Deliberative Democracy (Cambridge Studies in the Theory of Democracy, Series Number 1)

It is sometimes assumed that voting is the central mechanism for political decision-making. The contributors to this volume focus on an alternative mechanism, that is decision by discussion or deliberation. The original contributions include case studies based on historical and current instances of deliberative democracy, normative discussion of the merits of deliberation compared to other models of collective decision-making, and studies of the conditions under which it tends to improve the quality of decisions. This volume is characterized by a realistic approach to the issue of deliberative democracy. Rather than assuming that deliberative democracy is always ideal, the authors critically probe its limits and weaknesses as well as its strengths. It is sometimes assumed that voting is the central mechanism for political decision making. However, the contributors to this volume focus on an alternative mechanismdecision by discussion or deliberation. These original contributions include case studies based on historical and current instances of deliberative democracy, normative discussion of the merits of deliberation compared with other models of collective decision making, and studies of the conditions under which deliberation tends to improve the quality of decisions. This volume takes a realistic approach: rather than assuming that deliberative democracy is always ideal, the authors critically probe its limits and weaknesses as well as its strengths. It is sometimes assumed that voting is the central mechanism for political decision making. The contributors to this volume focus on an alternative mechanism, which is decision by discussion or deliberation. This volume is characterized by a realistic approach to the issue of deliberative democracy. Rather than assuming that deliberative democracy is always ideal, the authors critically probe its limits and weaknesses as well as its strengths. Australia's John Uhr evaluates the role and performance of his country's parliament. Uhr looks at the place of representative assemblies in liberal political theory and examines ways in which deliberative democracy might be made more effective and meaningful in Australia. Combining political theory with first-hand knowledge, Uhr makes an important contribution to political debate. Edited By Jon Elster. Most Of The Essays In This Volume Were First Presented At A Conference Includes Bibliographical References And Index.