Among the most vulnerable regions to climate change are small islands and low-lying coastal areas, due to the risks associated with sea level rise, changing weather patterns and their impact on saltwater intrusion, storminess and coastal erosion. Engaging local communities in the analysis of their vulnerability to climate impacts and the identification of climate-resilient development pathways is increasingly seen as an approach that takes into account the complexities and challenges of climate change. To this end, local and indigenous knowledge are important sources of information for capturing future drivers of change not included in typical top-down approaches that often elicit expert knowledge to inform adaptation options. However, a conventional literature search indicates that less attention has been paid to 1) measuring research impact on decision making; 2) post-assessment monitoring, review and implementation; and 3) how critiques and limitations of theory and methods are addressed. To contribute to this debate, a meta-analysis of participatory approaches (PA) in community-level assessments of climate vulnerability and adaptation options is undertaken-specifically focusing on communities in small islands and low-lying coastal regions-alongside a review of the available evidence of the extent to which studies were designed to contribute to decision making ('usability of science'). The primary rationale for this review is to inform the methodological and conceptual thinking of a larger project seeking to develop a climate change vulnerability and adaptation assessment framework suited to integration, participation and collaboration in the context of rural island communities in Scotland.