Abstract
In this article, we develop a theoretical framework for investigating how organisational culture relates to the roles of elected representatives. Based on Douglas’s grid and group logic, our framework evaluates two cultural dimensions, negotiability and conflictuality, upon which these roles depend. The negotiability dimension describes elected representatives’ roles from a strictly hierarchical and bounded notion of how politics should be handled to a horizontal and inclusive notion. The conflictuality dimension considers politics as confrontation versus a deliberative consensus-oriented way of handling political issues. By investigating a participatory governance measure called ‘task committees’, we examine how the framework functions empirically. Our analysis shows how different aspects of organisational culture are reflected in councillors’ interpretations of and practices related to this interactive participatory governance scheme and illuminates the implications of organisational culture for the use of such schemes.
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