The Tools, Methods or Processes can be described in terms of their properties or the Objectives they support:

Instrumental: Concerned with enhancing the quality of decision-making, finding acceptable outcomes and the integration of these into a legitimate process.

• Use of the tool assists in production of acceptable/tolerable outcomes
• There is a clear definition of the issue
• The results feed into or can be incorporated in a legitimate process
• The tool enhances the quality of decision-making

Procedural: Concerned with the conduct of the process, for example whether it provides conditions that assure equal rights for all participants.

• Transparency
• Legitimacy
• The presence of a deliberative environment
• There is equality of access
• There is the ability and freedom to speak (stakeholders are not bound by disciplining nature of the event, the process does not dictate roles)
• Inclusiveness (the tool allows inclusion of all relevant/appropriate entities, capture of inappropriate interest groups is avoided/ representative of different views and groups of stakeholder)

Constitutive: Refers to the benefits implied by participation, such as for example the development of understanding and capacity building.

• The tool assists in the improvement of trust and understanding between participants/reduction of conflicts
• There is development a sense of shared responsibility and common good
• The tool assists in capacity building/ learning

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