scholarly journals The epistemology of democracy: The epistemic virtues of democracy

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 56-70
Author(s):  
Snjezana Prijic-Samarzija
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Social System ◽  
Epistemic Justification ◽  
Collective Intelligence ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
The Political ◽  
Epistemic Values ◽  
Epistemic Virtues ◽  
Political Justification

The new and vibrant field of the epistemology of democracy, or the inquiry about the epistemic justification of democracy as a social system of procedures, institutions, and practices, as a cross-disciplinary endeavour, necessarily encounters both epistemologists and political philosophers. Despite possible complaints that this kind of discussion is either insufficiently epistemological or insufficiently political, my approach explicitly aims to harmonize the political and epistemic justification of democracy. In this article, I tackle some fundamental issues concerning the nature of the epistemic justification of democracy and the best theoretical framework for harmonizing political and epistemic values. I also inquire whether the proposed division of epistemic labour and the inclusion of experts can indeed improve the epistemic quality of decision-making without jeopardizing political justification. More specifically, I argue in favour of three theses. First, not only democratic procedures but also the outcomes of democracy, as a social system, need to be epistemically virtuous. Second, democracy?s epistemic virtues are more than just a tool for achieving political goals. Third, an appropriate division of epistemic labour has to overcome the limitations of both individual and collective intelligence.

scholarly journals Epistemic feature of democracy: The role of expert in democratic decision making

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-42
Author(s):  
Ivana Jankovic
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Democratic Values ◽  
Epistemic Values ◽  
Quality Of Democracy ◽  
Epistemic Virtues ◽  
Equal Respect ◽  
Hybrid Theory

In her book Democracy and Truth: The Conflict between Political and Epistemic Virtues, Snjezana Prijic Samarzija advocates that a purely procedural justification which defines the authority and legitimacy of democracy only in relation to the fairness of the procedure itself is not enough for a full justification of democracy. Some epistemic values should also be included. This epistemic quality of democracy depends on the quality of the decisions that the democratic procedures produce. In that sense, the author is advocating a hybrid theory that secures harmony between political and epistemic values, favoring deliberative procedure for this purpose, and thus promotes equal respect for both democratic values. In doing so, she is advocating the specific type of division of epistemic labor that I will attempt to critically re-examine here, as well as to bring into question the privileged role of the experts in democratic decision-making.

The Politics of Consultation

1973 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 332-353 ◽  
Author(s):  
Léon Dion
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Social System ◽  
Political System ◽  
Economic Organization ◽  
The Political ◽  
Pressure Groups ◽  
The Social ◽  
Political Forces

THE DIVERSIFICATION IN THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC ORGANIZATION AND the growth of the political system have increased the number of instances of decision-making and intensified the relations between social and political forces. Parties and pressure groups are not enough in themselves to channel the interests, ideologies, and stresses, originating in the social system, into the political system. Nevertheless, during the last forty years, other, less familiar channels have broadened considerably and of these it is what we call the consultative councils which have made the greatest impact. So much has their importance grown in recent years that they must be considered as a mechanism of systemic interaction, comparable in weight to those of the pressure groups or parties. The consultative councils have, in fact, become a major cog in the political system and any attempt to exclude them is doomed to failure.

Policy analysis, the political game and institutional change in the labor market

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graciela Bensusan ◽  
Ilan Bizberg
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Policy Analysis ◽  
Public Policies ◽  
The Political ◽  
Institutional Changes ◽  
Political Actors ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
Design And Implementation ◽  
Rules Of The Game

This chapter analyses two public policy cases: The most recent labour and educational reforms in Mexico. It focused on these two cases because they show the interplay and decision making of social and political actors framed in a corporatist arrangement and its consequences on the design and implementation of public policies. The chapter is organized as follows: First, it presents an analysis of each of the abovementioned public policies and their institutional changes. It then studies the political processes through which the decisions were made, taking into account what was at stake, the actors involved, the scenarios and the rules of the game. The chapter then discusses the way in which all these factors influenced the quality of policy analysis, the implementation of the policies adopted and the manner in which corporatism diminished their effectiveness, credibility and permanence.

scholarly journals Podejścia teoretyczne do badania demokratyzacji i autokratyzacji na poziomie lokalnym i regionalnym

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 57-74
Author(s):  
Adam Szymański ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Network Governance ◽  
Political Regime ◽  
The Political ◽  
Local Democracy ◽  
Quality Of Democracy ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
Territorial Politics ◽  
Variable Analysis

In the literature on democratization and autocratization, one of the areas which clearly shows a gap in the theoretical framework is a very important territorial dimension of these processes. This article is aimed at proposing the theoretical approaches based on two main pillars, which can be used in studies on democratization and autocratization at the subnational levels. The first one refers to democracy and changes of political regimes (approaches to democratization /autocratization and more static issues of the quality of democracy and local democracy). The second one refers to the territorial politics, accounting for the multilevel and network governance as well as theories of decentralization. Eventually, the author also presents possible preliminary directions of research, within which the territorial politics can be either an independent, alternatively intervening variable (studies on causes of changes regarding the political regime) or a dependent variable (analysis of effects of these changes).

scholarly journals The activities of the second and third Orbán governments in the first hundred days

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 114-125
Author(s):  
Ádám Nyerges
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Political System ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Environment ◽  
The Past ◽  
Qualified Majority ◽  
Government Work ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Similarities And Differences

