The Seven Common Sins Leading to Public Participation Failure

The following list is titled the "Seven Common Sins Leading to Public Participation Failure." It was developed by the Perspective Group, a firm that assists Think Tanks and other clients on Complex Systems and Organization tasks. The group's history can be found  here. Of note is their work with Stake-Holder Groups and participation.

The "Seven Sins" that we will face are as follows:

Lack of Commitment

The Checklist Approach

Public Participation Starts Too Late

Public Participation is Not Integrated Into Decision Making

Not All Stakeholder Voices Are Heard

The Public Is Not Adequately Informed

The Public Receives Inadequate Feedback

These seven issues are not the only problems that can occur, but provide a simple baseline. Generally, this list makes it clear that public involvement must be a desire of the entire organization and it must actively involve the public throughout the entire process. What is missing, at least from a rational planning perspective, would be the eighth sin, limiting the role of evaluation. As gatekeepers to information we can attempt to provide the public with everything known, but unless we continually evaluate our endeavors we will end up hitting one or all of those "sins."

Sources in order of Use:

http://www.theperspectivesgroup.com/links/sevensins.pdf

http://www.theperspectivesgroup.com/about/history.html