During Pericles' rule, Athenian citizens were expected to be actively involved in the political decision-making process. This form of governing is known as

During Pericles' rule, Athenian citizens were expected to be actively involved in the political decision-making process. This form of governing is known as direct democracy.

Explanation:

Direct democracy is a form of government in which decisions on individual issues are made in a democratic order directly by the voters themselves. Direct democracy can occur when the number of persons entitled to vote is rather small. Direct democracy as a governing body at national level does not exist today, but usually there are different forms of representative democracy where representatives elected by the voters make decisions on individual issues.

However, there are elements of direct democracy in many representative democracies, for example in the form of referendums. The early Athenian democracy can be said to have applied a form of direct democracy with only a few, mainly military, elected officials. At the cantonal level, direct democracy has been a strong feature of Switzerland through so-called Landsgemeinde, which, however, has been abolished in all but two cantons.