Q Methodology in Research on Political Decision Making

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven R. Brown
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Social Order ◽  
Q Methodology ◽  
Political Decision ◽  
The Social ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
And Control ◽  
Q Sort ◽  
Political Decision Making

Q methodology was introduced in 1935 and has evolved to become the most elaborate philosophical, conceptual, and technical means for the systematic study of subjectivity across an increasing array of human activities, most recently including decision making. Subjectivity is an inescapable dimension of all decision making since we all have thoughts, perspectives, and preferences concerning the wide range of matters that come to our attention and that enter into consideration when choices have to be made among options, and Q methodology provides procedures and a rationale for clarifying and examining the various viewpoints at issue. The application of Q methodology commonly begins by accumulating the various comments in circulation concerning a topic and then reducing them to a smaller set for administration to select participants, who then typically rank the statements in the Q sample from agree to disagree in the form of a Q sort. Q sorts are then correlated and factor analyzed, giving rise to a typology of persons who have ordered the statements in similar ways. As an illustration, Q methodology was administered to a diverse set of stakeholders concerned with the problems associated with the conservation and control of large carnivores in the Northern Rockies. Participants nominated a variety of possible solutions that each person then Q sorted from those solutions judged most effective to those judged most ineffective, the factor analysis of which revealed four separate perspectives that are compared and contrasted. A second study demonstrates how Q methodology can be applied to the examination of single cases by focusing on two members of a group contemplating how they might alter the governing structures and culture of their organization. The results are used to illustrate the quantum character of subjective behavior as well as the laws of subjectivity. Discussion focuses on the broader role of decisions in the social order.

scholarly journals A survey of methods for evaluating mini-publics

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takeuchi Ayano
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Future Research ◽  
The Political ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Sufficient Information ◽  
Practical Case ◽  
Political Decision ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Political Decision Making

AbstractPublic participation has become increasingly necessary to connect a wide range of knowledge and various values to agenda setting, decision-making and policymaking. In this context, deliberative democratic concepts, especially “mini-publics,” are gaining attention. Generally, mini-publics are conducted with randomly selected lay citizens who provide sufficient information to deliberate on issues and form final recommendations. Evaluations are conducted by practitioner researchers and independent researchers, but the results are not standardized. In this study, a systematic review of existing research regarding practices and outcomes of mini-publics was conducted. To analyze 29 papers, the evaluation methodologies were divided into 4 categories of a matrix between the evaluator and evaluated data. The evaluated cases mainly focused on the following two points: (1) how to maintain deliberation quality, and (2) the feasibility of mini-publics. To create a new path to the political decision-making process through mini-publics, it must be demonstrated that mini-publics can contribute to the decision-making process and good-quality deliberations are of concern to policy-makers and experts. Mini-publics are feasible if they can contribute to the political decision-making process and practitioners can evaluate and understand the advantages of mini-publics for each case. For future research, it is important to combine practical case studies and academic research, because few studies have been evaluated by independent researchers.

Derrida and Policy: Is Deconstruction Really a Social Science?

Derrida Today ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 119-130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin McQuillan
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Political Decision ◽  
Future Role ◽  
Political Policy ◽  
The Future ◽  
Political Decision Making

How might we begin to think about deconstruction in relation to the formulation of political policy? Once we begin to ask this question the whole idea of policy as such is put in question and conversely the limitations of philosophy as the basis for political decision making quickly become apparent. Through a consideration of this problem and by reference to a number of key tropes in Derrida's later writings, this essay begins the task of thinking about the deconstruction of policy and of asking what the future role of deconstructive thought might be.

scholarly journals Smart City: the arrival of a New Democracy or Digital Totalitarianism?

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-22
Author(s):  
Sergey Fedorchenko ◽  
E. Karlyavina
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Smart City ◽  
Political Decision ◽  
Theoretical Contribution ◽  
Digital Democracy ◽  
The Social ◽  
Comprehensive Programs ◽  
New Democracy ◽  
Political Decision Making

The main purpose of the article is to study technologies of a smart city to identify the prospects for digital democracy and risks of digital totalitarianism. The basic methodological optics is the discourse analysis, which involves the identification and comparative analysis of various concepts on the selected issues. The supporting methodology was the Case Study principles and the big data analysis capabilities of the Google Trends platform. The article makes a theoretical contribution to the understanding of the algorithmic nature of modern political power, which is the basis of urban technopolitics, as well as the complex configuration of Policy and Politics. Algorithms, as the fundamental basis of digital applications and smart city technologies, are beginning to permeate the entire life of a citizen, closely intertwining with the mechanisms of digital control, rating, political decision-making, extraction, filtering and sorting of information data. It is particularly emphasized that the traditional social reality is transformed into a sociotechnical reality (the phygital world), in which it is no longer possible to rigidly separate the social from the technical. The conclusions indicate that digital democracy is possible only on the principles of open source, while digital totalitarianism, on the contrary, excludes such a model. Without the inclusion of smart citizens, the process of discussion and political decision-making, digital democracy is simply emasculated into a good, but still narrow service on the part of the authorities. In addition, without comprehensive programs in the field of political education, there will be no digital democracy, no smart citizens, only a smart elite will remain.

scholarly journals Civic Initiative as an Instrument of Dialogue between Government and Civil Society in Russia

2015 ◽  
pp. 128-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
N N Yagodka
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Decision ◽  
Basic Sites ◽  
Civic Activism ◽  
The Government ◽  
Political Decision Making

The article is devoted to the analysis of the development of civic initiatives in Russia, as well as their role in establishing dialogue between the government and the civil society. By the means of activity approach, the author analyzes trends in the development of civic initiatives, describes the basic sites and platforms for transmission initiatives to the government and municipal authorities, as well as examines the reasons hampering the development of civic activism in modern Russia. The author concludes that there is potential to enhance the role of civic initiatives in development and political decision-making.

The role of the Wali al-Faqih in the process of external political decision-making: An analytical study of the relevant articles of the revised Iranian constitution of 1989

2020 ◽  
pp. 79
Author(s):  
Wissam Saleh Abdul-Hussein Jassim Al-Rub
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Political System ◽  
Analytical Study ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
The Political ◽  
Strategic Decisions ◽  
Political Decision ◽  
Supreme Leader ◽  
Political Decision Making

The Iranian Constitution of 1979 and the amendment of 1989 considered the Supreme Leader of the Iranian Islamic Revolution the most powerful institution in influence and presence in the political system. The guide, directly or indirectly, through the agencies operating under his administration, and here we say that the political vision of the wali al-Faqih governs its authority over all the perceptions of decision-makers in their formulation and implementation of strategic decisions that achieve the goals of the Iranian regime at home and abroad.

Legislative Practice Of Countering Illegal Lobbying In Foreign Countries

2021 ◽  
Vol 03 (03) ◽  
pp. 71-80
Author(s):  
Sabirov Bahram Nizamatdinovich ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Political Institutions ◽  
Organizational Structures ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Democratic Process ◽  
Political Decision ◽  
Important Place ◽  
Foreign Countries ◽  
Political Decision Making

The article researches into fundamental approaches to legal regulation of lobbyist activity in democratic countries. Analyzing transformation of lobbying into one of the most important socio-political institutions, it reveals the role of lobbying in the democratic process of political decision-making, considering professional features, organizational structures and approaches to the regulation of lobbying activities. It is concluded that lobbying as an institutuion takes an important place in the life of modern democratic societies. Legal regulation of lobbying activities helps to minimize risks of corruption between government bodies and civil society institutions.

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