Permanent shelter
Practical Action
Tools for participatory assessment
The following are some of the tried and tested tools of participatory assessment, these should be
adjusted and new approaches invented based on local knowledge and preferences.
Review of existing information – what do we know already?
Existing written material can provide a rich overview of relevant issues. Media, reports
and information gathered by others should be reviewed keeping in mind that often these
materials will have been written for a different purpose at a different time. Nonetheless
“secondary data sources” can promote thinking and raise many questions for further
exploration.
Observation – watch and learn
Simply watching people, noting what they do and how they act in a variety of situations
can be very instructive. For example, if you observe the dynamics at a gathering you will
get clues as to who is a natural or appointed leader in the community and clues will be
evident as to who is excluded either by their total absence or silence during discussions.
It is important to select the most appropriate tools and methodologies depending on the
location/ communities etc. It is recommended that a suitable combination of a few tools
is selected and used to obtain community participation.
Semi-structured interviews – talking with a purpose
People like to talk - having a conversation is the most natural thing in the world.
Careful planning and some flexibility can go a long way to guiding natural conversations
to ensure you cover issues of interest. Listening carefully and following up on the issues
which are of most concern will result in an awareness of people’s concerns, problems
and priorities for the future. Unexpected or new topics which arise can offer a fruitful
direction of enquiry to pursue. Such interviews can be carried out with individuals, in
small groups, and with specific people who are felt to be key players because of their
specialist knowledge or roles. Interviewers should stop at the end of each interview and
note their findings and share these with others at the end of each day to promote
learning and to revise the structure of future interviews.
Drama, role play, songs and visual art forms – tell us a story
Traditionally, performing arts can be used to
express ideas and concerns which might
otherwise remain buried. Sensitive issues can be
tackled in a non-personal way. Performers can
structure their story in a way that raises questions
or encourages the audience to determine the story
line. For example, role plays talking about the
lives of a fictitious Mr & Mrs Perera and their
children has been used to promote discussion
about HIV/AIDS in a way that saves any
embarrassment, raises problems and suggests
advice they might be given to overcome the
challenges they face.
Diagrams and visual tools – can you picture
this?
Diagrams and symbolic representation can
usefully represent the current situation and risks
faced at many levels. Laying symbols and
diagrams out and noting how people relate various
risks and measures to counter them can be
informative in understanding existing coping
mechanisms. The products may be interesting but
it is often the conversations that people have
during these processes that provide the richest
materials for learning. Comparing and talking
Figure 3: Photo credit: Practical
Action South Asia
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