Panel I The Legitimacy-Efficiency Dilemma: What Are New Strategies For Coping With The Old Problem?

Presentation September 30th, 2011 Dr. Christopher Gohl

Interdisciplinary Symposium at the Hertie School of Governance

Practical Background: Regional Dialogue Forum, Germanys largest political mediation 2000-2008

Agenda

I. II.

Variations of the Legitimacy-EfficiencyDilemma Recommendations: Strengthening the Capacity for Democratic Governance

III.

Answers to Questions to the Panel

Variations of the Legitimacy-Efficiency-Dilemma (1)

Robert A. Dahl: A Democratic Dilemma: System Effectiveness versus Citizen Participation
the ability of citizens to exercise democratic control over decisions of the polity the capacity of the system to respond satisfactorily to the collective preferences of its citizens

Joachim Raschke: centrifugal drift between legitimacy and efficiency

legitimate structures are inefficient efficient structures are not legitimate

Fritz W. Scharpf: input-legitimacy and output legitimacy

Input: preferences of governed refined by deliberation Output: liable accomplishments of governing

Dilemma in regard to new procedures of participation & governance

Output: Efficiency or effectiveness? Input: Legitimacy or acceptance?

Variations of the Legitimacy-Efficiency-Dilemma (2)

Efficiency or Effectiveness?
Efficiency: relative cost of means to reach a goal / purpose ratio of output and input Example: efficiency Startbahn West 1962-1984 vs efficiency Landebahn North West 1998-2011? Effectiveness: outcome of participatory governing process possible outcomes as purposes of consultation: understanding, advice, transformation outcome vs output and (macro) Impact

Legitimacy or Acceptance?
Legitimacy is a theoretical macro-category Acceptance is a practical meso- and micro-category, reliant on, f. ex. participant satisfaction and group productivity (Mansbridge et al., 2006)

Perspective: Democratically accepted, effective governing

question of democratic governance capacity capacity for democratic self-governance

Agenda

I. II. III.

Variations of the Legitimacy-Efficiency-Dilemma Recommendations: Strengthening the Capacity for Democratic Governance Answers to Questions to the Panel

Recommendations: Strengthening the Capacity for Democratic Governance

Dos
early consultation processes possibly followed by direct democratic decisions improve interconnection / links between formal (legislative, executive, judicial) procedures and informal participatory procedures strenghten participatory competences of investor, administration and professional provider of organized dialogue

Donts
dont strangle informality it is the strength of participatory procedures don't incorporate participatory methods into formal / legal / planning procedures dont confuse rationalities of participatory processes and formal / legal course procedures Dont believe facts, discourse, and leadership determination alone will do

Agenda

I. II. III.

Variations of the Legitimacy-Efficiency-Dilemma Recommendations: Strengthening the Capacity for Democratic Governance Answers to Questions to the Panel

Answers to Questions to the Panel (1)

How can the (equally important) criteria of economic efficiency and political legitimacy be combined within the planning and implementation of large-scale projects?
This is more of a theoretical question than a practical question Thesis: good participation leads to more effective Governance

What are administrative restrictions in this regard?

legal rationality egal provisions that rule out cooperative problem resolution self-inflicted task to solve political problems

How helpful is early/late citizen involvement in planning and implementation of large-scale projects?
Better Late than Never Better early than late

Answers to Questions to the Panel (2)

What has the governance-debate to offer in this respect?

Should offer: focus on throughput offer theories of democratic governance capacity building offer theory of governance / statesmanship Besides theories of deliberative democracy, source should be pragmatistic democratic theory