Anticipatory exclusion refers to a citizen's decision not to attend a discussion due to the anticipation of being excluded. The citizen would never take part in a discussion because he/she believes that his/her views and perspectives wouldn’t be given equal time or consideration, when compared to dominant views. In other words, the (often realistic) fear of being excluded, discounted, or dismissed causes a person to decline an opportunity to attend a public event. Calling this "exclusion" implies that the individual's personal decision not to participate actually reflects a larger historical pattern of active exclusion toward similar individuals.

Causes

Anticipatory exclusion is often caused by internal exclusion, which is the way certain dominant ideas and social perspectives can control a discussion even when participants have diverse perspectives (Fung 2004, p. 49). In contrast, external exclusion refers to the fact that minority viewpoints are rarely heard due to structural inequalities

Structural inequality

Structural inequality is defined as a condition that arises out of attributing an unequal status to a category of people in relation to one or more other categories, a relationship that is perpetuated and reinforced by a confluence of unequal relations in roles, functions, decisions rights, and...

 in a community (Fung, 2004).

Background

It is generally associated with Dahl's criteria for a democratic process, inclusion and effective participation, which many political theorists consider essential for a participatory or deliberative democracy

Deliberative democracy

Deliberative democracy is a form of democracy in which public deliberation is central to legitimate lawmaking. It adopts elements of both consensus decision-making and majority rule. Deliberative democracy differs from traditional democratic theory in that authentic deliberation, not mere...

 (Dahl, 1989). Many democratic theorists attempt to solve the challenge of anticipatory and other types of exclusion through formal equalization mechanisms, including structural and economic reforms that would guarantee all citizens have adequate time, education

Education

Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...

, and resources to deliberate (Sanders 1997, p. 7). But even when these inequalities are adjusted for Sanders argues that deliberative institutions might cater to and perpetuate inequalities against historically disenfranchised groups (e.g., women, minorities) (see also, Schattan, Coelho, Pozzoni, Montoya 2005).