Description

The Citizens’ Assembly of Scotland was Scotland’s first national level assembly which brought together a cross-section of Scotland’s adult population. The Report of the Citizens’ Assembly of Scotland was published in January 2021 and the Government published its response in November 2021.

This report presents the findings of a collaborative research project led by a team of Scottish Government Social Researchers and independent academics from the Universities of Edinburgh and Newcastle, into both operation of the Assembly (internal dimension) and the relationship between the Assembly and wider Scottish society (external dimension).

Methodology

A comprehensive mixed-methods research design and an unprecedented level of access to the Assembly’s proceedings have resulted in an extensive dataset that provides evidence from the following:

•  Non-participant observation of all aspects of the Assembly weekends, including facilitator briefings and de-briefings.
•  Member surveys tracking changes in knowledge, attitudes and experiences of the Assembly weekends as well as wider views about democracy and Scotland.
• Recordings and transcripts of a sample of small group discussions analysed to assess deliberative quality.
• Population survey assessing awareness, understanding and attitudes towards the Assembly and providing a comparison to member survey data.
• Expert speaker survey gathering views of preparing for and participating in the Assembly.
• Interviews with organisers, facilitators and stewarding group gathering views and experiences of planning, delivery, outcomes and impact.
• Interviews with Scottish Government officials, politicians and journalists providing wider views on the Assembly.
• Analysis of media coverage of the Assembly.

Key Findings

Member Experience

Overall, it was clear that the majority of members found participating in the Assembly to be hugely rewarding; they felt included and empowered and, by the end of the Assembly, had an increased interest and enthusiasm for participating in other political and civic activities. The research found that the practical, technological and emotional support provided by the organisers and facilitators was important to this experience.

There was some evidence of gender differences in participation. For example, women tended to volunteer less to report back in plenary sessions during the early weekends but actions by facilitators and organisers helped to equalise participation in later weekends. The move online led to variation in experiences; some members reported finding participation easier whilst others less so. Most members missed the social side of the in-person weekends.

Learning and Evidence Provision

The majority of members expressed satisfaction with the expert speakers and advocates who provided input on a range of topics. There was also evidence that members learned from this input and by the end of the Assembly, their knowledge was greater compared with the general population. However, there were some challenges:

• the volume and breadth of knowledge and evidence presented were sometimes experienced by members as difficult to absorb.

• the six month pause in the middle of the Assembly, prompted by the COVID19 pandemic, made recall of evidence difficult when forming recommendations.

• there was limited diversity in both, the perspectives offered by expert speakers, and the approach to evidence provision.

Facilitation and Deliberation

In the Assembly, facilitators were supported by regular briefing and de-briefing and a culture of reflective practice. However, there was variation in how facilitators managed group dynamics and attended to inclusion to ensure the quality of deliberation. Limited time to review facilitation instructions prior to the Assembly weekends and differences in professional backgrounds impacted on the quality of facilitation.

Members’ deliberations were consistently respectful. An important feature of good quality deliberation – scrutiny and challenge – was largely absent in the small group discussions. The strong emphasis placed throughout the Assembly on cohesion and consensus together with limited framing of scrutiny as a positive dynamic during discussions was an important factor. Certain aspects of the design of deliberative sessions may have also undermined opportunities for constructive challenge. However, in general the quality of deliberation and facilitation improved as the Assembly progressed.

Governance

Despite formal arrangements covering the remits of those involved in organising and delivering the Assembly, most reported experiencing a lack of clarity at different points during the Assembly over respective roles and decision making. More time during inception of the Assembly to collectively agree respective roles would have been helpful.

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Produced for the Scottish Government by APS Group Scotland PPDAS1002178 (01/22) Published by the Scottish Government, January 2021