Level Of Public Participation Research Articles

An evolutionary game for the behavior of third-party evaluators in pension public–private partnership incorporating public participation

This study analyzes the impact of public participation on the choice of third-party evaluators' behavior strategies during the service quality supervision process of China's pension public–private partnership project. An evolutionary game model between third-party evaluators and government regulators is developed, wherein the evolution rule of the two sides and public participation’s influence on their behavior under the two different conditions are analyzed, and a numerical simulation is carried out using MATLAB 2016a. It is found that third-party evaluators may choose the false evaluation strategy without public participation because of the inducement of rent-seeking or insufficient government punishment when the regulatory revenue of the government regulatory agencies is less than the regulatory cost. In contrast, in the case of public participation, the true evaluation strategy is chosen with an improvement in the level of public participation or an increase in reputation incentive. This suggests the construction and improvement of a third-party evaluation system, which shows that the construction of the service quality supervision system in China’s pension PPP project has a large operating space.

Learning to live with COVID-19 in Norway: Moving from a pandemic to an endemic state

ObjectivesTo analyze the relationship between the stringency of policies that focus on containment, mitigation and elimination and practices to change behavior implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic and apparent impacts in the Norwegian population and society. In particular, to consider how the escalation and de-escalation of policy stringency relates to both health and non-health societal factors. MethodsObservational analysis of publicly available statistics, government documents and media sources. ResultsThe stringency of policies relating to social containment, mitigation and elimination and practices to change behaviour were linked to infection rates and pressures on the health system until the endemic phase of COVID-19. In the endemic phase all restrictions were removed despite high levels of infection justified on the basis of the success of the vaccination programme. ConclusionsIn the Norwegian context containment policies were highly effective in limiting both infections and deaths from COVID-19 and more so than reliance on vaccinations alone despite high levels of public participation. In part this is due to the significant trust in the state apparent in Norway that leads to compliance with even highly restrictive policies. Therefore compliance may be more important than the level of stringency in explaining the consequence of public policies on pandemic outcomes.

ANALYSIS OF E-TILANG WEBSITE AT STATE ATTORNEY AT BATU CITY

The E-ticket website is an E-government innovation by the Indonesian government that aims to help people pay ticket fines, avoid extortion, and increase accountability, transparency and fairness. The Attorney General's Office for Batu, East Java Province, has implemented this innovation, but the results have not been optimal. This is due to a lack of Human Resources from the community as users and the lack of socialization about the importance of implementing E-tickets. This study aims to find out how E-government can be implemented at the Batu State Prosecutor's Office in East Java Province through the E-tilang website. In addition, it will also identify factors that support and hinder the implementation of E-government. This analysis uses the successful elements of e-government development according to the Harvard JFK School of Government, namely Support, Capacity, and Value. The research method used is descriptive qualitative, with data collection techniques through observation, interviews and documentation. Based on the results of the study, the Support variable is good, because support, allocation of human resources, and outreach have been carried out by the Batu State Prosecutor's Office. Variable Capacity is also sufficient, with available financial resources and technological infrastructure. However, the Value variable is not yet optimal, due to the low level of public participation as well as technical problems and features for refunding overpaid fines on the E-ticket website which are not yet available. This has become an obstacle in the implementation of E-government through E-tickets at the Batu State Prosecutor's Office, East Java Province.

Towards a Fairer Future: Examining Environmental Permits in Indonesia and Sweden Through the Lens of Sustainable Development and Equity

Objective: Through the lens of a comparative investigation of Indonesia and Sweden, this paper examines the process through which appropriate environmental permits have been developed in this period of sustainable development. Methods: In the current research, the approach of comparative law is utilised to evaluate and analyse the various environmental legal systems that are in place in Indonesia and Sweden. The comparative law approach is a research strategy used to examine the legal systems of two or more countries or jurisdictions to find similarities and differences in certain laws. Results: According to the findings of this research, Indonesia and Sweden have quite different systems in place for issuing permits for activities that have the potential to cause damage to the environment, particularly in terms of the level of public participation. In contrast to Indonesia, which places restrictions on participation that are restricted to only those who are directly impacted, Sweden places a priority on the participation of those who are potentially disadvantaged. This study also stresses the importance of the cooperation of environmentalists in order to have a better understanding of the chain consequences that are caused by activities involving the use of the environment. Regulation to Replace Law Number 2 of 2022 in Indonesia eliminates the participation of environmentalists and limits the participation of the public. This has given rise to questions about whether or not the environment would be protected equitably. Suggestions: According to the findings of this research, to achieve an appropriate environmental permit in Indonesia, there needs to be a convergence between the interests of business owners, the communities where they live, and environmental protection.

