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Abstract:
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"Participation is a prominent feature of many decision-making and planning processes. Among
its proclaimed benefits is its potential to strengthen public support and involvement. However, participation
is also known for having unintended consequences which lead to failures in meeting its objectives. This
article takes a critical perspective on participation by discussing how participation may influence the ways
in which citizens can become involved. Participation unavoidably involves (1) restrictions about who should
be involved and about the space for negotiation, (2) assumptions about what the issue at stake is, and (3)
expectations about what the outcome of participation should be and how the participants are expected to
behave. This is illustrated by a case study about the Dutch nature area, the Drentsche Aa. The case study
demonstrates how the participatory process that took place and the restrictions, assumptions, and
expectations that were involved resulted in six forms of citizen involvement, both intended and unintended,
which ranged between creativity, passivity, and entrenchment. Based on these findings, the article argues
that participation does not merely serve as a neutral place in which citizens are represented, but instead
creates different categories of citizens. Recognizing this means reconceiving participation as performative
practice. Such a perspective goes beyond overly optimistic views of participation as a technique whose
application can be perfected, as well as pessimistic views of participation as repression or domination.
Instead, it appreciates both intended and unintended forms of citizen involvement as meaningful and
legitimate, and recognizes citizenship as being constituted in interaction in the context of participation."
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