Tackling Wicked Problems : A Public Policy Perspective

8. Effectively Engaging Stakeholders and Citizens

A key conclusion of much of the literature about wicked policy problems is that effectively engaging the full range of stakeholders in the search for solutions is crucial. Engagement is most important when the active participation and cooperation of citizens is required as part of the solution. ‘To be successful in addressing whole of government issues, especially where the challenges are complex and longstanding, requires the substantial involvement of the people and communities affected.’25 Because wicked problems are often imperfectly understoodit is important that they are widely discussed by all relevant stakeholders in order to ensure a full understanding of their complexity. If a resolution of a wicked issue requires changes in the way people behave, these changes cannot readily be imposed on people. Behaviours are more conducive to change if issues are widely understood, discussed and owned by the people whose behaviour is being targeted for change.

With the social complexity that accompanies nearly all wicked problems, a lack of understanding of the problem can result in different stakeholders being certain that their version of the problem is correct. It can be extremely difficult to make any headway on an acceptable solution to the wicked problem if stakeholders cannot agree on what the problem is. Achieving a shared understanding of the dimensions of the problem and different perspectives among external stakeholders who can contribute to a full understanding and comprehensive response to the issue is crucial because:

… the Holy Grail of effective collaboration—is in creating shared understanding about the problem, and shared commitment to the possible solutions. Shared understanding does not mean we necessarily agree on the problem … Shared understanding means that the stakeholders understand each other’s positions well enough to have intelligent dialogue about the different interpretations of the problem, and to exercise collective intelligence about how to solve it. Because of social complexity, solving a wicked problem is fundamentally a social process. Having a few brilliant people or the latest project management technology is no longer sufficient.26

The big question is how to achieve this shared understanding. A starting point is stakeholder and citizen engagement. The OECD identifies three levels of government-citizen relations in this context:27

information. Government disseminates information on policy making or programme design. Information flows from the government to citizens in a one-way relationship. Examples are numerous and include a substantial proportion of the information on agencies’ websites.
consultation. Government asks for and receives feedback from citizens on policy-making and programme design. In order to receive feedback, government defines whose views are sought and on what issues. Receiving citizens’ feedback also requires government to provide information to citizens beforehand. Consultation thus creates a limited two-way relationship between government and citizens. Examples are comments on draft legislation, submissions to parliamentary committee enquiries, and public opinion surveys.
active participation or citizen engagement. This occurs where citizens actively engage in policy and decision-making processes. Citizens may propose policy options and engage in debate on the relative merits of various options, although the final responsibility for policy formulation and regulation rests with the government. Engaging citizens in policy making and programme design is an advanced two-way relationship between government and citizens based on the principle of partnership. Examples include open working groups, lay peoples’ panels and dialogue processes.

It is the last and highest level of government-citizen relations that the bulk of the literature argues is necessary for the effective resolution of wicked problems where achieving sustained behavioural change is part of the solution. The OECD acknowledges that in practice a clear distinction between consultation and citizen engagement may be difficult to draw. Both require full and timely access to relevant, user-friendly information on the issues under discussion and the processes to be used. ‘As a general rule, however, the timetable, format and issues for consultation are defined by government while in active participation the same factors are themselves the subject of discussion and joint decision.’28 The OECD also endorses some basic principles (set out by Canada’s Institute on Governance in 1998) upon which active participation (or citizen engagement) is based. These include: ‘shared agenda-setting for all participants, a relaxed time-frame for deliberation, an emphasis on value-sharing rather than debate, and consultative practices based on inclusiveness, courtesy and respect’.29

Stakeholder and citizen engagement can take many forms and it is beyond the scope of this paper to discuss these in detail. An example of using information and communications technology to facilitate citizen engagement are the principles for ICT-enabled citizen engagement developed in collaboration with the e-Democracy Community of Practice (see http://www.agimo.gov.au). However, it is worth noting that although there are strong arguments for engaging citizens as part of the process of tackling wicked problems, there are also some reservations. Engagement requires, for example, considerable resources and time frames. In many circumstances it will be worth the investment because of the payoffs— better informed public policy, greater trust in government, more shared understanding and greater commitment by citizens to actively cooperate in tackling the wicked problem. However, in some circumstances such active citizen engagement may not be possible for a variety of reasons. In particular, constraints such as time, criticality, security and funding availability need to be balanced against the benefits of stakeholder engagement. The challenge for the APS is to identify those problems where more extensive engagement is likely to add value and where benefits outweigh the costs. Regardless of such analysis, however, it may be the case that Ministers’ perceptions of the political climate will prevent a comprehensive engagement process. It must be remembered that the engagement by the APS of citizens and other external stakeholders requires some level of ministerial authorisation.

25 Management Advisory Committee, Connecting Government, p. 95.

26 J. Conklin, Dialogue Mapping, p. 29.

27 OECD 2001, Citizens as Partners: Information, Consultation and Public Participation in Policy-Making, OECD, Paris, pp. 23, 24, 28.

28 OECD, Citizens as Partners, p. 41.

29 Institute on Governance 1998, A Voice for All: Engaging Canadians for Change (Report (including Summary of Findings) of the Conference on Citizen Engagement, Ottawa, 27–28 October), p. 25 <http://www.iog.ca/publications/cereport.pdf>

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Tackling Wicked Problems : A Public Policy Perspective

8. Effectively Engaging Stakeholders and Citizens