Chapter 19: Deliberative mini-publics

Overview & Synopsis

Deliberative mini-publics (DMPs) are democratic innovations through which a random sample of lay citizens are gathered to deliberate in small groups on political topics. There are various models for DMPs. This chapter presents the general idea behind DMPs together with their goals and characteristics, as well as discussing their ‘internal’ and ‘external’ effects. In other words, we review processes of taking part in DMPs and the effects of deliberation on participants, placing them within the broader institutional setting of a political system. We also discuss their impacts on policies and society at large. Finally, the prospects of DMPs are evaluated based on empirical and normative studies.