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Academic English & Research vocabulary · Literature Review

Consensus

Meaning in academic english & research, with examples

/kənˈsensəs/nounCommon term

In academic english & research, consensus means: General agreement among a group, such as researchers in a field, about a fact, explanation or course of action.

In Turkish: uzlaşı, fikir birliği, konsensüs

How it is used

Frequent in literature reviews: 'There is no consensus on ...', 'a growing consensus that ...', 'the scientific consensus'. Researchers reach, build or challenge a consensus. The Delphi technique is a structured method for building consensus among experts.

Example sentences

  1. There is no consensus yet on how to define digital literacy.

  2. The expert panel reached consensus after three rounds of discussion.

Common collocations

  • reach a consensus
  • no consensus on
  • growing consensus
  • scientific consensus
  • consensus among researchers
  • body of literatureThe whole collection of published research on a particular topic, considered as a single source of knowledge.
  • literature reviewA critical summary of what has already been published on a topic, showing the main ideas, debates and gaps that a new study responds to.
  • evidenceFacts, data or findings that show whether a claim or idea is true or likely to be true.
  • counterargumentAn argument against your own position, which a writer presents fairly and then answers or weakens to make the main argument stronger.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Literature Review

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