scholarly journals Participatory Budgeting: Case Study of Possible Causes of Failures

2021 ◽  
pp. 139-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michal Soukop ◽  
Pavel Šaradín ◽  
Markéta Zapletalová
Keyword(s):  
Local Level ◽  
Political Support ◽  
Process Tracing ◽  
Theory Testing ◽  
Causal Mechanism ◽  
Participatory Budgeting ◽  
Domino Effect ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Know How

Participatory budgeting is perhaps the most widespread and popular form of democratic innovation (DI). It is often identified as an appropriate tool to deepen the democracy at the local level. The text shows that this is not always the case, as some elected officials may use it as a innovation “façade” or its design suffers from various forms of imperfections leading to its failure to be implemented. The authors focus on the practice of participatory budgeting and its failures in the Czech Republic. Through the empirical testing of causal mechanism, the article reveals the main causes of that failure, in the case of its implementation in Prague 7 borough. The mechanism presented is based on the theory-testing minimal process-tracing design in which part of the findings of the previous research have been tested. It also attempts to support empirically only the significant steps of the mechanism between cause and outcome. In particular, the three scope conditions are tested: political support, sufficient funding for participatory budgeting and the existence of a source of know-how. Authors conclude that in the selected case, there was a domino effect of failure, with successive failures in all observed conditions, which ultimately led to a complete brake of causal mechanism and failure of participatory budgeting tool.

scholarly journals Participatory Budgeting in the Major Cities in Poland – Case Study of 2018 Editions

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 257-277
Author(s):  
Małgorzata Madej
Keyword(s):  
Urban Communities ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Social Innovation ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Social Groups ◽  
Voter Participation ◽  
Participatory Budgeting ◽  
The Social ◽  
Government Organisation

AbstractThe paper refers to the social innovation of participatory budgeting which has become a very popular tool for stimulating citizen participation at the local level in Poland. It focuses on the major cities, defined as capitals of the voivodeships or regions. Based on the data concerning 2018 participatory budgeting editions in the eighteen cities, it describes the funding, organisation of the process, forms of voting and voter participation as well as the nature of projects selected and implemented. According to the amended Act on the Local Self-Government, organisation of participatory budgeting will only be obligatory for Polish cities from 2019. Despite that fact, it has already become quite popular and broadly applied in local communities. However, citizens’ participation and involvement in the process seems quite low, suggesting a need for experience sharing and improvement of the initiative. Also, project selection reflects the influence of various social groups within urban communities, rather than assisting groups which are at risk of marginalisation.

Process Tracing

2021 ◽  
pp. 219-222
Author(s):  
Jochem Rietveld ◽  
Seda Gürkan
Keyword(s):  
Causal Chain ◽  
Theory Building ◽  
Process Tracing ◽  
Theory Testing ◽  
Causal Mechanism ◽  
Causal Process ◽  
Analysis Technique ◽  
Research Goal ◽  
Develop Theory ◽  
Independent Variable

This chapter illustrates process-tracing (PT), which is a qualitative within-case data analysis technique used to identify causal relations. Although there are several distinct definitions of the PT method, scholars largely agree that the process-tracing method attempts to identify the intervening causal process (or the causal chain or causal mechanism) between an independent variable and the dependent variable. The PT method can be used for theory testing and theory-building. When it is applied to theory testing, a hypothetical causal mechanism is tested against empirical evidence. The research goal is to test whether a theorized mechanism is present in a given case, or whether the mechanism functions as expected in the selected case. When tracing is applied to theory-building, the goal is to identify causal processes for which there is no available prior theoretical hypothesis in the literature. Here, the aim of the research is to develop theory.

scholarly journals Participative and Deliberative Democracy on the Local Level: How the Political Characteristics of Municipalities in the Czech Republic Relate to the Use of Selected Democratic Innovation within their Territory?

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 369-393 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hana Hurtikova ◽  
Michal Soukop
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Local Level ◽  
The Political ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Unique Data ◽  
Utilisation Rate ◽  
Unexplored Area

Little current studies of democratic innovations have considered whether there is any connection between the political characteristics of a municipality and the higher degree of use of participative and deliberative tools within their territory. This article aims at contributing to the discussion by testing selected political indicators in the municipalities in relation to the utilisation rate of innovative tools. By using the case study of local territory within the Czech Republic during the election period of 2014–2018, the article uses unique data from the municipalities with extended powers to track common features of participative municipalities, e-municipalities, and transparent municipalities, and reveals the substantial positive effects of intergenerational renewal in the representative bodies and strong financial capital. Paper contributes to the discourse on democratic innovations by focusing on unexplored area, thanks to which participative and deliberative tools could become a normal part of the decision-making process on a local level.

scholarly journals The Regional Dimension of Statebuilding Interventions

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Brast
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
Sierra Leone ◽  
State Formation ◽  
Political System ◽  
Process Tracing ◽  
Causal Mechanism ◽  
Formation Theory ◽  
Post Cold War ◽  
Tracing Method

