An Introduction to Deliberative Civic Engagement

This chapter provides an overview of deliberative civic engagement, an umbrella term for a wide variety of processes that enable citizens, civic leaders, and government officials to come together in public spaces where they can engage in constructive, informed, and decisive dialogue about important public issues. The chapter also defines related terms and discusses some variations among deliberative processes. It asserts that despite growing interest in deliberative civic engagement, research and practice are fragmented for a number of reasons, including its historic and current focus, multi-and interdisciplinary nature, theoretical and practical orientation, and diversity of application. These problems fanned the desire for creating this book, which represents the most comprehensive assessment of deliberative civic engagement available. The chapter concludes with a brief overview of the book.