On conflict and consensus: A handbook on formal consensus decisionmaking

Butler, C. L., & Rothstein, A. (2007). On conflict and consensus: A handbook on formal consensus decisionmaking. Creative Commons.

From the text: Formal Consensus is a specific kind of decision-making. It must be defined by the group using it. It provides a foundation, structure, and collection of techniques for efficient and productive group discussions. The foundation is the commonly-held principles and decisions which created the group originally. The structure is predetermined, although flexible. The agenda is formal and extremely important. The roles, techniques, and skills necessary for smooth operation must be accessible to and developed in all members. Evaluation of the process must happen on a consistent and frequent basis, as a tool for self-education and self-management. Above all, Formal Consensus must be taught. It is unreasonable to expect people to be familiar with this process already. In general, cooperative nonviolent conflict resolution does not exist in modern North American society. These skills must be developed in what is primarily a competitive environment. Only time will tell if, in fact, this model will flourish and prove itself effective and worthwhile.

Beyond Consensus: Improving Collaborative Planning and Management

Margerum, R. D., & others. (2011). Beyond Consensus: Improving Collaborative Planning and Management, MIT Press: Cambridge Mass.

This book highlights severali mportant parts of conducting a consensus meeting which is getting the right people into the group, how the participants are collaborating, and effective product generated from consensus.These chapters go in to great detail on each of these topics and cite numerous case studies as evidence of what to do, and what not to do.  This book is useful because it shows real world examples of many of the problems that can arise from convening a consensus meeting.  It illustrates that the consensus meeting starts long before the group sits down to collaborate and its results may effect projects for years after.  The case studies are from a range of governmental management and the focus of this book is how to have consensus meeting have a tangible effect on management and policy.

Facilitation as Action Research in the Moment

Mackewn, J. (2008). Facilitation as Action Research in the Moment. The Sage handbook of action research: Participative inquiry and practice, 615-628

This article goes into detail about one key factor in a successful consensus meeting, the facilitator.  The author lists necessary skills for facilitation and describes the process of facilitation as Action Research in which the group influences how the facilitator works, navigating through preconceived notions of individuals, communities, or organizations, awareness of the wider context of the group, and managing group energy.  It lays out how facilitator’s behavior changes as the group develops.  It highlights the difficulties of facilitation and outlines what is required of a great facilitator.  The role of a researcher in a consensus meeting is that of a facilitator and this is an important read for anyone attempting facilitation using a Participatory/activist Research methodology.

Facilitator’s Guide to Participatory Decision-Making

Kaner, S. (2014). Facilitator’s Guide to Participatory Decision-Making. John Wiley & Sons.

This is exactly what it says, a guidebook to successful facilitation.  It details a variety of situations that can occur within participatory decision making, how this process should ideally go, and how to solve problems that arise in the real world application of facilitating participatory decision making.  This book contains many graphics and charts to illustrate facilitation.  It gives many examples of each step of facilitating participatory decision making as well as the necessary skills to achieve consensus.  It covers everything from setting up the layout of the meeting, how to write the ideas presented down, and how to guide diverse participants into agreement.  It focuses on the wide range of problems a facilitator can encounter during this process and gives a number of ways to best address them.

Consensus through conversation

Dressler, L. (2006). Consensus through conversation: How to achieve high-commitment decisions. Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

Abstract: Consensus is a cooperative process in which all of a group’s members actively develop and agree to support a decision that’s in the best interest of the whole. It’s not mere acquiescence-consensus goes several steps beyond, moves people from being resigned recipients of instructions to dedicated champions of an idea. Larry Dressler discusses the basic concepts behind consensus, shows you exactly how to prepare for a successful consensus-building process, takes you step-by-step through that process, and offers tips for success and traps to avoid. Throughout, he provides a host of tools and examples that make this an eminently practical and immediately useful guide.

Situated design methods

Simonsen, J., Svabo, C., Strandvad, S. M., Hansen, O. E., Samson, K., & Hertzum, M. (2014). Situated design methods. MIT Press.

This book’s main argument is that every design is situated and done from an important position in society. The book further states features of participatory design that include design methods, interactions between design, designers, design methods and users. Design also draws insights from different disciplines such as health and culture. The book includes eighteen situated design methods with cases and analysis of projects such as urban spaces and environmental systems. It describes methods for defining and organizing a design project, organizing collaborative processes, creating aesthetic experiences, and incorporating sustainability into processes and projects. Some of the design methods presented in the book include problem- and project- based approach.

Design, when everybody designs: An introduction to design for social innovation.

Manzini, E. (2015). Design, when everybody designs: An introduction to design for social innovation.

Participatory design: the book describes new social innovations that can be observed in a changing world where people design projects that generate different or similar solutions causing social transformations.  These new social innovations are characterized by expansive open co-design process in which new solutions are suggested and new meanings are created. The author also explains the differences in design by experts and by other individuals and how these designs interact. He also talks about how design experts can support meaningful social changes focusing on emerging forms of collaboration. The book draws from various projects across the globe and shows how design can trigger social innovation through collaborative action by experts and non-expert designers.

Community‐Based Participatory Research: Assessing the Evidence

Viswanathan, M., A. Ammerman, E. Eng, G. Garlehner, K.N. Lohr, D. Griffith, S. Rhodes, et al. 2004. “Community‐Based Participatory Research: Assessing the Evidence,” August.

Community-based Participatory Research (CBPR) is a participatory approach to research that is meant to increase the value of studies for both researchers and the communities being studied. When done properly, CBPR creates bridges between scientist and communities through the use of shared knowledge and valuable experiences. The advantages of using this approach in research are explained. This is a summary of the work commissioned by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to do a review of the community-based participatory research and its role in the improvement of community health. Four key questions were identified to do this review. They included finding out the definition of community-based participatory research, methods of implementation, the intended outcomes of this approach, and the criteria that should be used to review community-based participatory approach in grant proposals. The report then discusses the answers to these questions based on the research done with community research partners, academic researchers and research financiers and through the use of different data sources. Recommendations for scientists planning to use community-based participatory approach in the future are given such as creating a balance between research methodologies and community collaboration.

Are academics irrelevant? Roles for scholars in participatory research

Stoecker, R. (1997). Are academics irrelevant? Roles for scholars in participatory research. American Behavioral Scientist, 42, 840-854.

Interest in participatory research has exploded over the past decade. Academics seem to follow three approaches in participatory research: the initiator, the consultant, and the collaborator. After discussing the approaches, this article argues that doing the research is not a goal in itself but only a means. Participatory research is actually part of a larger community change project that is dependent on four roles: “animator,” community organizer, popular educator, and participatory researcher. Determining how the academic will fit in the project (as initiator, consultant, or collaborator) requires addressing three questions: What is the project trying to do? What are the academic’s skills? and How much participation does the community need or want? The answers to these questions will vary according to how organized the community is.

What Is a Mutual Aid Research Collective?

Superstorm Research Lab. 2013. “What Is a Mutual Aid Research Collective?” Superstorm Research Lab. July.

The Superstorm Research Lab is a mutual aid research collective made up of twelve researchers from different universities working to change the way research is done by using a mutual aid model. Mutual Aid Research is characterized by solidarity, or fellowship arising from common responsibilities and interests, and reciprocity, or mutual exchange, with fellow researchers and research participants. This is a non-hierarchical, cooperative decision-making organization where members elect to help one another achieve their goals by having shared responsibilities, skills, and grants, with weekly meetings led by a rotating facilitator.  The researchers also collectively develop an interview protocol that they use in all their research. In research the work done by the members, either collectively or individually within the group, is open to other researchers to use so long as they credit the source of the information in their work.