Accountability effects of public participation practice in Chinese public projects: Partial least-squares path analysis

Public participation has become an indispensable approach for governments in meeting the various needs of accountability in delivering public projects, especially those concerning urbanization and infrastructure development in China. However, it is not known how, and how much, current public participation practice can enhance project-related and social accountability (SA). Based on a survey of 158 participants with various stakeholder roles in public projects in South China, underlying relationships are revealed of project decision-making accountability (PDMA) and project implementation accountability (PIA) and their association with SA. Further partial least-squares path analysis indicates that PDMA has a long-run mediating role in the establishment of SA, while PIA does not. These results and findings not only enhance a deep understanding of the overall effects of public participation forms in the theoretic domain, but also useful practical guides to improve China’s local government and practitioner practices.