This chapter offers more specific answers to the puzzle outlined in Chapter 1. It also explains what the trade-offs are in offering more or less specific answers and what kind of answers are more or less warranted by the evidence. I bring the reader on a journey through a logical comparison of the characteristics of PB cases and present findings to inform the implementation of democratic reform. I consider again those touted necessary conditions for empowered participation such as participatory leadership and civil society demand for involvement, and outline the specific circumstances under which they can be (ir)relevant to explanations of empowered participation.

I revisit Wampler's analysis, confirming the finding that no conditions ought to be considered singularly necessary, but some are necessary in specific contexts – the evidence suggests that in a Brazilian context contentious politics must be combined with either rules enabling participation or a financial basis for implementation of projects to produce democratic deepening. Moreover, I find democratic deepening in challenging financial circumstances is certainly possible, but all other factors need to be pointing in the right direction – a finding that suggests that in recovering or developing economic circumstances, PB requires positive political, institutional and civil society conditions for democratic deepening.

I then focus on the wider lessons across cases, and explain that meaningful involvement of citizens in collective governance often requires a combination of will and capacity to implement programmes from political and administrative leaders. I explain why political commitment to participatory politics is only a sufficient condition for good outcomes in combination with bureaucratic capacities or financial freedoms. I revisit the question of how civil society activity may explain democratic deepening for which the evidence is mixed. Again, there is evidence across all cases that financial constraints may concentrate the mind of actors – politicians, bureaucrats and autonomous civil society activists can work together for PB overcoming resource burdens. Nevertheless, I also find evidence that more top-down approaches to developing civil society capacities developed appreciably democratic results. I can pinpoint the extent of contradictory evidence that has been presented by researchers to highlight priorities for future research. Designers and adopters of PB can note substitutable combinations of conditions that have been consistently successful in achieving empowered participation.

Elimination using Boolean algorithmic analysis: a little helpful basics

The analysis of sufficiency relies on principles of logical elimination.