title: Creative consensus on interpretations of qualitative data: the Ward method.
abstract: The Ward method (1987) offers an iterative approach to consensus building that encourages the development and consideration of each contributor's unique perspectives. Collaborators begin by orienting to the method and project-specific goals and then engage in an iterative process, cycling between individual creative work and group meetings. Meetings serve as opportunities to share ideas within a noncritical atmosphere. Paradoxically, much of the work of reaching consensus occurs while collaborators are working independently; across iterations, versions tend to converge as collaborators adapt and adopt what they like of one another's ideas. This article, which was itself written using the Ward method, describes the method, its strengths, and challenges associated with its use.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio 45056, USA. schielhj@muohio.edu
authors.forename: Hugo Josef
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Schielke
authors.forename: Jonathan Louis
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Fishman
authors.forename: Katerine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Osatuke
authors.forename: William B
authors.initials: WB
authors.lastname: Stiles
mesh_terms: D032921:Consensus; D005196:Family Therapy / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008960:Models, Psychological; D011584:Psychology / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*