Description
Book SynopsisBoth practical and theoretical in approach, this book is the perfect companion for student researchers and policy makers alike. It provides actionable advice for planning and implementing evaluations, while also instilling an ability to assess the evaluations of others and consider the ways in which evaluation evidence could influence policy and practice.
Drawing upon a wide range of examples from policy areas like education, criminal justice, and health and social care, this book showcases how evaluation is an interdisciplinary research practice with a spectrum of applications. Each chapter contains philosophical underpinnings and applied knowledge as well as examples from published evaluations.
Specific topics include how to:
- Choose an approach to evaluation
- Plan, design, and conduct evaluations
- Approach evaluations using theories of change
- Differentiate between process, impact, and economic evaluations
Trade Review
Program evaluation is key to the evidence based policy making that governments, NGOs, and even businesses are embracing all over the world. This unique, outstanding publication is required reading for anyone interested in understanding the key elements of this important topic.
-- Darrell Bricker
This book offers a refreshingly applied view of evaluation and shows how to fit methods and techniques to the contrasting circumstances and needs of different projects. Its cross-theory approach and practical examples will help advanced students and researchers alike address the real tensions that evaluators today face from rising user expectations and diminishing budgets and timeframes.
-- David Parsons
Table of Contents
SECTION ONE: GETTING STARTED What is evaluation? The ethics of evaluations SECTION TWO: UNDERTAKING AN EVALUATION Theories of change Process evaluation Impact evaluation Economic evaluation Evaluation methods SECTION 3: THE PRACTICE OF EVALUATION Planning an evaluation Conducting an evaluation SECTION 4: USING EVALUATION FINDINGS Systematic reviews Knowledge mobilisation: getting evidence into policy and practice SECTION 5: EVALUATION PARADIGMS Evaluation paradigms and the limits of evidence based policy Conclusion