The subject of the present study is an examination of the activities of two governments with a two-thirds parliamentary majority. For the past 10 years, it has been these governments with two closed cycles of government that have had the authority to structurally transform the Hungarian political system without the involvement of the opposition. The study will also present the measures taken over the first hundred days, as well as, to a lesser extent, the political environment of each government and the predestined goals. The summary also highlights some similarities and differences in the speed and quality of government work and its decision-making, which requires a qualified majority.

scholarly journals Peningkatan Mutu Pendidikan Politik Perempuan Bali Menuju Terwujudnya Kesetaraan Gender

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 32
Author(s):  
I Gede Sudiarta
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
The Political ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
General Description ◽  
Political World ◽  
Women's Participation ◽  
Government Bureaucracy ◽  
The Government

<p><em>General description of women's participation in the political world in Indonesia representation is very low at all levels of decision making, both at the executive, legislative and judicial levels in the government bureaucracy, political parties both in other public societies. In this case the low quality of women's participation in politics occurs in Bali, namely in the executive ranks. Likewise, at the echelon II level, there were no women who obtained the position, that is, from the number of village heads in Bali there were no women who held more positions as lurah, even if there were only a few. In addition, in the organization of the </em>Lembaga Pemberdayaan Masyarakat<em> (LPM) in Bali, it is rare and there may not be women who become the Bendesa Adat or Bendesa Pakraman. This is also evident in the management of other organizations such as youth clubs and sekuna teruna. In an organization like this it is rare to find women becoming chairpersons or electing a chairperson as chairman or vice chairman. Based on this, a gender perspective is considered by involving men and women in the basic decision-making process of democratic work that will lead to equality.</em></p>

How a Bill Becomes a Law, Hollywood Style

Public Voices ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 66
Author(s):  
Mordecai Lee
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Film Studies ◽  
Public Support ◽  
Public Law ◽  
The Political ◽  
Positive Contribution

While film studies have become common in public administration, no inquiries have related to the cinematic depiction of the process of public law, a subject that is the underpinning of all public administration. This inquiry identified thirteen movies that present scenes of how a bill becomes a law. From these movies the American public learns about lawmaking, as a civics lesson writ large. In large part, these movies are relatively accurate about both the technical steps involved in legislation as well as the political and behind- the-scenes aspects of decision-making in Congress. This means the movies are making a positive contribution to understanding public administration. Given the contemporary sense of a decline in the quality of Congress, these movies have contributed not just to a relatively realistic understanding of how a bill becomes a law, but probably also to public support for reform. Public administration would be one of the beneficiaries ofreforms that improve Congressional decision-making.

scholarly journals Deliberative epistemic instrumentalism, or something near enough

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-11
Author(s):  
Ivan Mladenovic
Keyword(s):  
Epistemic Justification ◽  
Public Deliberation ◽  
Epistemic Values ◽  
The Public ◽  
Epistemic Virtues ◽  
Epistemic Instrumentalism

In her book Democracy and Truth: The Conflict between Political and Epistemic Virtues, Snjezana Prijic Samarzija advocates a stance that not only political, but also epistemic values are necessary for justification of democracy. Specifically, she mounts defense for one particular type of public deliberation on epistemic grounds. In this paper, I will discuss the following issue: What connects this type of public deliberation to the wider context of (epistemic) justification of democracy? I will attempt to explain why Prijic Samarzija?s stance can be understood as a version of deliberative epistemic instrumentalism and to discuss the role played by the public deliberation within this framework.

Truth and Uncertainty in Political Justification

2021 ◽  
pp. 64-75
Author(s):  
Fabienne Peter
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Political Context ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Justification ◽  
Political Deliberation ◽  
Normative Uncertainty ◽  
Substantial Uncertainty

Political deliberation and decision-making typically take place in circumstances of substantial uncertainty about what should be done. Some of this uncertainty concerns decision-relevant empirical facts and some of it concerns decision-relevant normative facts. It is widely accepted that uncertainty about empirical facts should make us cautious and that political justification must take such uncertainty into account. Some have argued, however, that uncertainty about empirical and normative facts is not symmetrical, and that normative uncertainty does not demand the same caution. This chapter argues that the argument against symmetry does not work in the political context and that political justification must take normative uncertainty into account.

IT in Improvement of Public Administration

2011 ◽  
pp. 131-140
Author(s):  
Jerzy Kisielnicki
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Customer Service ◽  
Management System ◽  
Handling Time ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Transformation ◽  
City Hall ◽  
The City

Bialystok City Hall is an organ of public administration. The city of Bialystok has 280,000 inhabitants. In result of the political transformation in Poland, the new authorities have inherited a bureaucratic and inefficient management system as well as an outdated IT. In the electoral programme for 2000 - 2004, the following objectives have been set for the City Hall: to significantly improve the quality of operations and, in particular, to reduce time of handling affairs; to provide complex and professional customer service; to improve the management of assets. In order to improve the City Hall management system, reengineering and TQM rules have been applied. The new management system has been based on new IT solutions, including extranet network and integrated database. In consequence of those changes, some significant results have been achieved, e.g., an improvement of the quality of customer service and also a possibility to monitor the City Hall operational procedures. The vital result however, was a reduction of the decision-making time by the average of 30% and the reduction of the routine affairs handling time by the average of 25%.

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