Credibility, Validity, and Assumptions in Program Evaluation Methodology
This book focuses on assumptions underlying methods choice in program evaluation. Credible program evaluation extends beyond the accuracy of research designs to include arguments justifying the appropriateness of methods. An important part of this justifi
- PDF / 3,722,589 Bytes
- 178 Pages / 439.44 x 666.24 pts Page_size
- 84 Downloads / 180 Views
Apollo M. Nkwake
Credibility, Validity, and Assumptions in Program Evaluation Methodology With a Foreword by John Mayne
1 3
Apollo M. Nkwake Tulane University New Orleans Louisiana USA
ISBN 978-3-319-19020-4 ISBN 978-3-319-19021-1 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-19021-1 Library of Congress Control Number: 2015942678 Springer Cham Heidelberg New York Dordrecht London © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2015 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. Printed on acid-free paper Springer International Publishing AG Switzerland is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)
To Maureen, Theodora, Gianna, and Benita—my women of valor.
Foreword
Methodology is at the heart of the evaluation profession. Much of the evaluation literature is discussing various methodological approaches for different types of interventions. Using appropriate and valid methodologies to reach credible conclusions about interventions is the aim of all evaluations. Methodologies for evaluation have also been and continue to be the subject of intense debate among evaluators: quantitative versus qualitative; RCTs as the “gold standard” or not; theory-based approaches versus experimental designs; mixed methods, etc. These decades-old debates, while they can be distracting, no doubt are a sign of a healthy innovating profession. A tailor-made and appropriate methodology needs to be developed for each evaluation; there is no prescribed way of evaluating a specific intervention. Of course, just what is an appropriate methodology is not obvious in a specific evaluation, and indeed different evaluators would likely argue for a variety of different “best” approaches. But the debates sometimes do sound as if each side is not listening to the other and not trying to understand what is behind positions taken. Further, new approaches and methodologies are emerging all the time, particularly as interventions have become more and more ambitious, trying to attain higher level, mo
Data Loading...
