Best Practices in the Measurement and Evaluation of Track Two Dialogues: Towards a “Reflective Practice Model”

Abstract

Measuring the impact of Track Two dialogues has proven a difficult challenge for the field over many years. Each dialogue is different, which makes a standardized test difficult to achieve. Moreover, different actors wish to measure different things: “value” for money; impact on the conflict; how certain facilitation techniques work; and others. In this article, we present a model that can be used to measure the impact of a dialogue over time, while also encouraging reflective practice in the field. This “Reflective Practice Model” can be used to provide a snapshot of a particular moment – or as a vehicle for the accumulation of a series of such moments – thereby providing a means to observe and measure changes as the dialogue goes on.