Project

Fraunhofer Institute for
Systems and Innovation Research ISI

Technology Assessment “Electronic Petitions”. Scientific Evaluation and Monitoring of the German Bundestag’s Pilot Project “Public Petitions”

The Petitions Committee of the German Bundestag launched a two-year public petition pilot scheme in September 2005. Public petitions can be submitted via the Internet, published in the World Wide Web, signed by other interested citizens as well as discussed in an electronic forum. The function of adding signatures as well as that of expressing opinions in the discussion forum is well used, sometimes by thousands of citizens. Looking after public petitions has led to new tasks for the employees of the German Bundestag. There have also been problems with the software used (operability for the petitioners, costs for system supervision, among other things).
The Petitions Committee requires a methodically secure, independent scientific evaluation of the existing public petitions pilot scheme.
 
Key questions, approach

The goal of a corresponding study will be to address the Petitions Committee’s concrete need for consultation, and thereby to make a contribution to improving the existing system of public petitions. In addition, relevant, comprehensive TA questions will be dealt with concerning

  • the suitability of the technical-organisational solution,
  • the reaction of technological innovation to the existing systems (e.g. relating to a change of the individual petition procedure into an instrument for organised groups and lobbyists),
  • the observation of costs and benefits as well as
  • the consideration of unintentional consequences (e.g. misuse of the system, discrimination of population groups which are unfamiliar with the Internet).
To achieve these goals the following work stages will be carried out after consultation with the Petitions Committee:
 
1. STRENGTHS-WEAKNESSES ANALYSIS OF THE “PUBLIC PETITIONS” PILOT SCHEME

a) Actual analysis

The actual analysis aims to record the benefits of the existing system with its strengths and weaknesses. In particular this requires interviewing the actors involved: a) Bundestag administration/Committee secretariat, b) Members of Parliament, c) Petitioners, d) the public, possibly supplemented by other survey methods.

b) Comparison of existing “forum systems”

The public petitions system component which makes the public discussion of a petition in the Internet possible (Forum) is central to the Petitions Committee’s need for consultation. Market research of such forum systems should provide information about the »state-of-the-art« and contribute to defining system requirements.

c) Requirements catalogue

The results of the activities at a) and b) flow into a requirements catalogue for a technical-organisational system of public petitions for the German Bundestag, which should support the corresponding decision to be made by the Petitions Committee.
 
2. INTEGRATION OF THE “PUBLIC PETITIONS” PILOT SCHEME

The following should be carried out in the course of this work:

  • an evaluation of national and international experience as well as the scientific intelligence in the field of eDemocracy, in so far as these are relevant to the case in hand;
  • a review of international experience with electronic and public petitions as well as the political and scientific discussions relating to them.
3. ACCOMPANYING ANALYSES ON THE DEVELOPMENT AND INTRODUCTORY PROCESS

The development and introductory process which will begin following a decision by the Petitions Committee to continue the public petitions, should be scientifically accompanied to monitor the success of the measures planned, and where necessary to carry out modifications and optimisations of the technical-organisational system. Among other things, further interviews with the actors involved are planned to achieve this – in the sense of a before and after comparison.
 
Status:
Finished Project (10/2006-03/2009)

Client:
German Bundestag

Partner:
TAB-Büro Berlin

Publications:
Riehm, U.; Coenen, C.; Lindner, R.; Blümel, C. (2009): Bürgerbeteiligung durch E-Petitionen: Analysen von Kontinuität und Wandel im Petitionswesen, Berlin : Edition Sigma, 2009.

Riehm, U.; Coenen, C.; Lindner, R.; Blümel, C. (2008): Öffentliche, elektronische Petitionen und bürgerschaftliche Teilhabe. Berlin: Büro für Technikfolgen-Abschätzung beim Deutschen Bundestag (Arbeitsbericht 127)

Berntzen, L./Lindner, R./Santucci, D. (2008): What is Needed to Make EPetitions Work? In: Ferro, E./Scholl, H.J./Wimmer, M. (eds.): Electronic Government: Proceedings of Ongoing Research, Project Contributions and Workshops, Turin, Italy, 1-4 September, 2008. Linz: Trauner Verl., 2008, S. 324-325

Lindner, R. (2008): „Internationale E-Petitionssysteme im Vergleich: Zum Zusammenspiel von politisch-institutionellem Kontext und technischem Design“, in: Informatik 2008. Beiträge der 38. Jahrestagung der Gesellschaft für Informatik e.V., 8.-13. September 2008, München, Bonn: Gesellschaft für Informatik, S. 463-468

Lindner, R./Blümel, C. (2008): Fallstudien zum Interneteinsatz im Petitionswesen: Gutachten für das TA-Projekt Öffentliche, elektronische Petitionen und bürgerschaftliche Teilhabe, Karlsruhe: Fraunhofer ISI

Lindner, R.; Riehm, U. (2008): “Electronic Petitions and the Relationship between Institutional Contexts, Technology and Political Participation”, in: Parycek, P.; Prosser, A. (eds.): EDem 2008. E-Democracy Conference. 29-30 September 2008, Krems, Österreichische Computer Gesellschaft, 157-168