One-point query (One-dot voting)

ACTIVITY TYPE

Consulting
Deciding together
Reflection and feedback

DESCRIPTION

Dot voting is a simple tool used to democratically prioritize items or make decisions in a group setting. It is an easy, straightforward way to narrow down alternatives and converge to a set of concepts or ideas.

In dot voting, each individual in a group is given a number of tokens (“dots”) that can be each assigned to an alternative which is part of a set of alternatives.

HOW TO USE IT ONLINE

Use on line tools like Mentimeter

RESOURCES NEEDED

Time to do: 10-15 min
Staff: at least one facilitator
Equipment: whiteboard/ wall, post it stickers, colour dots

SUITABLE FOR

large and small groups

HOW TO DO IT

The facilitator writes down the question, assertion or thesis and makes sure that it is clear to everyone.
Then he/she draws a scale and explains the procedure.
Each participant receives a dot in the same colour and sticks his/her dot on the scale. The scale can be sliding (0-100%) or gridded (fixed selection of fields, e.g. ++; +; 0; -; –).
Everybody votes
The result is then discussed.

ADVANTAGES

Simple rating technique

CHALLENGIES

The participants can influence each other. In order to avoid this, it is good if the dots are glued without comment and if everyone thinks about where the dot should be placed.
If the question is critical, the evaluation can also take place face down with cards on which the participants note the value, which is then transferred by the moderator into the scale with the sticky dots.

VARIATIONS

Multi-dot voting: The procedure is identical to the one-point query. The number of points or dots depends on the number of list items / topics and the number of participants. 3-5 dots are suitable without being confusing. Several points may be awarded per topic, but if there are many dots, it makes sense to limit the dots awarded per topic (max. 3)

MORE INFORMATION

https://www.nngroup.com/articles/dot-voting/

Source: http://www.academy4excellence.de