Facilitating PSS Workshops: A Conceptual Framework and Findings from Interviews with Facilitators

Abstract

Recent research has emphasized the importance of workshops as a venue where planning support systems (PSS) are used in planning processes. Empirical studies of these workshops have previously largely overlooked facilitation, in particular the role of a moderator (steering the discussion) and/or a chauffeur (steering the PSS). Drawing on existing facilitation research, we identify four main categories of facilitation interventions: substantive, procedural, relational, and toolrelated. We use these categories to develop a novel conceptual framework for facilitation at PSS workshops. We test and develop this framework through semistructured interviews with eight experienced facilitators of PSS workshops in the US and the Netherlands. The interviews confirm the validity of the intervention categories, but also revealed a wider range of PSS-specific workshop outcomes. We conclude that successful facilitation of PSS workshops requires two different types of facilitation interventions: some to encourage PSS use, and others to prevent PSS domination of the group discussion. Facilitating PSS workshops is mainly about finding the delicate and context-dependent balance between these two extremes.

An Interactive Planning Support Tool for Addressing Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy Projects in The Netherlands

“…All mapping sessions were supported by a moderator and a chauffeur on each maptable, which has proven to be useful when carrying out interactive mapping sessions on a maptable [33]. The moderator facilitates and structures the mapping sessions by guiding the process, asking the right questions and making sure that all members of the group participate actively.…”

Interactive Knowledge Co-Production and Integration for Healthy Urban Development

“…Hirokawa and Gouran [49] divide the activities of facilitators into three areas: substantive, i.e., related to topics discussed; procedural, i.e., drawing attention to process elements like the agenda; and relational, i.e., attending to social or emotional issues [50]. In the ISUSS approach, the facilitator stimulates the stakeholders to share their perspectives, asking them for clarifications by encouraging them to make spatial references of their claims on the same.…”

Tables, Tablets and Flexibility: Evaluating Planning Support System Performance under Different Conditions of Use

“…In PSS literature, the term 'flexibility' refers both to the extent to which the information model or tool can be influenced by the user (Geertman et al 2013) or to limitations placed by facilitation on when a PSS is used and what data or visualization method will be used (Pelzer et al 2015). The process of model building is to a large extent about making choices (Meadows and Robinson 2002;Vennix and Gubbels 1992) and in most PSS many of these choices are made long before the PSS is applied in practice (Petch and Reeve 1999;Vonk and Ligtenberg 2010).…”

“…Hypothesis 1 Less facilitation flexibility leads to more generated ideas, higher scores on idea quality and higher process satisfaction scores both at the group level (communication, shared language and consensus) and at the individual level (insight) (based on Pelzer et al 2015).…”

“…Both te Brömmelstroet and Schrijnen (2010) and Vonk and Ligtenberg (2010) suggest that the process of developing the underlying model should be both flexible and facilitated, allowing for input of these stakeholders, for instance in selecting indicators and customizing workspaces. Following Pelzer et al (2015), such flexible facilitation strategies can have profound effects on PSS performance. Second, planning includes a range of tasks that influence the role of the PSS.…”