Keypads are audience response devices that look like little calculators or remote controls. They are used in group meetings or events to collect audience responses or opinions, allowing audience members to interact with presentations, give feedback, and become more engaged in large-group settings. Keypads are often used as an added element in large-group deliberation and dialogue events. This resource lists and links to experts in keypad response system as well as mobile device response systems, as recommended by NCDD members in April 2010. (continue)

Technology of Participation (ToP®) is a collection of highly practical group facilitation methods developed by the Institute of Cultural Affairs (ICA). ToP consists of methods that enable groups to (1) engage in thoughtful and productive conversations, (2) develop common ground for working together, and (3) build effective short- and long-range plans. The ToP methods grew out of ICA’s work in community and organizational development around the world. ICA developed and tested the initial forms of these processes in the early 1960s in a new style ... (continue)

The "ladder of inference" concept explains why most people don't usually remember where their deepest attitudes came from. The data is long since lost to memory, after years of inferential leaps. Being aware of the ladder of inference enables peopel to improve their communications and thinking by (1) becoming more aware of your own thinking and reasoning (reflection); making your thinking and reasoning more visible to others (advocacy); and inquiring into others' thinking and reasoning (inquiry). (continue)

According to graphic facilitator Brandy Agerbeck (www.loosetooth.com), graphic facilitation is the practice of using words and images to create a conceptual map of a conversation. A graphic facilitator is the visual, usually silent partner to the traditional, verbal facilitator, drawing a large scale image at the front of the room in real-time.... (continue)

The Kettering Foundation long ago identified a disconnect between the public and politics. People in communities all over the country felt estranged from their elected representatives, from their public institutions, and most importantly, from each other. A significant portion of this disconnect focused on how issues in communities got named and framed. Kettering surmised, correctly, that if a public issue was named in such a way that the public could not identify with it, then the public would have a difficult time supporting it. However, if the public could identify a public problem together (naming) and then discuss choices on how to solve the particular problem (framing), then the likelihood of greater community action increased ten-fold. (continue)

Facilitators of dialogic and deliberative processes often develop their own standard set of ground rules which they suggest groups adopt or modify to meet their needs. Here are some samples of ground rules from organizations which represent various streams of online and face-to-face D&D practice. Use this list to get new ideas for ground rules or to show a variety of sets of ground rules to facilitators you are training. (continue)

A "frame" is a way of understanding or interpreting what is going on and how we should relate to it. How we frame an issue or conflict (or how it is framed for us) has a tremendous impact on what we do about it. This post was created in the NCDD wiki, and mainly features an article by Tom Atlee of the Co-Intelligence Institute. (continue)

Nominal group technique (NGT) is an alternative to brainstorming that uses a more structured format to obtain multiple inputs from several people on a particular problem or issue. (continue)

Photovoice is a process of collecting information and expressing issues and concerns through photos. Photovoice is highly flexible and can be adapted to specific participatory goals (such as needs assessment, asset mapping, and evaluation), different groups and communities, and distinct policy and community issues. (continue)

In a Talking Circle, people's turns are decided by the passing of an object around the circle. The sequence is totally predictable. This is highly structured dialogue. Sometimes a group wants to use an object to guide their discussion but they don't want to go around in a circle. They want more spontaneity. So the object is returned to the center after each turn and picked up by whoever wishes to speak next. This is sometimes called 'popcorn' because the object pops in and out of the center. Since it is a bit less structured, it is considered more 'open' than a formal Talking Circle. (continue)