eDeliberative polling tools

Description:
Web applications, which combine deliberation in small group discussions with random sampling to facilitate public engagement on specific issues.

eParticipation areas:

• Deliberation
• Polling

Stage policy cycle: All aspects of policy and service definition where in-depth, informed debate is required by a recruited representative sample.


Specials:
Moderation and facilitation is required. Clear rules of engagement are required. Resource intensive and requires personnel who are skilled in social research methods. Resource implications are high.


Channel:
Mainly via Internet. Mobile channels with smart PDAs may have a big potential in the future.

Evaluation:
The eDeliberation members can be issued with evaluation questionnaires. These questionnaires can be circulated at the beginning of the process and after deliberation has taken place. The results can be analysed to demonstrate the effect of the deliberation process.

Additions:
http://cdd.stanford.edu/polls/docs/summary/ Also, a US funded research project exploring large scale online deliberative polls see the Picola Project at http://communityconnections.heinz.cmu.edu/picola/index.html