Deliberative Polling: Changing the Tides of Democracy | Alice Siu | TEDxStanford | Summary and Q&A

TL;DR

Deliberative polling is a method that brings people together to discuss critical issues, enabling them to change their opinions and bridging the divide between political parties.

Key Insights

• ❓ Rational ignorance, phantom opinions, and communication with like-minded individuals pose challenges for democracies.
• 💱 Deliberative polling has been conducted in various countries, leading to surprising changes in opinions on issues like immigration and climate change.
• 🥳 Deliberative polling enhances understanding between political parties and improves civil discourse.
• 👮 Mongolia passed a law requiring a national deliberative poll before making Constitutional Amendments.
• 💨 In Texas, deliberative polls influenced the state's investment in wind power.
• 🛀 Deliberative polling helps overcome stereotypes and promotes integration, as shown in the deliberations on policies towards Roma in Bulgaria.
• 🇰🇷 South Korea is currently conducting a deliberative poll on electoral system reform.

Transcript

foreign I think all of us well most of us may think that to many democracies around the world are in crisis many of us are thinking what do we do about this thankfully our deliberative democracy lab has an answer now our lab is run by James fishkin he pioneered a method called deliberative polling and the leader of deliberative democracy we have be... Read More

Questions & Answers

Q: What is rational ignorance, and how does it affect citizen participation in politics?

Rational ignorance refers to the rational choice individuals make to ignore certain political issues due to time constraints or prioritizing other responsibilities. Many people opt out of paying attention to ballot propositions or candidates, which can lead to less informed decision-making.

Q: What are phantom opinions, and why are they problematic?

Phantom opinions are opinions expressed by individuals on an issue that doesn't actually exist. This phenomenon occurs because people feel embarrassed to admit they don't know something when asked in surveys. This can lead to the enactment of policies based on inaccurate data.

Q: How does communication with like-minded individuals contribute to the polarization in society?

While it is natural for humans to prefer being around people who share similar beliefs, technology has amplified this tendency. Echo chambers and silos created by social media algorithms allow individuals to only consume information that aligns with their existing views, limiting exposure to different perspectives and exacerbating societal divisions.

Q: How does deliberative polling work, and what are its benefits?

Deliberative polling involves bringing a sample of the population together to discuss critical issues. Participants are provided with briefing materials, engage in small group discussions and plenary sessions with experts, and fill out pre and post-surveys. Deliberative polling promotes informed decision-making, changed opinions, and improved understanding among participants.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The Deliberative Democracy Lab led by James Fishkin uses deliberative polling to determine what the people truly think under good conditions.

• Rational ignorance, phantom opinions, and communication with like-minded individuals are identified as three problems facing democracies today.

• Deliberative polling has been conducted in over 50 countries, leading to surprising changes in opinions and improved understanding between Republicans and Democrats.