
structuresis no
mit Dollars,"whereboth the currencyand the productsareser- small feat. This requireschanginginstitutionalizedhabitsand
vices,hand-produced
goods,or hoursspenton a project. People practices. Without realchangesin how bureaucracies
function,
barterand exchangetheirservicesandgoodsoutsideof the regular therewill be little movementtowardauthenticparticipationand
money economy. Not only are those involvedbenefittingfrom greatercynicismon the partof administrators
and citizens. Public
arealso makingcon- organizations
this programeconomically,but participants
must "notonly democratizeformalinstitutionsand
nections and developingrelationshipsthat they may not have procedures,
but alsomakeroomfor nonbureaucratic
discourseand
madewithout the program.As a result,alienationis decreasing organizational
forms"(Tauxe,1995, 489).
andconnectionsin the communityareincreasing.
Most of the changesneededin administrative
structureswill
calledSHARE, originatewith the peopleinvolvedin administration.Systemsand
SummitCountyalsohousesa successful
program
whichbringstogethercommunitymembersandcorporate
arenothingmorethanthe habitualpracticesof the peosponsors structures
a monthto eachparticipant
to provide$30.00 of groceries
willingto ple involvedin the system,or whatGiddens(1984) callsrecursive
paya reducedamountfor the food anddonatetwo hoursa month practices.If administrators
changetheirpracticesand startworkto a communityeffort.Thisprogramis interesting
becauseit brings ing with citizens as partners,they will begin to shift the way
togetherparticipantsacrossclass,race,and otherboundariesand administration
is practicedat the microlevel.If changesaremade
gives people somethingtangiblein returnfor theirparticipation at the microlevel,macrolevel
administrative
structures
andprocessefforts. Althoughthe decisionto be connectedrestswith the indi- es will necessarily
follow.
vidual,much can be done to addressthe barriersthat discourage
in ourstudymadespecificrecommendations
Administrators
for
peoplefrombeingmoreinvolvedin publicdecisionmaking.
changingmicrolevelpractices(seeTable2 for examples).Experimentingwith a varietyof innovativemicroleveltechniquesis a
startingpointfor administrators
as they grapplewith the problem
Re-educatingAdministrators
of how to increasethe levelof participation
in theircommunities.
meanschangingtheir rolesfrom Somechangesmustbe madeor elsewe riskcontinuingto hamper
Re-educatingadministrators
that of expertmanagerstowardthatof cooperative
or our work by practicingparticipationeffortsthat, accordingto a
participants
partners.This taskinvolvesshiftsat the personallevelwith regard subjectmatterexpert,"areinherentlyconflictual,discourage
public
to inter/intrapersonalskills (Denhardtand Aristigueta,1996; participation,
and yield silly outcomes."He added,"Ina perfect
Stivers,1994), redefiningthe roleof expertisein publicadministra- world,if participationis soughtat the first level of the decision
tion, and changingthe wayswe educateandtrainpublicadminis- ratherthanat the end, thencitizensmaybe morelikelyto trustthe
trators.
expertsand let them do theirjobs. As it standsnow, trustwill
Along with the traditionalresearch,budgeting,and manage- neverhappen."
mentskillsthatone normallylearnsin a graduateprogramin pubIt is ironicthatthe obligationfor facilitatingchangein citizens,
lic administration,
publicadministrators
alsoneedto be trainedin administrators,
and administrative
practicesfallson the shoulders
processand interpersonal
skillsincludingcommunication,listen- of administrators.
Afterall, the administrators
havebeendoingit
ing, team building,meetingfacilitation,and self-knowledge.In "wrong"
all along. If we assumethat a moreauthenticcontextof
theiraccreditation
reviewspublicadministration
programsshould participation
allowsthe administrator
to act as facilitator,
thenit is
be evaluatedon the basisof theirprocess-oriented
curricula,much the responsibility
of the administrator
to shapethe participation
in the samewaythatthe NationalAssociationof Schoolsof Public process,startingas the initial changeagent. It is essentialthat
AffairsandAdministration
(NASPAA)currentlyevaluatescontent- schoolsof public administration,as well as those in leadership
orientedcurricula.
positions in agencies,createenvironmentswithin which these
Administratorsneed to examinetheir basicassumptionsand changeagentscan be successful. Such an environmentrequires
practicesregardingpower. They need to becomecooperative
par- appropriate
levelsof resourcesand changesin job descriptionsfor
ticipantsin the discourse,movingfroma self-regarding
intention- administrators.
alitywherethe goal is to protectself, promoteself-interests,
and
We areaskinga greatdealof administrators
and theiragencies,
hoardpower,to a situation-regarding
intentionalitywherepower but it is clearto us, basedon ourfindingsand participation
efforts
andcommunityaregroundedin the needsof the issueor situation likethosein citiessuchas Cleveland,Seattle,Dayton,andPhoenix
(Fox and Miller,1995). The motivationto do so is lacking,of (CrislipandLarson,1994),thatthe potentialis there. In addition,
course,whenadministrators
areunderpressurefromtheiragencies significantreorganization
effortsin policy-makingbodies,such as
and institutionsto performin certainwaysthatservethe institu- the U.S. EnvironmentProtectionAgency (King, Stivers,et al.,
tions, ratherthan the citizenry. Therefore,examiningthe basic 1998), indicatethat it is possibleto shift institutionalsystemsso
assumptionsaboutpowerrequiresa significantshift in the main- thatthe policyprocessesareamenableto collaborative
work.
streamvaluesaboutwhatit is that administrators
do. AdministraAuthenticparticipation
is possible. This studyvalidatesprevitorstypicallyareexpectedto manage,not govern(Harmon,1995;
osresearch,bringstogetherthe voicesof the peopleinvolvedin
Wamsley,et al., 1990).
participationat the local level, and suggests a three-pronged
approachtowardauthenticparticipation.Translating
theserecoinToward
Authentic
Participation
in PublicAdministration

