Filozofija i drustvo 2022 Volume 33, Issue 1, Pages: 72-97
https://doi.org/10.2298/FID2201072D
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The effects of deliberation on citizen knowledge, attitudes and preferences: A case study of a Belgrade deliberative mini public
Đorđević Ana (University of Belgrade, Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory), ana.djordjevic@instifdt.bg.ac.rs
Vasiljević Jelena (University of Belgrade, Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory), jvasiljevic@instifdt.bg.ac.rs
Participation in deliberative arenas is often lauded for its transformative
impact on citizens’ attitudes, sense of agency and ability to formulate
concrete policy proposals. The focus of this paper is the first ever
deliberative mini public in Belgrade, centred on the topic of expanding the
pedestrian zone and rerouting traffic in the city core. By relying on a set
of qualitative and quantitative data collected before and after the
deliberation, we aim to explore the effects of the public deliberation on
the participants’ knowledge, attitudes and preferences. Our hypothesis was
that participation in this deliberative process led to better understanding
(enhanced knowledge) of the discussed topic and change in attitudes and
preferences regarding its realization. The scope of this study is limited,
given the non-experimental design and small sample. Overall, the results
indicate that participants` knowledge on the topic of deliberation is
enhanced, becoming more precise, elaborate and encompassing different
perspectives. As for the attitudes and preferences, in most cases, around
two-thirds of the sample changed their positions, while about a third of the
sample changed sides, mostly agreeing less with the expansion of the
pedestrian zone. The findings support the conclusion that, on a local level,
deliberation has the capacity to inform and enhance competence for greater
political participation.
Keywords: deliberation, deliberative mini publics, citizen participation, pedestrian zone and traffic, Belgrade, knowledge, attitudes, preferences, local politics
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