What are participatory methods?
Updated - Monday 28 November 2005
What are participatory methods?
Participatory methods are interactive and often visual methods which encourage and facilitate the participation of individuals in a group learning and action planning process.
They are designed to build self-esteem and a sense of responsibility for decisions. Most methods attempt to make the process of decision-making easy and fun. They are suitable for planning, monitoring and evaluation at community level. When well-moderated they discourage dominance by any one individual. Group members learn from each other and build respect for each others knowledge and skills. They are especially useful in encouraging the participation of women who, in some cultures, may be constrained in expressing their views and may be illiterate.
Source: R. Sawyer, et al.(1998). PHAST Step-by-Step Guide: a participatory approach for the control of diarrhoeal disease , WHO, Switzerland, Geneva, (WHO/EOS/98.3)