THE STRATEGY OF THE ELECTION SUPERVISORY AGENCY IN THE WEST JAVA REGION IN INCREASING COMMUNITY PARTICIPATORY SUPERVISION

Community participation is an indicator that determines the quality of election administration and signifies the importance of democracy for a country. Participation in elections is carried out in two ways, including first conducting election socialization and secondly carrying out voter education and conveying the results of election monitoring and reporting suspected election violations. High public participation in elections (voter turnout) and public trust are part of the integrity of elections on the other hand low participation in elections is associated with public apathy. The Bawaslu’s data for the 2019 simultaneous elections in the West Java region show high findings and reports of violations, while public participation in monitoring and reporting suspected violations is considered low. The low level of public involvement in monitoring and reporting electoral fraud is due to the lack of socialization and education carried out by Bawaslu, so the capacity of the community as a human resource to monitor and report suspected election violations is still low. The research method used is a qualitative research method with research instruments including interviews with 17 key informants and field observations by making direct observations covering the West Java region and reviewing documents as supporting data in data refinement. The study results illustrate that the Participatory Oversight Program implemented by Bawaslu could have been more optimal, as evidenced by the low level of public participation in election monitoring and reporting suspected violations. In contrast, future election violations are increasingly massive. So it requires strategies and collaboration to increase participatory community supervision.

Deconstructing the Civic Engagement Context, Processes, and Outcomes in Nigeria

Civic engagement processes in the country have been constrained, thereby, resulting in poor public participation in governance and public policy processes. This is in contrast to well-functioning democracies where governments and citizens are required to work together to address issues of public concern. Through this process, the citizens influence public policy outcomes and determine the political choices that impact on their lives and wellbeing. This paper interrogates the civic engagement context and processes in the public sector, in the past decade (2012-2022). This is as a result of the backdrop of unprecedented low level of public participation in the political and governance processes during the period. The qualitative methodology is employed in the paper with focus on content and descriptive analysis. The paper adopted the Theory of Participatory democracy as the theoretical framework. The paper argued that this scenario has resulted in citizen’s exclusion from the policy process with attendant negative consequences on governance outcomes. The paper recommended expanding the engagement space through political reforms and good governance practices to ensure citizen’s participation in the political and governance processes, especially, at the grassroots level

Redistributing Power in Community and Citizen Science: Effects on Youth Science Self-Efficacy and Interest

Youth-focused community and citizen science (CCS) is increasingly used to promote science learning and to increase the accessibility of the tools of scientific research among historically marginalized and underserved communities. CCS projects are frequently categorized according to their level of public participation and their distribution of power between professional scientists and participants from collaborative and co-created projects to projects where participants have limited roles within the science process. In this study, we examined how two different CCS models, a contributory design and a co-created design, influenced science self-efficacy and science interest among youth CCS participants. We administered surveys and conducted post-program interviews with youth participation in two different CCS projects in Alaska, the Winterberry Project and Fresh Eyes on Ice, each with a contributory and a co-created model. We found that youth participating in co-created CCS projects reflected more often on their science self-efficacy than did youth in contributory projects. The CCS program model did not influence youths’ science interest, which grew after participating in both contributory and co-created projects. Our findings suggest that when youth have more power and agency to make decisions in the science process, as in co-created projects, they have greater confidence in their abilities to conduct science. Further, participating in CCS projects excites and engages youth in science learning, regardless of the CCS program design.

Exploring public participation modes in government: The case of infrastructure policies

ABSTRACT In this study, we compare three modes of public participation in government (policy endorsement, coproduction, and co-investment) and introduce a two-layer explanation to the variations in citizens’ willingness to participate in these modes. We present effort as an overarching factor so more demanding modes receive lower public support. We also argue that issue importance, trust in government, and political ideology shape individuals’ degree of participation. Using data from a public opinion survey on local infrastructure, we demonstrate the overarching role of effort and the direct effects of all three factors on the different levels of public participation in government policy.

Smart City Solutions from a Societal Perspective—A Case Study

More and more cities are evolving towards the smart city concept, which brings about a tangible effect of raised life quality levels. This is confirmed by the satisfaction of inhabitants with the introduced smart solutions. It is their opinion on this issue that is crucial, as they are the main beneficiaries of these measures. This article presents a case study of a medium-sized city, which illustrates the smart city issue from an inhabitants' perspective. An analysis of objective indices classifies a city as smart, and it is included in European lists of smart cities. It is interesting, however, to see how the inhabitants themselves assess the city in the context of the smart solutions in place. Are they relevant to them? Has the quality of life increased? Are they satisfied with the individual aspects of city functioning? What solutions are they awaiting? What areas require changes? The involvement of inhabitants and the public participation level were also assessed. The questionnaire survey results indicated whether the city can be classified as a smart city of the future and identified the spheres of the city's activities that need improvement. The main conclusions are that inhabitants have a positive perception of a city's smart services provided that their implementation results in an enhanced quality of life. At the same time, even though inhabitants are aware of the smart services introduced, they do not fully use them, which may be due to their low attractiveness, a lack of promotion on the part of the city, or a lack of equipment readiness.

THE PUBLIC’S PERCEPTIONS TOWARD THEME PARKS AS A RECREATIONAL ACTIVITY

A theme park is an attraction that the public enjoys. A theme park provides amusement and creates a leisure time for the public to spend time with family, friends and other relatives. Therefore, it is critical to determine the public's expectations and perceptions of theme park recreation. The purpose of this study is to determine the level of public participation in a theme park recreational activity. The theme parks selected are Sunway Lagoon Water Park, iCity Water World, and Wet World Water Park. All of the selected theme parks are located in the state of Selangor. The objective of the study is to investigate the influence factor of public perception on theme park attendance based on social demographics. Due to the Covid-19 situation, the survey was conducted through an online form using a Google form. A total of 437 people from the selected theme parks were surveyed. The study found that most theme park visitors are students and are between 18 and 30 years old. The result shows that public participation in theme park recreational activities is significant. It was found that people who do their leisure activities in amusement parks have higher expectations. On the other hand, the influence factor of public perception of participation in theme park leisure activities was significant. The iCity Water World has the highest influence. The influence factor of public perception of participation is statistically significant in theme parks. Nevertheless, the management should cooperate and communicate with the government and private organizations to improve the country's economy due to the Covid-19 situation.

Public participation and consensus-building in urban planning from the lens of heritage planning: A systematic literature review

Public participation has been growing in both theory and practice of urban planning, including heritage planning. The reasoning is to facilitate the involvement of a broader group of stakeholders, beyond experts. More specifically, for heritage planning, participation could enable consensus-building on defining the significance of heritage, namely attributes (the resources that should be listed as heritage), and values (the reasons that attributes are important). However, there is not yet a holistic understanding of the influencing factors behind consensus-building in the participatory planning processes for cultural heritage. To evaluate existing research from this angle, a systematic literature review was conducted on peer-reviewed articles using the Scopus database. As most of the studies focuse on urban planning, this research examines the factors influencing consensus-building in the participatory planning process applied to urban and heritage planning and reflects on the applicability of these factors in heritage planning. The main factors were identified inductively and grouped into two categories: 1) public participation: actors, methods, and levels of public participation, and 2) consensus: approaches, and conflicts. The relations between these factors and their frequencies are investigated using statistical analysis methods, namely frequency analysis, independent-samples t-test, and Spearman correlation. The literature confirms that urban planning has applied more diverse methods and tools for public participation compared to studies in the field of heritage planning, and could inspire heritage planning. Conflict is recognized as an intertwined concept with consensus which is considered either as a challenge or as a necessity for an inclusive decision-making. By proposing a framework integrating these factors and sub-factors and illustrating their relationships, this research could also be useful for decision-makers and practitioners to better tailor the public participation process and means to implement it, considering the relevant factors involved.

Sustainable Natural Resource Governance in Ghana: An Appraisal of Legal Provisions on Public Participation and Accountability

To ensure equitable distribution of natural resources and sustainable development, international best practices, as expressed in the Aarhus Convention and the Permanent Sovereignty over Natural Resources, require that citizens actively participate in the decision-making and governments should account to their citizens. This article examines the regulatory framework for natural resources in Ghana to ascertain the extent of public participation and accountability promoted through the legal provisions. The evaluation of the legal provisions for water, fisheries, forestry, energy and mining resources conclude that the legal framework in Ghana amply provides the structure for accountability and some level of public participation. However, the enforcement of the accountability and public participation stipulations are not well entrenched in the legislation. Relevant amendments to affected law will empower the enforcement institutions to promote a comprehensive implementation of public participation and accountability in the natural resources sector.

Behind the Low Level of Public Participation in local Budget Management: A Piece of the Story of Budgeting in Indonesia

The purpose of this study is to find out the causes of the low level of public participation in managing local budgets, especially in the budget preparation process. To be able to uncover the causes of low public participation, this research was conducted in rural areas and urban areas in the Madiun region, East Java Province, Indonesia. This research is a qualitative research using phenomenological analysis, namely research conducted in certain settings in real (natural) life with the intention of investigating and understanding phenomena about: what happened, why it happened and how it happened. The results of the study found the causes of the low level of public participation due to: 1) the dominance of pro-authority groups during the deliberations on development plans, 2) the culture of rural communities who are “nerimoingpandum” who do not want to be involved in conflict and tend to accept what is, making them reluctant to be active and give proposals, while urban communities prefer to spend their time on their work, so they do not have the opportunity to participate in deliberations on development plans. 3) the lack of socialization regarding deliberations on development plans to the community. 4) There are efforts to suppress NGOs that are active in defending the public interest in participating in deliberations on development plans.

Construction and Demonstration of the Evaluation System of Public Participation Level in Urban Planning Based on the Participatory Video of ‘General Will—Particular Will’

Under the requirement of the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity, it is an important measure for the government to respond to the demands of the public in the process of urban governance to explore more extensive and more universal means of public participation. With the advent of the Internet era, the communication method of using images as media has made public participation across time and space simple and convenient compared with the background, whereby the participation channels in past urban planning processes could not fully meet the public’s demands. We Media, represented by participatory videos, has had a huge impact on public participation with the help of the widespread influence of the Internet. Using the political analysis framework of “general will—particular will”, it is proposed that coordination between the cognitive level and the practical level is key to evaluate the level of public participation in participatory video intervention in urban planning. AHP and Delphi are used to build the index system. On the basis of adopting a comprehensive evaluation index, a coupled coordination model is introduced to build the public participation evaluation system of urban planning based on the participatory video of ‘general will—particular will’. Through the evaluation of 4770 image samples and 200 survey materials from 11 communities in Xi’an, the index system is found to display good validity. Finally, from the perspective of different stakeholders, the implementation of participatory video intervention in public participation is summarized. This paper has important theoretical value and guiding significance in clarifying the impact of participatory video intervention on public participation in urban and rural planning and promoting the effective improvement of public participation in urban planning.

Is environmental tax legislation effective for pollution abatement in emerging economies? Evidence from China

This study estimates the effect of environmental tax legislation on air pollution, using the implementation of China’s Environmental Protection Tax Law (EPTL) as a quasi-natural experiment. For cities which have been authorized to raise tax rates by the EPTL, the air quality index (AQI) is 2.36 lower after the reform. The effect is reinforced in cities with stricter tax enforcement, lower fiscal stress, as well as higher initial pollution levels. Heterogeneity analyses show that the reform is more effective in cities with lower levels of marketization and legalization, as well as in developed cities. In addition, the impact of the reform is more significant in cities with higher levels of public participation in environmental governance, higher tax competition levels, and higher share of secondary industry. A series of robustness tests corroborates the results. This paper provides evidence that environmental tax legislation is efficacious in pollution abatement for developing economies.

The Impact of Public Participation on Energy Policy: A Comparative Study

Large-scale participation from the public is essential for the development of energy policies that are effective, efficient, and sustainable. Public involvement in the policymaking process improves the openness, legitimacy, and social acceptance of energy policies. Nonetheless, the level of public participation in the development of energy policy varies considerably among countries and regions. This research looks at the impact of public engagement on energy policy using case studies in Germany, the United States, and China. This paper employs a case study comparison approach to analyze the benefits and drawbacks of public participation in energy decisions. Both theoretical and empirical approaches to the literature on public engagement with energy policy are discussed. The majority of the data was gathered via in-depth interviews with experts on energy policy, government officials, and representatives of civil society in the countries of concern. The information was examined via a thematic lens. According to the research, public participation in the development of energy policies may increase their social acceptability, legitimacy, and transparency. The shift to a more sustainable energy system may be aided by the discovery of novel and more effective policy choices, which can be uncovered via this process. The research did, however, point out a number of obstacles and restrictions to public participation, including a lack of resources, the difficulty of juggling multiple interests, and the possibility of conflicts. The amount and character of public participation in energy policy-making varies greatly among nations, as shown by the comparative study of case studies, reflecting disparities in political, social, and economic conditions. For instance, Germany's energy transition has been successful in part because of the country's long-standing system of public participation in energy policy. However, public participation is restricted in China's energy policy-making process, which has contributed to widespread mistrust and hostility to energy policies. The report finishes with a discussion of the results' implications for energy policy-making and ideas for increasing public participation in this area. Sustainable, democratic, and socially equitable energy policies are promoted in the research by emphasizing the necessity of public participation in the policymaking process.

The Public Participation of Civic Initiative Groups during the Covid-19 Pandemic in Romania. An Exploration of Public Participation Definitions, Obstacles, and Opportunities

Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has brought significant changes to the daily lives of citizens, their interactions with their communities, the nongovernmental sector and the public administration, as well as threatening the continuity of the civic initiatives they had developed. This paper draws on the scientific literature on public participation and uses qualitative methods of inquiry (semi-structured interviews) to explore how external factors, in this case the COVID-19 pandemic, affected the public participation of citizens organised in civic initiative groups in Bucharest, Romania. One key contribution of the study pertains to the interplay between practice and the conceptual level of public participation. In this respect, the results showed that many members of civic group perceive it to be genuinely contradictory in practice in their definitions of public participation. However, their ideal visions of public participation in genuine democratic politics are markedly collaborative. The research showed that the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on civic groups has been quite limited, adding obstacles to public participation but also enabling opportunities. In particular, it can be concluded that the pandemic has exacerbated pre-existing challenges. It should also be noted that co-creation of public services can be defined by a certain level of continuity, especially in the case of civic groups that were involved in co-initiation.

Pilkada During a Pandemic: The Influence of News Media on Trust and Political Participation Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic

Communication research has examined the relationship and influence of news exposure on political attitudes and behavior. From the perspective of the democratic process, an important question in this research is related to the extent to which information exposure regarding the handling of the COVID-19 virus outbreak affects public trust in the government and its political institutions. In particular, the purpose of this research is to examine the extent to which exposure to information about the COVID-19 pandemic affects public perceptions and political beliefs in one of the areas that has the highest rate of COVID-19 cases in Indonesia and holds regional head elections in the midst of a pandemic. In addition, this study also examines whether there is a relationship between the perceived threat of being exposed to the virus and political trust with the level of electoral participation in the midst of a pandemic. This research method uses a quantitative approach with the selected location is Surakarta, Central Java. Data were collected through online questionnaires and offline questionnaires to people who have a Surakarta KTP and are included in the Voters List in the 2021 regional head election. The sampling used is non-probability sampling so that the results of this study do not intend to produce findings that will generalize to the entire population but only a theoretical test. By conducting a survey of 211 respondents, this study found several findings. First, even in the midst of a health crisis due to the COVID-19 virus outbreak, the level of public participation in the 2020 Pilkada tends to be high. Second, political trust influenced by media coverage has a positive correlation with the high level of public participation in the Regional Head Election in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Дифференциация типов общественного участия в социальных исследованиях

The article discusses approaches to the allocation of various types of public participation. Based on the field of activity, public participation is divided into political and non-political activity. Activity lines allow classifying public participation according to certain activities. The scale of actions sets levels of public participation. Various forms of public participation allow subdividing actions into certain activities. Measuring the intensity of social activity focuses on the efforts of participants to achieve the goal. The nature of public participation lies in the distribution of activity, based on the conventionality and radical nature of actions.

The Use of Level Based Weight Assessment (LBWA) for Evaluating Public Participation on the Example of Rural Municipalities in the Region of Warmia and Mazury

Social participation is presently a legal requirement or a prerequisite for public policy decision-making both on the global and local scale. Therefore, both international (Agenda 21, Agenda 2030) and domestic documents (in Poland: Social Capital Development Strategy and Strategy for Responsible Development) emphasize the role of social participation for development. The co-participation of local residents and local authorities is thus an important factor that contributes to the success and well-being of local communities, improves local governments’ relations with the residents, and promotes a sense of belonging to a community and responsibility for the “common good”. The main aim of the present study was to evaluate public participation in rural municipalities of the Region of Warmia and Mazury and to analyze the influence of various indicators on the level of public participation. The four categories of public participation were selected based on a review of the literature and an analysis of data availability: public action, public involvement, electoral participation, and obligatory participation. These categories were described with the use of fourteen indicators. Data for the study were obtained from publicly available statistical databases and a survey of local government representatives. Public participation was evaluated with the use of the Level Based Weight Assessment (LBWA) method, which revealed that public participation in rural municipalities of the Region of Warmia and Mazury is moderate and is influenced mostly by social consultations, legislative initiatives, and local government elections.