Editing Deliberative democracy (section)

==Overview==
Deliberative democracy holds that, for a democratic decision to be legitimate, it must be preceded by authentic deliberation, not merely the aggregation of preferences that occurs in voting. ''Authentic deliberation'' is deliberation among decision-makers that is free from distortions of [[Political equality|unequal political power]], such as power a decision-maker obtains through economic wealth or the support of interest groups.<ref name=":1">{{cite book |last=Habermans |first=Jürgen |url=http://www.sze.hu/~smuk/Nyilvanossag_torvenyek_CEE/Szakirodalom/Deliberat%C3%ADv%20demokr%C3%A1cia/deliberative%20democracy%20book.pdf |title=Deliberative democracy: essays on reason and politics |publisher=[[MIT Press]] |year=1997 |isbn=0-262-02434-9 |editor-last=Bohman |editor-first=James |page=41 |author-link=Jürgen Habermas |editor-last2=Rehg |editor-first2=William |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150701204247/http://www.sze.hu/~smuk/Nyilvanossag_torvenyek_CEE/Szakirodalom/Deliberat%C3%ADv%20demokr%C3%A1cia/deliberative%20democracy%20book.pdf|archive-date= 2015-07-01|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="leib1">{{cite book|last=Leib|first=Ethan|year=1997|page=1|title=Deliberative Democracy in America}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite book |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1057358164 |title=The Oxford handbook of deliberative democracy |date=2018 |isbn=978-0-19-180969-9 |editor-last=Bächtiger |editor-first=André |edition=First |location=Oxford |pages=4 |oclc=1057358164 |editor-last2=Dryzek |editor-first2=John S. |editor-link2=John S. Dryzek |editor-last3=Mansbridge |editor-first3=Jane J. |editor-link3=Jane J. Mansbridge |editor-last4=Warren |editor-first4=Mark}}</ref>

The roots of deliberative democracy can be traced back to [[Aristotle]] and his notion of politics; however, the German philosopher [[Jürgen Habermas]]' work on communicative rationality and the public sphere is often identified as a major work in this area.<ref>For a brief overview of the roots and different streams of deliberative democracy, see Ercan, S.A. (2014) 'Deliberative democracy', in: D. Phillips (ed.), Encyclopedia of educational theory and philosophy. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, pp.214-216 http://www.sagepub.com/books/Book238016</ref>

Deliberative democracy can be practiced by decision-makers in both [[representative democracy|representative democracies]] and [[direct democracy|direct democracies]].{{sfn|Elster|1998|loc=Introduction (Elster offers a summary of the various common definitions that academics use for the term.)}} In ''elitist deliberative democracy,'' principles of deliberative democracy apply to elite societal decision-making bodies, such as [[legislature]]s and [[court]]s; in ''populist deliberative democracy,'' principles of deliberative democracy apply to groups of lay citizens who are empowered to make decisions.<ref name="leib1" /> One purpose of populist deliberative democracy can be to use deliberation among a group of lay citizens to distill a more authentic [[public opinion]] about societal issues for other decision-makers to consider; devices such as the [[deliberative opinion poll]] have been designed to achieve this goal. Another purpose of populist deliberative democracy can, like [[direct democracy]], result directly in binding law.<ref name="leib1" /><ref>Threlkeld, Simon. "A Blueprint for Democratic Law-making: Give Citizen Juries the Final Say." Social Policy, Summer, 1998, pp 5-9.</ref> If political decisions are made by deliberation but not by the people themselves or their elected representatives, then there is no democratic element; this deliberative process is called ''elite deliberation''.{{sfn|Fishkin|2011|loc=Chapters 2 & 3}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Fishkin |first=James S. |url=https://archive.org/details/whenpeoplespeakd00fish_1/page/70 |title=When the People Speak: Deliberative Democracy and Public Consultation |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2009 |isbn=9780199572106 |location=New York |pages=[https://archive.org/details/whenpeoplespeakd00fish_1/page/70 70]}}</ref>

[[James Fearon]] and Portia Pedro believe deliberative processes most often generate ideal conditions of [[impartiality]], [[rationality]] and [[knowledge]] of the relevant facts, resulting in more [[ethics|morally correct]] outcomes.{{sfn|Elster|1998|loc=Chapter 2 (essay by Fearon)}}{{sfn|Nino|1996}}<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Pedro |first=Portia |date=2010-02-01 |title=Note, Making Ballot Initiatives Work: Some Assembly Required |url=https://scholarship.law.bu.edu/faculty_scholarship/336 |journal=Harvard Law Review |volume=123 |issue=4 |page=970-972 }}</ref> Former diplomat [[Carne Ross]] contends that the processes are more civil, collaborative, and evidence-based than the debates in traditional town hall meetings or in internet forums if citizens know their debates will impact society.{{sfn|Ross|2011|loc=Chapter 3}}  Some fear the influence of a skilled orator.{{sfn|Elster|1998|page=1}}{{sfn|Dryzek|2010|p=66}} [[John Burnheim]] critiques representative democracy as requiring citizens to vote for a large package of policies and preferences bundled together, much of which a voter might not want. He argues that this does not translate voter preferences as well as deliberative groups, each of which are given the time and the ability to focus on one issue.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Burnheim |first=John |url=https://open.sydneyuniversitypress.com.au/9781920898427/9781920898427-democracy-and-representation.html#Chapter3 |title=Is democracy possible? the alternative to electoral democracy |date=2006 |publisher=Sydney University Press |isbn=978-1-920898-42-7 |edition= |location=Sydney |chapter=3}}</ref>