At a higher (though not necessarily more desirable) level of empowerment, participatory
bodies occasionally exercise direct authority over public decisions or resources. The New Eng-
land town meeting provides the classic example of direct participatory authority. In urban con-
texts, neighborhood councils in some cities in the United States control substantial zoning
authority or financial resources that allow them to control, plan, or implement sub-local devel-
opment projects.
25
These types of influence and authority are idealized points on the spectrum depicted in
figure 3. Many actual forums exercise more than one type of influence. Well publicized public
meetings, for example, can exert influence both through the advice they provide to officials and
through their impact on public opinion.
Figure 3. Extent of Influence and Authority
Personal Benefits
(education)
Communicative
Influence
Advise/
Consult
Co-Governance
and Partnership
Direct
Authority
Most
Influential
Least
Influential
The Democracy Cube
Putting these three dimensions of participant selection, communicative mode, and extent
of influence yields a three dimensional space — a “democracy cube” — of institutional design
possibilities according to which the various assemblies that compose governance arrangements
Reflective Equilibrium in Democratic Theory — Draft Only!
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25
Berry, Portney, and Thomson (1994); Fagotto and Fung (2004)
Convention