Regional Governance Networks: Filling In or Hollowing Out?

Abstract

The debate on what effect networks have on the existing institutions of representative democracy is highly polarized. On one hand, networks are regarded as means to ‘fill in’ where traditional institutions fail, and on the other, networks are viewed as arrangements draining or ‘hollowing out’ traditional institutions of power and legitimacy. In this article, filling in and hollowing out are treated as two distinct dimensions, opening up for the possibility that networks may both fill in and hollow out member organizations. The argument is that networks, to be able to fill in, must be ‘strong’ (autonomy, resources), but the stronger they become, the higher the probability that they also hollow out their individual members. This thesis is empirically illuminated by studying political governance networks inNorway (i.e., voluntary cooperation between municipalities creating a regional council). Main findings conclude that these networks only to a very moderate degree fill in and hollow out, indicating that the networks play a largely symbolic role. However, there are variations between networks, and the data indicate that the degree of hollowing out depends on both the strength of the network (size and asymmetry) and its individual members (i.e., their population size).

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