Taking the 2014 Scottish independence referendum as its case study, this book analyses the role of popular participation and elite intervention in plebiscitary events. It considers the appeal and hurdles of participatory decision-making processes and provides new insights into contemporary Scottish political culture. Some of the peculiarities of the referendum format and Scottish political culture are established in this introductory chapter. In addition, the chapter describes the historical and political context of the 2014 referendum and proposes the idea that the referendum on Scottish independence was actively constructed, enacted, and mythologised as a historic, highly participatory moment, which stands out in a global context of perceived political apathy, disengagement, post-democratic polarisation, and right-wing radicalisation. In setting about this, the chapter outlines the triangulated and interdisciplinary approach of the book and introduces the theoretical argument which situates popular participation in tension with performativity and representation. It introduces the aims and key research questions of the book, which revolve around elite contributions to participatory democratic events; the organisation of participatory politics; and political exclusions in contemporary decision-making processes and democracies.