The dialogic turn: dialogue for deliberation

Abstract

Much of current debate on deliberative democracy verses on the difficulty of bridging the gap between normative theory and practical development. This article argues that, in order to bridge that gap and facilitate deliberative scenarios, more attention must be paid to the sociological core of deliberative democracy, namely, interpersonal communication. Dialogue scholarship has gained momentum over the past decade, offering a way forward in terms of enlarging the concept of deliberation while enriching its processes. This article proposes some reflections towards an integrated model of dialogue and deliberation (D+D) for collaborative policy making scenarios. The purpose is to explore, from a pragmatic and post-empiricist orientation, this particular crossroads of political science and communication scholarship.