Consolidation of “clusters” of related terms prior to Round
Three.
Prior to Round Three, the research team worked with the expert group to
consolidate a subset of some closely related terms that had reached the
threshold for further discussion during Rounds One and Two. For example,structure-activity relationship and structure-function
relationship had both reached the threshold for discussion, and a
single term to represent them was required to avoid the inclusion of
close synonyms in the final round of the Delphi method.
Thirteen such “clusters” were identified, and the research team came
to agreement on a single term that met the criteria to be a core concept
and best represented each cluster. Seven of the 13 recommendations were
endorsed by 80% of the Expert group. In the two workshops held between
Round Two and Round Three, single terms were identified to represent
each of the remaining six clusters in the final round.