Three Shades of Participatory Democrats: Disentangling the profiles of participatory democrats in four Western European democracies

Participatory democrats, or citizens demanding a greater role in policymaking, are often presented as either “engaged” or “enraged” with politics and efforts at identifying differences among them are few and far between. In an online experiment presenting 1027 citizens from four Western European countries with varying descriptions of a local deliberative mini-public, three kinds of participatory democrats with different preferences for the role of mini-publics in policymaking were identified. Disengaged democrats possess fewer skills and resources, which dissuades them from participating in mini-publics despite supporting their use. Elitist democrats reject mini-publics because politicians are better placed to decide but intend to participate, especially if the outcomes are binding, in fear that decisions would be taken by less competent citizens. Finally, engaged democrats, who are simultaneously engaged in politics and enraged with political elites, are most keen on mini-publics giving participants the final say, but will participate regardless the outcome.