Institutional Analysis Model for Examining Direct Democracy Phenomena: a Case Study of Participatory Budgeting

Abstract

Direct democracy, the tradition of which dates back to ancient Athens, is now widely practised in many countries around the world. In this paper, a case study of participatory budgeting is given as an illustration of how residents can decide directly about their common resources. The paper is theoretical in nature. It aims to present a model of institutional analysis of direct democracy phenomena based on the example of participatory budgets analysis, taking into account variables related to two novel approaches: Varieties of Capitalism and intersectionality. This model can be used for diagnosing aspects of local democracy, comparative studies of participatory budgeting processes taking place in various countries around the world, as well as for further research into other processes of direct democracy, thus contributing to the development of knowledge in this field and to social sciences in general.