This content downloaded from 86.121.5.231 on Sat, 1 Nov 2014 08:33:43 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

325

withCamillaStiversandcollaboraco-authored,
thatpublicadministration
practi- Shehasrecently
mendations
intoactionrequires
atthesametime, tors,Government
Is Us: PublicAdministration
in anAnti-Governaddress
allthreecomponents
tionersandscholars
participa- mentEra(Sage,1998).
forshiftingtowardmoreauthentic
an essential
strategy
tionprocesses
inpublicadministration.
M. Felteyis anassociate
Kathryn
professor
of sociology
at the
ofAkron
University
in theDepartment BridgetO'NeillSuselis the community
professor
CherylSimrellKingis anassistant
development
coordiof Akron. natorin theDepartment
andUrbanStudies,University
of PublicAdministration
of Development,
SummitCounty,Ohio.

Acknowledgement
This articlewas fundedby an inter-institutional
grantfromthe Ohio
Boardof Regents'UrbanUniversityProgram.The authorswouldlike to

thankShannonO'DonnellWolfandBrendaCox for theirassistance

in the
research.Wearealsograteful
to ourreviewers
fortheircontributions.

References
Arnstein,S. (1969). "ALadderof CitizenParticipation."
in a Bureaucratic
Society.NewYork:Praeger.
Journalof the
American
Institute
ofPlanners
35:216-224.
(1987). "CitizenParticipation:
EnduringIssuesfor the Next
Berman,E. M. (1997)."Dealingwith CynicalCitizens."PublicAdministraCentury."NationalCivicReview
76: 191-198.
tionReview
57(2):105-112.
Mathews,
D. (1994).Politicsfor
thePeopk.Urbana,IL: University
of Illinois
Box,R. C. (1996)."TheInstitutional
Legacyof CommunityGovernance." Press.
Administrative
Theory
andPraxis18(2):84-100.
Parr,J., andC. Gates(1989). "Assessing
Community
InterestandGathering
Cooper,T. L. (1991). An Ethicof Citizenship
for PublicAdministration. CommunitySupport."In International
City Management
Association,
Englewood
Cliffs,NJ:Prentice-Hall.
eds.,Partnerships
in LocalGovernance:
Effective
Council-Manager
Relations.
Crislip,D. D., andC. E. Larson(1994). Collaborative
HowCitiDC:International
Leadership:
Washington,
CityManagement
Association.
zensandCivicLeaders
CanMakea Difference.
SanFrancisco:
G. A. (1990)."DefiningthePublicInterest:CitizenParticipation
Jossey-Bass. Parsons,
in
Crosby,N., J. M. Kelly,and P. Schaefer(1986)."CitizenPanels:A New
Metropolitan
andStatePolicyMaking.NationalCivicReview79: 118Approachto CitizenParticipation."PublicAdministration
Review46:
131.
170-178.
Putnam,R. D. (1995). "Bowling
Alone:America's
DecliningSocialCapital."
deLeon,P. (1992). "TheDemocratization
of the PolicySciences."Public
JournalofDemocracy
20(1):65-78.
Administration
Review
52: 125-129.
Roberts,N. (1997)."PublicDeliberation:
An Alternative
to CraftApproach
Denhardt,R. B., and M. D. Aristigueta
(1996)."Developing
Intrapersonal ing Policyand SettingDirection."PublicAdministration
Review57(2):
Skills."In J. Perry,ed., Handbook
2nd ed. San
of PublicAdministration.
124-132.
Francisco:
Jossey-Bass,
682-695.
Stivers,C. (1990)."ActiveCitizenship
andPublicAdministration."
In G. L.
Farmer,D. J. (1995). TheLanguage
of PublicAdministration:
Bureaucracy, Wamsley,R. N. Bacher,C. T. Goodsell,P. S. Kronenberg,
J. A. Rohr,C.
and Postmodernity.
Modernity,
University,AL:Universityof Alabama
M. Stivers,0. F. White,and J. F. Wolf,Refounding
PublicAdministraPress.
tion.Thousand
