En utvärdering av Ungdomskraft - Region Skånes ungdomsråd
Political participationYouth councilRepresentationDeliberative democracyPolitical and administrative sciencesStatsvetenskapFörvaltningskunskapLaw and Political Science
Partly as a reaction to a perceived crisis in contemporary democracy, the nineties witnessed an upsurge in different forms of citizens? fora, dedicated to the promotion of increased participation by the citizen in the political process. Youth councils are a special point in case as they entail the general characteristics of a deliberative forum, with an emphasis on political learning. This study aims to undertake an evaluation of a regional youth council in the region of Skåne in the south of Sweden. Through qualitative analysis, the study aims to portray the origin, purposes and consequences of such a forum. In particular, the study intends to disclose how different, and partly conflicting, democratic ideals present in a deliberative setting shape the form and function of political participation and representation. The democratic models used in the analysis are a responsive, a participatory, and a deliberative model. The study constitutes an effort to contribute with empirical findings on the functioning of deliberative fora. The results indicate the need for clarification of key democratic values in deliberative settings, and that a focus on deliberation, without due concern for other political values such as representation and political power may, instead of promoting democratic participation, lead to further political marginalisation.