In the post-cold war era, liberal statebuilding interventions have become a major tool of global governance. Yet, the variation in outcomes is still poorly understood. This article draws on state formation theory to elaborate a causal mechanism that can explain the successful monopolization of the means of violence in statebuilding interventions. Insights from the state formation literature suggest that the regional political system is crucial for state formation and statebuilding. In order to test the hypothesis, a novel process-tracing method is applied to the case of Sierra Leone. The case study suggests that only a cooperative regional setting enables interventions to succeed.

scholarly journals Globalization and Sustainability of Regions: The Role of Cultural and Creative Industries in Cutural Policies and their Implications for Regional Development – A Case Study of the Czech Republic

2020 ◽  
Vol 74 ◽  
pp. 04032
Author(s):  
Blanka Wurst
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Creative Industries ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
City Region ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Policy Paper ◽  
Public Policy Implementation ◽  
Cultural And Creative Industries

This article examined the level of integration of the concept of Cultural and Creative Industries in strategic documents decisive for public policy implementation. On the case study of the Czech Republic, concrete goals, tools and measures of respective policies were examined, special focus has been laid on the implementation power and coordination mechanisms. In the methodological framework of the Multi-level Governance Concept, methods of content and comparative analysis were used. As the analysis shows, on the central level is the concept of CCIs explicitly reflected and very well elaborated, with concrete goals and instruments to achieve the given goals, on the local level predominantly the „cultural part“ is stressed, having the „creative aspects“ hidden in other policy areas. Concerning the local level, there is a „two axes“ flow. On one side, examined policy paper stresses the importance of culture for own citizens, especially for the community and identity feeling, promotion of a good name of the city (region, municipality) and last, not least, the identification of citizens with the place they live in. On the other hand, the second line aims at attracting tourists through a complex combination of cultural heritage visits, connected with various experience events.

scholarly journals Is the Czech Republic on its Way to Semi-Presidentialism?

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 95-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vít Hloušek
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Political Institutions ◽  
Political System ◽  
Process Tracing ◽  
Parliamentary Democracy ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Standard Definition ◽  
Characteristic Features

ABSTRACT The main aim of the article is to contribute to the bourgeoning debate on semipresidentialism, its definition, and its characteristic features, with analysis of the empirical example of the Czech Republic, a country which, according to Elgie´s standard definition, shifted to semi-presidentialism in 2012. The author investigates whether and how Miloš Zeman, the first directly elected president of the Czech Republic, influences relations among the key political institutions in the direction of the model of a semi-presidential democracy. The paper sets out the working concept of semi-presidentialism first and, through the lenses of process tracing, analyses the goals and acts of Zeman after he entered office in January 2013. The case study of the Czech Republic sheds light not only on the recent development(s) in the Czech political system, but it can be seen as an interesting example of how strong political personalities are attempting to expand their influence on politics in a parliamentary democracy and what the possible limits of this effort are.

scholarly journals The role of manufacturing in the development of rural regions: Evidence from a highly industrialised Moravian region

2021 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-52
Author(s):  
Jan Ženka ◽  
Simona Šťastná ◽  
Adam Pavlík
Keyword(s):  
Small Firms ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Manufacturing Firms ◽  
Rural Regions ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Favourable Environment ◽  
Municipal Level

Abstract Various types of manufacturing firms located in rural municipalities are identified in this paper, and we determine the intensity of their economic linkages at the local and regional levels. We also examine the factors affecting the intensity of local/regional sourcing and purchasing. Due to the unavailability of detailed economic data at the municipal level, our research draws on a case study of 26 rural manufacturing small/medium-sized enterprises located in the Zlín Region in the eastern part of the Czech Republic. As a highly industrialised region, Zlín should theoretically provide a very favourable environment for the development of local/regional productive linkages of rural manufacturing firms. Several non-parametric tests have been employed to test the effects of firm size, age, industry and location, on the intensity of local and regional purchasing/sourcing. We found the most common firms are those that purchase and sell mostly on a regional (NUTS3) level rather than on the local level. Small firms source and sell more locally than larger firms. Effects of the firm age, industry and location, on the intensity of local/regional sourcing and purchasing were not confirmed.

Divergent Paths of Inequality in Poland and the Czech Republic

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ekrem Karakoç
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Income Inequality ◽  
Voter Turnout ◽  
Political Party ◽  
Process Tracing ◽  
Social Policies ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Welfare Policies ◽  
Two Factors

Employing most similar design and process-tracing methodology, this chapter focuses on Poland and the Czech Republic in the postcommunist region. It discusses the divergent paths these two countries have taken since their transitions. After discussing the similarities and dissimilarities of these two cases, it turns to the welfare policies shared by both countries with some differences under their former communist rule. It also traces voter turnout and linkage between political party and citizens, and explores how these two factors have affected social policies in each country. The last section offers a comparison of Polish and Czech social policies regarding the level and nature of their targeted spending and its effect on income inequality.

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