So last month I finally defended my doctoral thesis. Here’s a short post to close that chapter, looking at the process, product, and next steps.
September 10, 2019
phDone
10September
May 29, 2019
Is OGP asking enough?: an analysis of civic participation norms and policies
29May
One of the ways we expect OGP to improve governance in member countries is by telling governments (how) to be more participatory. But a close read of the participation norms and policies promoted and adopted in an OGP context suggests that even if government’s did everything they were told, it might not be such a game changer for responsiveness and accountability.
May 27, 2019
Learning and socialization in OGP: a research gap and how to fix it
27May
Soft power and voluntary social dynamics are what make MSI’s like OGP unique. Yet these dynamics are almost completely ignored in the burgeoning body of research on public governance MSIs. This is probably because compliance and impact seem easier to measure, but research on how OGP facilitates socialization and learning is as feasible as it is important. This post presents findings from a case...
May 22, 2019
Measuring the effectiveness and impact of multi-stakeholder initiatives like the OGP
22May
This is the first a series of posts ahead of the OGP Summit in Ottawa, summarizing aspects of my doctoral research on OGP and civic participation. You can find some background on that research here. We spend a lot of time talking about whether or not global MSIs like the OGP are “working”. These conversations often take place against the backdrop of dissatisfaction with results and...
September 11, 2018
Short summary of OGP research on open gov and trust in Latin America
11September
What is it?: Restoring Trust through Open Government: an analysis of open government initiatives across Latin American subnational cases (36 pg report presenting research findings from 9 cities, commissioned by OGP). Main Point: Online interaction is bringing municipal governments and publics closer together, building trust in government in the process. Where it’s coming from I read this as part...
July 30, 2018
July Roundup: why civic tools fail and advocacy works, and much much more
30July
Three weeks of civic tech research includes findings on NGOs digital vulnerabilities, why civic tech tools fail in the field and questions about whether there's any point to democracy. Plus, my skeptic's take on the Skeptic's Guide to Open Government.
July 2, 2018
2 week Roundup: civic space is good for trust, egov is bad for corruption, metrics for government culture change
02July
This 2 week roundup has lots of evidence on monitoring to reduce bribery and SMS to increase voter information. There's comparative evidence on increasing political trust and decreasing corruption, plus excellent advances on understanding how to get evidence used in policy. Plus a review of open data measurement frameworks.
May 21, 2018
Roundup: formal organizations campaign more online, instructive failure in scaling engagement, and weedsy methods for measureing #open
21May
Civic tech research last week included deep dives into measuring and assessing open government in Mexico, insights on why governments choose collaboration, and field experiments that hint at the limits of scaled engagement strategies. Plus, funding, resources for mapping legal regimes, and smart thinking on how to think about civic tech impact.
November 16, 2017
When do global do-gooders influence government behavior? (a mini lit review)
16November
Here’s a long-ranging exploration of the literature on international relations, policy diffusion, public administration, global policy assessments and multi-stakeholder initiatives, where I try to draw some conclusions about what we know and what we don't. I wrap it up by proposing six research questions that could directly inform the design of global do-goodery. There’s a bulleted summary up top.
June 26, 2017
research links w25 – 17
26June
Findings From the duh desk: A white paper from Cornell Law reviews e-government and rulemaking processes in the US, to find that an institutional “culture of risk adverseness” is much more obstructive to e-participation than is a lack of technological solutions. What difference does it make?: An article in Telecommunications Policy documents how mobiles have dramatically reshaped the...