Oaks,CA:Sage,246-273.
Fischer,F. (1993)."CitizenParticipation
andthe Democratization
of Policy
(1994). "TheListeningBureaucrat:
Responsiveness
in Public
Expertise:
FromTheoreticalInquiryto PracticalCases."PolicySciences
Administration."
PublicAdministration
Review
54(4):364-369.
26(3):165-187.
Strauss,A. M., and J. L. Corbin(1990). Basicsof QualitativeResearch:
Forester,
J. (1989). Planningin theFaceof Power.Berkeley:
University
of
Grounded
Procedures
andTechniques.
Theory
ThousandOaks,CA:Sage.
California
Press.
Tauxe,C. S. (1995). "Marginalizing
PublicParticipation
in LocalPlanning:
Fox, C. J., and H. T. Miller(1995). Postmodern
PublicAdministration: An Ethnographic
Account."Journalof theAmerican
Planning
Association
Toward
Discourse.
ThousandOaks,CA:Sage.
61(4):471-481.
H. G. (1982)."TheRecovery
Frederickson,
of Civismin PublicAdministra- Thomas,J. C. (1995). PublicParticipation
in PublicDecisions.
SanFrancisco:
tion."PublicAdministration
Review
42: 501-508.
Jossey-Bass.
Giddens,A. (1984). TheConstitution
of Society:
OutlineoftheTheory
ofStruc- Timney,M. M. (1996)."Overcoming
NIMBY:UsingCitizenParticipation
turation.
Berkeley:
University
of California
Press.
Effectively."Paperpresentedat the 57th nationalconferenceof the
Habermas,
J. (1975). Legitimation
Crisis.
Boston,MA:BeaconPress.
American
SocietyforPublicAdministration,
Atlanta,GA.
Harmon,M. M. (1995).Responsibility
asParadox:
A Critique
ofRational
Dis- Tolchin,S. J. (1996). TheAngryAmerican:
How VoterRageis Changing
the
course
on Government.
ThousandOaks,CA:Sage.
Nation.Boulder,CO:WestviewPress.
Kathlene,L., andJ. A. Martin(1991). "Enhancing
CitizenParticipation: Verba,S., K. Schlozman,
M. Brady,andN. H. Nie (1993). "Citizen
Activity:
PanelDesigns,Perspectives,
and PolicyFormation."Journalof Policy
Who Participates?What Do They Say?"AmericanPoliticalScience
andManagement
Analysis
10(1):46-63.
Review
87(2):303-318.
Kettering
Foundation(1989). ThePublic's
Rolein thePolicyProcess:
A View Wamsley,G. L., andJ. F. Wolf(1996)."Introduction:
Cana HighModern
fromStateandLocalPolicyMakers.Dayton,OH:Kettering
Foundation.
ProjectFindHappiness
in a Postmodern
Era?"In G. L. WamsleyandJ.
(1991)."Citizens
andPolitics:
A ViewfromMainStreetAmerica.
F. Wolf, eds., Refounding
Democratic
PublicAdministration:
Modern
Reportprepared
for the KetteringFoundationby the HarwoodGroup.
Paradoxes,
Postmodern
Challenges.
ThousandOaks,CA:Sage,1-37.
Dayton,OH:Kettering
Foundation.
Wamsley,G. L., R. N. Bacher,C. T. Goodsell,P. S. Kronenberg,
J. A. Rohr,
King,C. S., C. Stivers,et al. (1998). Government
Is Us:PublicAdministration C. M. Stivers,0. F. White,andJ. F. Wolf, (1990).Rebounding
Public
in anAnti-government
Era.ThousandOaks,CA:Sage.
Administration.
ThousandOaks,CA:Sage.
Kraft,M., andB. B. Clary(1991). "CitizenParticipation
andthe NIMBY White,0. F., andC. J. McSwain(1993). "TheSemioticWayof Knowing
Syndrome:PublicResponseto Radioactive
WasteDisposal." Western
andPublicAdministration."
Administrative
Theory
andPraxis15(1):18PoliticalQuarterly
44(2):299-328.
35.
Kweit,M. G., andR. W. Kweit (1981). Implementing
CitizenParticipation

326

PublicAdministration
Review* July/August
1998,Vol.58, No.4

This content downloaded from 86.121.5.231 on Sat, 1 Nov 2014 08:33:43 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions