Looking Back to Look Forward: Federal Officials' Perceptions of Public Engagement. Issue 5 (May 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Dudley, Larkin; Webb Farley, Kathryn E.; Gniady Banford, Noel
• Other Names: Newswander Chad B. guest-editor.; Mattingly-Jordan Sara guest-editor.; Boden Daniel guest-editor.
• Is Part Of: Administration & society. Volume 50:Issue 5(2018)
• Page Start: 679
• Page End: 698
• Publication Date: 2018-05
• Subjects: refounding -- public participation -- federal decision making -- federal government -- engagement; Public administration -- Periodicals; 351
• DOI: 10.1177/0095399718763162
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0095-3997

Abstract

The authors of the Refounding volumes raised concerns about citizen inclusion in agency decision making. We respond by studying public participation in federal decision making through 61 interviews with federal officials. We examine the interviewees' candid perceptions of public engagement through three themes of the Refounding: the importance of deliberation, attention to whose words are heard, and facilitation of the processes of interaction. Our findings suggest that while agencies do work to engage the public, there are still many challenges to achieving meaningful public participation, which yields consequences for legitimacy and trust.