University of Twente Student Theses

Facilitering van derde generatie burgerparticipatie : een onderzoek naar hoe burgers het burgerinitiatief bezien en welke rol gemeenten kunnen spelen bij het faciliteren hiervan

Dijk, Jogchem Pieter van (2010) Facilitering van derde generatie burgerparticipatie : een onderzoek naar hoe burgers het burgerinitiatief bezien en welke rol gemeenten kunnen spelen bij het faciliteren hiervan.

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Abstract:	In this bachelor-thesis we take a look at civic voluntarism and participation. We have done this by comparing models made by different authors and taking interviews with civil servants and citizens who participated in a burgerinitiatief. We have based our research on the so called CLEAR model by Lowndes, Pratchett, & Stoker (2006a). This model is an acronym for the five factors that are important in civil participation: Can do, Like to, Enabled to, Asked to and Responded to. According to Lowndes, Pratchett, & Stoker (2006a) all five elements should be present for successful participation. This research focuses on the citizen side of participation. Therefore we have mainly used the answers given by the citizens. We have looked at how they evaluate their initiative and looked at how they evaluate the role of government in the participation process. We must emphasize that this research is qualitative and therefore we must be careful in making generalizations based on the research. During the research we made some distinctions between the initiatives and the initiators. We tried to find a connection between the type of initiative, the type of initiator and the required form of facilitation. We also asked the respondents how they experienced their initiative and the role played by the government during the participation process. We asked them when they think their initiative is a success. To make a distinction between the type of initiator we looked at their motivations, the time available, the role of money and the role of certain skills that are required to take an initiative. These are the C- and L-factor from the CLEAR model. We found that there is no real relation between the type of initiator and the required form of facilitation. We have also looked at the type of initiative. To do this, we focused on the networks of the initiator. Do they have many connections with neighbors and other people working together in the initiative? But we also tried to find out if they are members of organizations such as a sport association or the Church. This is the E-factor from the CLEAR model. We have found that there is a relation between the network of an initiative and what kind of facilitation is required from the government. As expected we observed that all initiators did not really come up with their initiative on their own, but in all cases worked together with other citizens enabling them to come up with the initiative. An important finding is that all initiatives require subsidy. The required amount of other resources and support depends on the type of initiative. We have also concluded that initiators see their initiative as successful if they succeed in their goals and their initiative is executed. Appreciation from the government does not play as large a role as we would have expected. A responsive government on the other hand is important to initiators. They need to feel that they are being taken seriously. This is the R-factor of the CLEAR model. Inviting citizens which is done by municipalities through different methods can be seen as the A-factor of the CLEAR model. Finally we make some suggestions to local government in what is important in facilitating burgerinitiatieven. It is important that they do not treat every initiative the same way. Depending on the type of initiative the required resources differ. Sometimes only subsidy is enough, but more investment might be needed. Next to that, government should not be too bureaucratic and slow or non-respondent.
Item Type:	Essay (Bachelor)
Faculty:	BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences
Subject:	88 social and public administration
Programme:	Business Administration BSc (56834)
Link to this item:	https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/60708
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