The Realpolitik of Evaluation
The Realpolitik of Evaluation shines a light on the divergent demands for evaluation. But what explains the gap between what those on the demand side expect in terms of evaluation results, and the supply of information provided by evaluators? Can anything be done to narrow this gap? What works and what does not work?
Examining these questions from both the demand and the supply side, experts describe ten different global examples of the gap between demand and supply of evaluation information in different contexts. In an attempt to bridge that gap, they effectively expose the biases behind supposedly non-partisan sources of evaluation information and highlight the pros and cons of attempts to bridge the gap through the use of third parties, enhanced stakeholder involvement, and the incorporation of social science models to strengthen Theories of Change (ToC).
The Realpolitik of Evaluation is an important book that poses questions at multiple levels of thinking. It will be of great interest to policymakers, program implementers, and project managers.
Markus Palenberg is the Founder and Manager of the Institute for Development Strategy (IfDS) in Munich, Germany, where he works as researcher, evaluator, and advisor. Over the last 15 years, Markus has conducted more than 40 research and consulting assignments in the public and private sector, specializing in evaluation of global programs and evaluating and advising on results-based management. He regularly serves as peer reviewer of research publications and advisor during the design phases of global programs, has published works on evaluation methodology, and has served on boards, executive committees and advisory panels for development programs and institutions.
Arne Paulson pursued a career in international development, working as an economist in a number of international organizations, including the World Bank, UNCTAD (Geneva), the International Energy Agency (Paris), and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), from which he retired in 2007. At the IDB, he worked in all aspects of evaluation, including ex-ante economic evaluation, ongoing monitoring of projects in execution, and ex-post evaluation of completed projects financed by the IDB. At the corporate level, he reported on the overall development effectiveness of IDB operations to the banks board of directors and at international conferences.
Comparative Policy Evaluation
Edited by Ray C. Rist
The Comparative Policy Evaluation series is an interdisciplinary and internationally focused set of books that embodies within it a strong emphasis on comparative analyses of governance issues drawing from all continents and many different nation states. The lens through which these policy initiatives are viewed and reviewed is that of evaluation. These evaluation assessments are done mainly from the perspectives of sociology, anthropology, economics, policy science, auditing, law, and human rights. The books also provide a strong longitudinal perspective on the evolution of the policy issues being analyzed.
The Realpolitik of Evaluation
Why Demand and Supply Rarely Intersect
Edited by Markus Palenberg and Arne Paulson
First published 2021
by Routledge
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and by Routledge
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Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
2021 Taylor & Francis
The right of Markus Palenberg and Arne Paulson to be identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A catalog record for this title has been requested
ISBN: 978-0-367-43432-8 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-00516-2 (ebk)
Typeset in Times New Roman
by Wearset Ltd, Boldon, Tyne and Wear
Contents
Per yvind Baste is Evaluation Director at the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad). Baste has broad experience in international development, evaluation, results management, and organizational change and has previously held senior positions in other parts of the Norwegian government administration, in the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank. He has published several books and articles on development policy, evaluation, and organizational change.
Brian Belcher is Professor in the College of Interdisciplinary Studies at Royal Roads University (Victoria, Canada), where he holds the Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Sustainability Research Effectiveness. Professor Belchers research focuses on research effectiveness, research quality, and knowledge translation, primarily in the context of natural resources management and sustainable development. He is developing and applying theory and methods to understand and improve research effectiveness, research quality, and the societal impact of research.
Richard Boyle is head of research, publishing, and corporate relations with the Institute of Public Administration in Ireland. He has worked with the IPA since 1986. His research interests focus on public service reform and developing and implementing effective performance management and evaluation systems. He has researched and written extensively on evaluation and public service reform and has worked widely with Irish central and local government, the OECD, and the World Bank. He is a former board member of the European Evaluation Society and a founder member of the Irish Evaluation Network.
Christina (Tina) Christie is Professor of Social Research Methodology and Chair of the Department of Education at UCLA. Dr. Christie specializes in social program and policy evaluation. Her research focuses on the factors and conditions that influence evaluation practice in an effort to strengthen our understanding of evaluation as a method for facilitating social change. Christie has served as a lead investigator on over 30 grants and contracts funding evaluative research on education, child maltreatment, and health behavior programs. She is the editor of four books, has published over 50 scholarly articles and book chapters, and is co-editor of the book series Evaluation in Action. Christie is the former Director of the UC Evaluation Center, a seven-UC campus research center, and currently serves as co-Investigator on the National Institutes of Health, Coordination and Evaluation Center for The Diversity Program Consortium. Dr. Christies awards include the American Evaluation Associations Marcia Guttentag Early Career Award (2004) and Distinguished Research on Evaluation Award (2019), and the American Educational Research Associations Research on Evaluation Special Interest Group, Distinguished Scholar Award (2018).
