The Context of Evaluation: Balancing Rigor and Relevance

Background: The context in which an evaluation is undertaken impacts not only the core evaluation activities but also the ethical standards that guide our work. Theoretical constructs and ethical decision-making frameworks often may not support us in ethical dilemmas given certain evaluation setti...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of MultiDisciplinary Evaluation
Main Authors: Denise Lea Uehara, Tammy Tom
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: The Evaluation Center at Western Michigan University 2011-01-01
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.sfu.ca/jmde/index.php/jmde_1/article/view/278
Description
Summary:Background: The context in which an evaluation is undertaken impacts not only the core evaluation activities but also the ethical standards that guide our work. Theoretical constructs and ethical decision-making frameworks often may not support us in ethical dilemmas given certain evaluation settings. Purpose: The purpose of this article is to present an example of how a well-intentioned, responsive yet rigorous evaluation provided opportunities to expand our experiences. We conclude this paper with a set of recommendations for organizations/institutions, evaluators, project developers/ implementers, and grantors. Setting: Not applicable Intervention: Not applicable. Research Design: Not applicable. Data Collection and Analysis: Desk review. Findings: The complexities of conducting an external evaluation of a study that relied on a public-private partnership coupled with a complex intervention that was not fully developed resulted in unintended study limitations and necessitated adapting evaluation strategies and making ad hoc adjustments midstream. Through our recommendations we share our lessons learned and how challenges can be creatively and ethically addressed at the onset of an evaluation.
ISSN:1556-8180