Explaining the political use of evaluation in international organizations
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Explaining the political use of evaluation in international organizations Steffen Eckhard1 · Vytautas Jankauskas1,2
© The Author(s) 2020
Abstract Despite a growing literature on the politics of evaluation in international organizations (IOs) and beyond, little is known about whether political or administrative stakeholders indeed realize ex-ante political interests through evaluations. This is, however, especially important considering the booming business of evaluation and the proliferation of institutional assessments both in domestic and international politics. We argue that formally independent IO evaluation units informally orientate towards either member states or the IO administration, depending on who controls the unit’s budget, staff, and agenda resources. This should enable either actor to also use evaluation results along pre-defined strategic interests. Interview data gathered among evaluators, secretariat officials, and member state representatives of six IOs support the expected pattern, highlighting striking differences in the orientation of evaluation staff and evaluation use. Findings challenge the technocratic, apolitical image of evaluation, offering practical and theoretical implications for future research. Keywords International organization · International public administration · Evaluation · United Nations · Evidence-based policy-making
Introduction In public policy-making, evaluation is typically perceived as a functional tool in the final phase of a cyclical process (Anderson 1975; Brewer 1974; Howlett et al. 2009; Lasswell 1956). Evaluation is thought to inform policy-makers about past and present experiences, allowing for policy adjustment, learning, and accountability. This essentially follows a functionalist logic, where policy-makers seek effectiveness and efficiency, evaluation being one of the measures they take. Yet, in the political reality of public organizations, * Steffen Eckhard steffen.eckhard@uni‑konstanz.de Vytautas Jankauskas [email protected]‑muenchen.de 1
University of Konstanz, Universitaetsstr. 10, 78467 Constance, Germany
2
Geschwister‑Scholl‑Institut für Politikwissenschaft, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Oettingenstraße 67, 80538 Munich, Germany
13
Vol.:(0123456789)
Policy Sciences
evaluation finds itself caught between stakeholder struggles for interests and power (Azzam 2010; Bjornholt and Larsen 2014; Morris and Clark 2013; Pleger et al. 2017; Taylor and Balloch 2005; Wildavsky 1972; Weiss 1998). For instance, evaluation results may be helpful in justifying actors’ bargaining positions on policy decisions: “Whenever an evaluation affects the future allocation of resources and, hence, a change in power relationships, it is a political activity” (Wergin 1976, p. 76). Many authors lament these “politics of evaluation” (e.g. Banner 1974; Taylor and Balloch 2005; Weiss and Jordan 1976), suggesting that evaluation results can become “ammunition in political battles” (Schoenefeld and Jordan 2019, p. 377) or that stakeholders put pressure on
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