Premium
Let's redesign democracy
Author(s) -
Flood Merrill M.
Publication year - 1978
Publication title -
behavioral science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.371
H-Index - 45
eISSN - 1099-1743
pISSN - 0005-7940
DOI - 10.1002/bs.3830230504
Subject(s) - democracy , interpersonal communication , order (exchange) , voting , corporate governance , politics , game theory , management science , value (mathematics) , representation (politics) , computer science , public relations , ideal (ethics) , restructuring , sociology , knowledge management , political science , management , engineering , social science , business , economics , law , microeconomics , finance , machine learning
It is reasoned that the time must be ripe for a serious effort aimed at restructuring the political processes supporting the ideal of democracy. The many theoretical insights and experimental findings published by scientists and other scholars during recent decades, especially at the group level, are important for developing the new design. One such design is presented in this paper and defended and criticized in order to illustrate the nature of such an effort. The scheme is labeled dynamic value voting with affinity group representation and includes computer conferencing as an emergent, interactive communication technology that makes possible the implementation of such processes for the first time ever. The design draws upon results from game theory, decision theory, social choice theory, mathematical programing theory, and adds a market concept under which group members are enabled to dynamically express their preferences to allow for differences in interpersonal utilities and in personal expectations. It is suggested that a university community might be a good place for early trials of such redesigned governance systems. These geographically compact communities have the participants and the technologies necessary for such trials and presumably, the capability for intelligent self‐analysis of the experience.