Looking beyond “the tool itself”: Towards a political systems understanding of e-participation
Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: In this paper, we argue that e-participation research is at a crossroads as its theories and empirical scope are increasingly detached from the contemporary relationship between information technology and political participation. We illustrate this challenge through two developments: (1) the dissolving boundaries between online and offline spheres of political participation and (2) the growing dissociation between ICTs and democracy. In light of these developments, we present a potential path forward for the field, inspired by the so-called "systemic turn" in research on deliberative democracy and democratic innovations. We argue for a perspective that emphasises the relationship between e-participation and the political system in which it is enacted. This allows us, in our conclusion, In our conclusion, this allows us to present alternative potential directions for future research within the field.
Authors: Martin Karlsson, Magnus Adenskog
Institutions: Örebro University, Lund University
Language: English
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4404335006