[5] Later, the term cropped up in German politics and was often quoted by Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, who argued that the concept opposes the normative postulates promising certainty and stability.
[5] As the standard bearer of the Christian Democratic Party, he popularized the concept by consistently attacking it during the 1957 German election campaign.
[6] Through the slogan, Keine Experimente (No Experiments), he argued that the successes of postwar Germany should not be risked by the reform plans that other parties proposed.
[8] Due to the structural complexity and the unpredictable dynamics of modern society, processes are understood as experiments in democratic experimentalism.
As experiments can generate learning, they contribute to the solution of complex technical problems and also empower citizens to challenge contested or dominant views in society.
[14] From Adenauer's critique more than half a century ago, recent observers underscore the importance of democratic experimentalism, citing that it has created a new mode of experimentalist governance.
These include the difficulty in measuring success as well as the institutional will and the capabilities of public, private actors, and social movements to complete undergo benchmarking, and agree on the need for best practices, among others.