Transparency (åpenhet)¶
Definitions in the sources¶
| Source | Definition/use | Page | U/T |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grimmelikhuijsen et al. 2013 | The availability of information about an organisation that allows outsiders to monitor its internal workings or performance | 576 | U |
| Grimmelikhuijsen et al. 2013 | Transparency of decisions, policy and outcomes; dimensions of completeness, colour and usability | 576–577 | U |
| Bear & Mathur 2015 | A ‘new public good’; transparency is not the same as openness | 18, 29 | U |
| Abiteboul & Stoyanovich 2019 | Data transparency: making data or summaries available; in tension with privacy | 3–4 | U |
| Vedder & Naudts 2017 | Transparency as such does not constitute accountability; transparency about context and purpose can still be created | 215 | U |
| Warren 2018 | Public trust requires public transparency and transparent oversight, but transparency has costs when it carries the weight of institutional norms | 90–91 | U |
| Steiger 2019 | Transparency is one of the seven elements of democracy | 81 | U |
| Aytac 2024 | When effectiveness and transparency in algorithms must be traded off, a democratic institution can strike the balance | 1441 | U |
Where usage diverges¶
- A means to trust or not? Abiteboul & Stoyanovich write that transparency and accountability are linked with trust (p. 4) [U]. Grimmelikhuijsen et al. find that transparency has a subdued and sometimes negative effect on trust (p. 575) [U].
- Transparency versus privacy: Abiteboul & Stoyanovich see a tension between data transparency and the privacy of those in the dataset (p. 4) [U]. In Grimmelikhuijsen et al. and Warren, transparency concerns institutions, not personal data [T].
- Transparency as ideal or practice: Bear & Mathur show that demands for transparency can have unintended effects, for example less accountability in South Africa (pp. 29–30) [U].
Concepts easily confused with this one¶
- Transparency and accountability: Vedder & Naudts distinguish the two (p. 215) [U]. See accountability.
- Transparency and trust: see trust.
- Transparency and openness: Bear & Mathur, citing John, distinguish the two (p. 29) [U].
- Transparency and publicity: Warren uses publicity for whether a trust relationship can be justified to those it affects (pp. 81–82) [U].
How the concept is used in the primary documents¶
- NOU 2022:11:
- A national privacy policy presupposes transparency (åpenhet) about the processing of personal data (p. 12) [U].
- The summary describes transparency as a basic precondition for democratic participation, privacy and the rule of law, and states that automated decisions must be explainable (p. 17) [U].
- Assessments of privacy consequences in legislative work should be published (p. 84) [U].
- FFI report: social media's lack of transparency makes it difficult or impossible to find out who is behind activity (Sivertsen et al. 2026, pp. 3, 7, 10) [U].
Open questions for Rebekka¶
- Do the documents assume that transparency about the state's use of data will produce trust?
- Is transparency in the documents about the state's own practice or about the platforms?
- Do you use åpenhet and transparency as synonyms?