Introduction to Democratic e-Governance

2011 ◽  
pp. 22-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ari-Veikko Anttiroiko
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Direct Democracy ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Participatory Democracy ◽  
Democratic Governance ◽  
Role Of The State ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Modes Of Governance ◽  
Changing Role

The concept of governance has its roots in the changing role of the state and in a managerialist view of the operations of public administrations. These two discourses have been challenged by another approach, which could be called democratic governance. It emphasizes the interactions between citizens, political representatives and administrative machinery providing a special view of citizens’ opportunities to influence and participate in policy-making and related processes. This perspective opens up a view to the practices in which institutions, organizations and citizens steer and guide society and communities. It provides citizen-centered view of governance which is quite different from managerialist and institutionalist perspectives. Such approaches as communitarianism, teledemocracy, participatory democracy and direct democracy have been presented as alternative modes of governance. In regard to technology, democratic e-governance is based on the idea that new ICTs can be used to facilitate interaction, communication and decision-making processes, thus having a great potential to strengthen the democratic aspects of governance.

Feminist Perspectives on Foreign Policy

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne-Marie D'Aoust
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Comparative Politics ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Gender Mainstreaming ◽  
Foreign Policies ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Role Of Women ◽  
The Impact

Foreign policy analysis (FPA) deals with the decision-making processes involved in foreign policy-making. As a field of study, FPA overlaps international relations (IR) theory and comparative politics. Studies that take into account either sex, women, or gender contribute to the development of knowledge on and about women in IR, which is in itself one of the goals of feminist scholarship. There are two main spheres of feminist inquiries when it comes to foreign policy: the role of women as sexed power holders involved in decision-making processes and power-sharing in the realm of foreign policy-making, and the role of gendered norms in the conduct and adoption of foreign policies. Many observers insist that feminism and foreign policy are linked only by a marriage of convenience, designed to either acknowledge the political accomplishments of women in the sphere of foreign policy such as Margaret Thatcher and Indira Ghandi, or bring attention to so-called “women’s issues,” such as reproduction rights and population control. Scholarship on women and/or gender in relation to foreign policy covers a wide range of themes, such as the role of women as political actors in decision-making processes and organizational structures; women’s human rights and gender mainstreaming; the impact of various foreign policies on women’s lives; and the concept of human security and the idea of women’s rights as a valid foreign policy objective. Three paradigms that have been explored as part of the study of women in comparative politics and IR are behavioralism, functionalism, and rational choice theory.

scholarly journals The Implementation of the REACH Authorisation Procedure on Chemical Substances of Concern: What Kind of Legitimacy?

2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 128-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christoph Klika
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
European Union ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Chemical Substances ◽  
High Concern ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Reach Regulation ◽  
Very High

With the increasing “agencification” of policy making in the European Union (EU), normative questions regarding the legitimacy of EU agencies have become ever more important. This article analyses the role of expertise and legitimacy with regard to the European Chemicals Agency ECHA. Based on the REACH regulation, so-called Substances of Very High Concern (SVHCs) are subject to authorisation. The authorisation procedure aims to ensure the good functioning of the internal market, while assuring that risks of SVHCs are properly controlled. Since ECHA has become operational in 2008, recurring decisions on SVHCs have been made. The question posed in this article is: to what extent can decision making in the REACH authorisation procedure be assessed as legitimate? By drawing on the notion of throughput legitimacy, this article argues that decision making processes in the authorisation procedure are characterized by insufficient legitimacy.

