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Quickstart: your first study

This guide walks you through launching a minimal modified e-Delphi study in Delphi Studio. Expect 30–45 minutes for setup if you already have items drafted and a panel list ready.

Watch the walkthrough​

The video covers the same path as the written steps below. Use whichever you prefer — the written guide is the reference for exact field names and thresholds.

Before you begin​

PrerequisiteWhy it matters
Researcher accountSign in at delphistudio.org
IRB approval or exemption (if required)Captured in Protocol & Ethics; bound to consent
Draft items (5–15 statements)Imported or entered in the item bank
Panel emails (10–20 experts)Magic-link invitations; no accounts needed
tip

Start with the Modified e-Delphi preset unless you are running a RAND/UCLA appropriateness study. You can customize every default before launch.

The five-step path​

Step 1 — Create a study​

  1. From the Dashboard, click New study.
  2. Enter a title (e.g. Core competencies for rural telehealth nursing).
  3. Choose Modified e-Delphi as the starting method.
  4. Delphi Studio creates a draft study and seeds email templates.

Step 2 — Complete the design wizard​

Work through the canonical 11 steps in order:

StepWhat to configure
1. Study SetupTitle, purpose, study lead, institution, and starting methodology
2. Protocol & EthicsProtocol upload and version, registration, and ethics or IRB details
3. MethodDelphi type, anonymity model, panel structure, and iteration strategy
4. ItemsAdd or validated-CSV-import statements and assign domains
5. RatingConfigure the response scale, labels, and dimensions
6. ConsensusPrespecify agreement, disagreement, dispersion, and stability rules
7. RoundsPlanned and maximum rounds, timing, reminders, and stopping behavior
8. FeedbackChoose controlled summaries and comments shown between rounds
9. PanelEligibility, target size, roles, COI requirement, and experts
10. CommunicationsConsent, invitation and reminder copy, sender, and quiet hours
11. Review & LaunchResolve blockers, acknowledge warnings, and request invitations

See the full Study design wizard for every screen.

Step 3 — Launch the protocol​

On Review & Launch:

  1. Fix any blockers (for example, a missing protocol, no active items, unset thresholds, empty consent, or an incomplete panel preflight).
  2. Acknowledge warnings (e.g. small panel size) with a documented rationale.
  3. Request invitations. Delphi Studio validates the current server revision, creates one-time access credentials, and queues the messages.

Invitation request, recruiting, and opening Round 1 are separate audited transitions. Round 1 remains closed until the recruitment, consent, and any required COI gates are satisfied.

Step 4 — Recruit the panel​

  1. Go to Panel and add panelists by email.
  2. Request invitations — each panelist receives a one-time access link after delivery is confirmed.
  3. Monitor delivery, acceptance, consent, COI, and enrollment as separate states.
  4. Resolve any enrollment blockers, then use the audited Open Round 1 action.

Panelists appear as pseudonyms (Panelist 1, Panelist 2, …) everywhere in the researcher UI.

Step 5 — Run Round 1​

  1. After recruitment gates pass, open Rounds and use Open Round 1 (use Plan next round for later rounds).
  2. Set opensAt / closesAt, then open the round.
  3. Panelists rate items on any device; optional comments are collected.
  4. Close the round when the window ends (or close manually).
  5. Review per-item result cards on the Results page; the heatmap is on the Report page.

If items are indeterminate, revise wording, plan Round 2, lock feedback packets, and open the next round. Panelists then see controlled group feedback before re-rating.

What to do next​

note

Delphi Studio runs background jobs (round auto-open/close, reminders, analytics) via a worker process. In production this runs continuously; your study operations do not require manual cron setup.