NCJ Number
15385
Journal
EVALUATION Volume: 1 Issue: 2 Dated: (1973) Pages: 86-90
Date Published
1973
Length
5 pages
Annotation
A NEW APPROACH TO AGENCY EVALUATION PLANNING IS PRESENTED TO IMPROVE THE USEFULNESS OF PROGRAM EVALUATION BY, IDENTIFYING AND CORRECTING THREE MAJOR PROBLEMS IN CURRENT EVALUATION PLANNING PRACTICES.
Abstract
THE LACK OF A DESIGNED LINK BETWEEN EVALUATION AND MANAGEMENT DECISION MAKING, THE LACK OF STANDARD EVALUATION METHODOLOGIES, AND THE LACK OF KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE COST AND THE VALUE OF ACTING UPON EVALUATION INFORMATION ARE CITED AS THE MAJOR PROBLEMS CAUSING UNCERTAINTY ABOUT THE USEFULNESS OF EVALUATION. THE AUTHORS SUGGEST THAT THE METHODOLOGICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF EVALUATION SHOULD BE REPLACED BY ONE THAT DEFINES EVALUATION AS AN ASSESSMENT OF THE RELATIVE COSTS AND EFFECTS OF ALTERNATIVE PROGRAM MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES. IN THIS APPROACH, AN EVALUATION MODEL IS CHOSEN AFTER AN ANALYSIS AND DEFINITION OF THE PROGRAM AND THE DECISION-MAKING SYSTEM, AND IS VALIDATED BY MEASURING THE CONSEQUENCES OF DECISIONS MADE AS A RESULT OF EVALUATION INFORMATION. A DIAGRAM OF THE RECOMMENDED EVALUATION SYSTEM, INCLUDING DESIGN, EXECUTION, AND IMPLEMENTATION STAGES IS PRESENTED, AND SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPLEMENTING THE RECOMMENDED APPROACH ARE GIVEN.