Assessing the quality of state disaster recovery plans: Implications for policy and practice

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dylan Sandler, MRP ◽  
Gavin Smith, PhD
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Disaster Recovery ◽  
Evaluation Tool ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Role Of The State ◽  
State Recovery ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
State Programs

Pre-event planning for postdisaster recovery helps to improve recovery outcomes following disasters by engaging the network of stakeholders involved in recovery and working to develop a degree of consensus around recovery priorities. States serve as a linchpin between local communities and federal agencies, and the development of comprehensive state recovery plans allows states to communicate recovery goals and decision-making processes. This article addresses the limitations of what we know about the role of the state in disaster recovery by describing the application of a plan quality evaluation tool to a sample of state recovery plans. The plans evaluated in this study tended to be heavily focused on federal and state programs and grants available following disasters. To effectively guide recovery decision-making and encourage community resilience, state recovery plans should help to set a direction for recovery and develop corresponding policies that may be implemented by the broad network of stakeholders involved in recovery.

General Particulars Regarding the Conflict of Interest

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 145-149
Author(s):  
Aurelia Teodora Drăghici
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Conflict Of Interest ◽  
Conflicts Of Interest ◽  
National Level ◽  
The State ◽  
Role Of The State ◽  
Legal Implications ◽  
Determining Factors ◽  
Changing Role

SummaryTheme conflicts of interest is one of the major reasons for concern local government, regional and central administrative and criminal legal implications aiming to uphold the integrity and decisions objectively. Also, most obviously, conflicts of interest occur at the national level where political stakes are usually highest, one of the determining factors of this segment being the changing role of the state itself, which creates opportunities for individual gain through its transformations.

scholarly journals Heart and Mind: Essential Components in Sound Decision-Making

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 364-364
Author(s):  
Michaela Clark ◽  
Julie Hicks Patrick ◽  
Michaela Reardon
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Decision Quality ◽  
Cluster Solution ◽  
Cognitive Resources ◽  
Cluster Membership ◽  
Essential Components ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Affective Components ◽  
Heart And Mind

Abstract Consumer tasks permit an ecologically-valid context in which to examine the contributions of affective and cognitive resources to decision-making processes and outcomes. Although previous work shows that cognitive factors are important when individuals make decisions (Patrick et al., 2013; Queen et al.), the role of affective components is less clear. We examine these issues in two studies. Study 1 used data from 1000+ adults to inform a cluster analysis examining affective aspects (importance, meaningfulness) of making different types of decisions. A 4-cluster solution resulted. In Study 2, we used affective cluster membership and cognitive performance as predictors of experimental decision-making outcomes among a subset of participants (N = 60). Results of the regression (F(2, 40) = 6.51, p < .01, R2 = .25.) revealed that both the affective clusters (b = .37, p = .01) and cognitive ability (b = -.30, p = .04) uniquely contributed to the variance explained in decision quality. Age did not uniquely contribute. Results are discussed in the context of developing measures that enable us to move the field forward.

‘My mother thought upper secondary school was OK, but then my sibling said no’ - Young People's Perceptions of the Involvement of Parents and Siblings in their Future Choices

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanna Aaltonen
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Young People ◽  
Vocational Education ◽  
Future Expectations ◽  
Older Brothers ◽  
Upper Secondary ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Support Programmes ◽  
People’S Perceptions

This paper seeks to contribute to the research on the role of the family in the educational decision-making of young people by highlighting two overlooked areas of study: vocational education and the role of siblings. It explores young, mainly working-class Finnish 15- to 17-year-olds’ future expectations and decision-making processes concerning the choice between the academic and vocational tracks by drawing on interviews with the young participants of targeted support programmes and their parents. The aim of the paper is to shed light both on how parents try to influence their children's post-school choices and on young people's perceptions of the influence that parents and older brothers and sisters had on their aspirations towards vocational education. The paper demonstrates how horizons for action and educational choices are influenced by family traditions and advice, but that the pieces of advice dispensed by parents and siblings are not necessarily in congruence with each other. The familial suggestions work as a point of reference which is acknowledged and reflected on in the young people's process of mapping and recognising their own preferences. The paper suggests that while the goals of parents and older siblings would not necessarily be upward mobility, but rather to help young people to make a decent choice within a sector corresponding to their own, it is important to acknowledge their influence as a resource valued by many young people.

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