Public participation conceptions

Šiame straipsnyje aptariami skirtingų dalyvavimo koncepcijų principai, šiuolaikinis požiūris į konceptą. Svarbu pabrėžti, kad turint galvoje dalyvavimo koncepto plėtrą, jis įgavo labai plačią reikšmę ir yra siejamas ne tik su veiklomis, susijusiomis su viena sritimi, ir piliečių nuomonės išklausymo iki bendruomeninių veiklų, kurios dažnai apima ne tik politinę areną, bet visus gyvenimo aspektus. Tačiau iš esmės visos diskusijos vyksta dėl savanoriško dalyvavimo viešoje erdvėje, nors nebūtinai valdžioje. Todėl pjūvis, kuriuo galima analizuoti patį dalyvavimo konceptą, gali būti įvairus, o termino apibrėžtis pakankamai kebli. Šiame straipsnyje, nepretenduojant išspręsti minėtas problemas, teorinis klausimo tyrimas pradedamas nuo dalyvavimo tematikos vystymosi apžvalgos ir tęsiamas pačios koncepcijos analizės ribose. Dalyvavimo koncepcijų klasifikacijos remiasi dalyvavimo studijomis, kurios analizavo skirtingas dalyvavimo prieigas įvairiais laikotarpiais, tačiau šiuolaikinis dalyvavimo suvokimas apima labai skirtingas koncepcijas, nesiekiant jų atskirti, kadangi ribos tarp jų dažnai būna neaiškios ar susipynusios.The existence of many practical problems common to all the society, and respectively inadequate participation, aiming at their optimal solution, have determined the interest in the phenomenon of social participation at all levels (from world-wide to local), spheres (from education to the development of community) and contexts (theoretical and practical). The issues of public participation are not a new phenomenon. Interest has been paid to them for the last 50-60 years. The concepts of civil participation and public participation arc used as synonyms. The very concept of participation is perceived quite broadly - from the activities related to a single area or hearing citizens' opinion to, after year 2000, growing focusing on voluntary social activity rather than on influence on decision-making, service provision, etc. Quite broad understanding of the concept of participation is in theory and practice, when it is prepositioned - extending to public participation, combining often intertwining contexts of participation, involving the links of participation in political and social spheres. The evolution of this phenomenon in historical context having been summarized, in this paper there were identified the main principles of different conceptions of participation. It is supposed that public participation can be realised effectively with the appropriate model of state government (where representative democracy is combined with participatory democracy) using the methods accompanying one or another model (e.g. applying the principles of public management reform). Therefore, the main object of this paper is the concept of public participation in two aspects - development of historical chronology of this theme and differences between conceptions. To resolve the problem of this paper the methods of scientific literature analysis, comparison and systematization were used. As a result, in this paper the concept of public participation is understood as the process where citizens voluntarily, without any pay, are involved/ involve in organised collective activities where ordinary members of society interact, exchange information, influence making of certain decisions and often implement them in the way they choose, in order to achieve common goals in different contexts of civic participation