Kim Jong Un made the unusual decision not to give a speech at the most recent party plenum, and his silence produced a predictable raft of speculation, including that the North Korean leader was again suffering from health issues and that the regime lacks confidence due to economic “underperformance.”

But analysis of the plenum result and of related trends points to another possibility — that Kim is moving toward a leadership style that allows for more involvement from lower-level party members.

North Korea appears to have entertained something similar earlier in Kim’s rule under the