Grant number: EXI/100/22/000012

This study asks how democratic are regulatory agencies in Catalonia, focusing on the notion of 'democratic qualities' which include transparency, participation, accountability, and inclusiveness. In addition, this study also asks whether these democratic qualities have the ability to increase public trust in the regulatory agencies and in the Catalan public administration in general. To answer these questions, this study utilizes a new measure to assess the extent to which four regulatory agencies in Catalonia, the Catalan Competition Authority (ACCO), the Catalan Audiovisual Council (CAC), the Catalan University Quality Assurance Agency (AQU) and the Food Safety Agency (ACSA), are legally obliged to transparency, participation, accountability, and inclusiveness and the extent to which they put these qualities into practice. This study then examines how democratic qualities affect stakeholder and public trust in ACCO, CAC, AQU and ACSA by employing (a) a series of interviews with different stakeholders in the food and data protection sectors in Catalonia and (b) an experimental survey of a broad representative sample of the Catalan population. The results will shed light on the current level of democracy and trust in Catalonia in a relatively understudied field – regulatory governance. In addition, this study will contribute to the overall understanding of the the role that different democratic qualities can play in enhancing trust.

Research Clusters related to the project

• Globalization and Public Policy
• Institutions, Inequality and Development