Designing a Public Participation Digital Architecture in Formal Policymaking Processes

This paper addresses the issue of how to avoid obstacles and improve digital systems design for citizen participation in formal policymaking processes. Public consultations conducted in the United States while setting the policy on net neutrality (2014–2017) were researched using an analytical tool comprised of four evaluating dimensions and a combination of critical discourse analysis and socio-technical methodology. The study demonstrates the effects of digital platforms’ affordances and architecture on undermining public participation in institutionalized policymaking. This system of control through design (as a central component alongside other methods) established hierarchical power relations and structured discrimination between groups of participants. Furthermore, the properties of the digital management system’s design and its technical failures facilitated dark participation and large-scale manipulation of the process. Concluding the research findings, several recommendations are suggested for designing a better digital environment that enhances participation as a democratic practice.